Nowogród Sector - Heavy Polish Bunker

The Nowogród sector was the most modern part of the Polish Narew river defense line. The construction began in late June 1939, starting from the most important objects. Since the outbreak of war 22 various objects were put into use, some of them not fully finished.

This heavy bunker had an unique design, fitted to the terrain in order to support other objects. It was one of the key objects in the whole sector, securing the Narew bridge (which was much lower than the current one, so could be covered by fire from the armoured dome). The bunker was armed with 3 heavy machine guns (one in armoured dome) and some light machine guns. As other heavy bunkers in this sector, it didn't have the ventilation devices installed. The heavy bunker crews were from fortress machine gun company under Captain E. Kordiaczyński's command and the whole sector was defended by Major J. Sikora's III. battalion of 33 Infantry Regiment.

During the Polish Campaign the sector was assaulted from 8 to 10 September 1939 by German 21 Infantry Division. The Narew bridge was blown up on 7 September, so this bunker became a secondary objective. The dome of this object was a target for several 3,7 cm PaK 36 guns. It was captured probably on 10 September 1939 by soldiers of Oberst H. von Behr's 45 Infantry Regiment. The bunker was later used by Soviets as a part of the Molotov-Line.

Currently this object is the best preserved one in Nowogród sector thanks to a group of local enthusiasts. It has an almost complete set of armour pieces, utility devices and the interior was renovated. Unfortunately the bunker is actually closed for tourists.

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Source

• Text: Piotr Popławski
• Photos: Piotr Popławski