From the steamer to the military vessel: scientists have discovered a sunken "Hetman Zholkivsky"

Archaeologists have found a place of flooding "Hetman Zholkevsky" - a ship that went a long way from a passenger steamer to part of the Pinsk Fleet. In 1939 he was flooded with a crew to save from the seizure of German troops. Archaeologists have discovered the place of the shipwreck in the Polish city of the new yard Mazowiecki, near the Modlin fortress, located at the point of merger of the Naev and Vistula.

It is believed that these are the remains of Hetman Zholkivsky - a ship with a rich past associated with the military history of Poland and Ukraine, Heritage Daily writes. In focus, technology appeared its Telegram channel.

Subscribe to not miss the latest and most intrusive news from the world of science! Originally built in 1887 in Warsaw as a passenger steamer, named Henryk, the ship crossed from hand to hand before it was purchased by the Polish Military Fleet during the 1920 Kiev offensive operation, a joint campaign of the UNR and Poland, aimed at returning Ukrainian lands from Soviet control.

After the Polish-Bolshevik War (1919-1921), the ship became part of the Navy of the Navy, also known as the Pinsk Fleet. In 1939, during the invasion of Poland, Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic and the Soviet Union, many ships of the flotilla, including "Hetman Zhulkevsky", were flooded to avoid admiration. Documents indicate that Hetman Zholkevsky at that time served as a tugboat as part of the bridge battalion in Kazun, but the circumstances of his flooding in the Nazi River remain unknown.

Many years of studies of the Triglav Search and Research Group, which deals with the identification of historical artifacts related to the Modlin Fortress, has led to this discovery. The researchers collected the testimony of soldiers stationed in Modlin in 1939, who mentioned that military equipment and vessels were deliberately flooded to prevent their capture by German troops.

Six flooded ships were discovered with the help of a hydraulic locker, one of which stood out with its armored illuminaters and a power plant, which corresponded to the descriptions of "Hetman Zholkevsky". On October 5, 2024, the diver Arthur Sobchak confirmed the identity of the sunken vessel, finding a name plate.

The Polish Navy Museum has shown an interest in storing artifacts from the sunken vessel, as it is currently lacking in exhibits related to river flotilla, which gives a unique opportunity to replenish its collection with historically significant exhibits. Earlier, Focus wrote about the success of the archeological project in Norway. Archaeologists confirmed the findings of volunteers who found about 1000 ancient mounds.