I’ve just found some interesting info about a German radiostation in western Poland.
It still remains unclear what was its role in the german communication system during the war.
Most of the buildings were demolished, but one is still standing. I’ll post some pics later.
The historians and technical experts still argue why the Germans needed a radiostation of that size and capabilities there.
I don’t want to create a false impression, but it must have been very important, because… German units remained armed and kept fighting in this area till mid-June 1945!!!
When I gather more info and time I’ll post much more detailed description.
Ok, found some stuff in english for you.
“[…]Its purpose is unclear to this day and is the subject of the dispute, not only to historians. Without a doubt, it was an important link in the German system of radio communications, and perhaps that and radiolocation. Probably the Germans still occupied the base in the area ran the front. From the top of the hill because they had a perfect view of the ongoing hostilities in the bottom. The mast was probably blown up or dismantled by the Russians.
In mid-February 1945, the Russians launched a storm from the south on a hill. It was preceded by a precision attack artillery, which is confirmed by the ruins of the station. Razed buildings were barracks, but the construction of the temple, opaque radio equipment and assemblies of aggregates in principle was not violated. After several days, and especially heavy fighting, the radio fell. However, part of the German forces, stationed on the nearby hills still continued fighting capacity.
preserved to this day, shooting around the trench system Stanislav, indicate that Germany was prepared to defend from the north. Surprise for them was probably a Soviet outflanking maneuver, resulting in an attack on their backs and assault on Willmannsdorf - from the south. Remain unexplained to this day the reasons why so bitterly by the Germans led the defense, these are unlikely to have strategic importance, areas. Amazing is the fact that located nearby, the most advanced in the Third Reich (started in 1939) of copper ore mine bearing the name of “Lena”), was not defended. According to eyewitnesses - Polish forced laborers employed in the nearby villages, subjecting here the Germans, the Russians were taken prisoner. After the invasion of Rosocha, the Soviets hastily dismantled the facility and all equipment after transport to Jawor, then by train, sent to the east.
Until today, this land holds many mysteries, countless remnants of war the mass of defenders and iron. The process of demining of the area lasted until the seventies of the last century. Can attest to the Army ordnance maps of the period, which indicated areas still mined.
Passing through the gate, on both sides of the permanent barracks for the army unit stationed here. After the war, local residents dismantled their residues, using again as a building material. Barracks building on the right (non-existent today) was the entrance to the basement. Their complex system suggests that the underground could lead to other sites in the radio.
main building only preserved today, is built on a rectangular plan which can be accessed via a few steps. It has a solid reinforced concrete construction, inside walls are made of dark red brick. The same is also made of brick façade. The building has large windows. After going a few steps pass through a narrow corridor that spreads to several smaller side rooms. Opposite the main entrance extends the largest room - the main hall in an area of 100m2 housed the command center. Evidenced by the large windows which offer fantastic views, and a rectangular opening extending through the center of the room where the cables were arranged for generators or pumps in the basement. The room that housed the complex apparatus for sending and receiving. Looking up into the ceiling there is a small arcade with inserted tiny windows opposite each other. Having her around meter height can be said that it was only a skylight.
When we go down the staircase (on the left side of the building) down we find ourselves in a room in which the wall below the floor level was located doorway that leads directly to an underground tunnel in front of the main building … This is a huge reinforced concrete chamber, supported by pillars and reinforced with steel brackets. It is currently not known its purpose.
Returning to the level of the basement - there is a room located just below the hall with large windows (the one on the ground floor). Descended into a room that is cable installation, it was a kind of “fitness.” On the floor there are six concrete foundations under the units, the walls and ceilings jut residual electrical installation. The smaller room next to the auxiliary facilities. Easy to see remnants bathrooms, showers and toilets. Interestingly, some areas remained colors of the walls - probably the decorations are, however, the post-war and were created by Poles utilize this building.
Near the main building there are many remnants of the old days: a well covered up, disputes square pool, and the mound, hiding a few meters deep in the tank. Is not known precisely this use of the silo, however, was probably a tank to cool the lamp power levels. Known, however it is in some way connected with any of the other buildings (probably the main building by radio), because in the middle to feel a gust of air.
radio station below the building on the hillside, we find remains of dug in the ground concrete foundation on which to base design was the mast. Nearby lay a solid stone blocks with metal rings, which served as the guys ropes of the mast. It is interesting to cite an Internet statement “Festung” of 09.03.2010, the possibility of describing the aforementioned radio. Property:
Based on the spacing of the other to this day basis antenna masts of at ~ 120 m can be assumed that Short was a radio station. On the assumption that if the half wave dipole antenna was, it wypadałby radio frequency in the lower range of short-term, ie 2.5 to 3 MHz. However, with any other type of antenna wire (I reckoned another could stretch between the poles of the above. Spacing?), The frequency of its work would include within that range.
so low in the short-term did not work (and work) Short no broadcasting, therefore, rule out the assumption that the object could be one of hundreds of German shortwave transmitters working for Dr. Goebbels’ propaganda ministry, and addressed to the foreign student (foreign, because the scale of German Volksempfangerów was not short-range, and even listening to the shortwave radio station of the Third Reich was forbidden and severely punished .) Next: its scope is not used for long-range communications, rather, within the range of stable reception in the summer is about 200 km to 300 km at night (winter of 300 and 900 km). But it is worth to underline the fact that the mountain has a special property Rosocha propagation, which has been repeatedly proved by amateurs using this space to carry out communications as the VHF bands - no other nearby hill, even coarsely higher, was not as useful as Rosocha. Probably this is related to the low conductance of land, because we must remember that the interior of the mountains are vast iron ore and other metals, whose presence always has a decisive influence on the choice of the antenna systems, including the receiver. Please also note that half a century ago, “quality” was far more favorable light: power of 120 kW radio long before the war in Southern Europe allowed for coverage for the whole of Europe, bordering the northern winter in Africa and Central Asia, and even the Americas. To get in the 70s similar coverage of the last century, the late. radio station in Gabin had to have power almost 20 times higher, as many as 2 MW! Today you would probably tens of megawatts. Besides, everyone can see for yourself about how on earth is the current radio space - just listen to the Polish Radio broadcast from Solec Kujawski. Maybe it was not so bad to range and it was just enough? Low-frequency short-term, provide greater certainty to the radio link, albeit on a smaller scale.
Reflecting the number of transmitters resort but it is at least 6 On one wall there are clear today subtitles zu Sender 5 Sender zu 6th It’s a mystery. It is known, of course, a device called a power combiner, summing the power of several transmitters, but it is cumbersome, technically difficult in the 40s, and beyond that is used in very specific solutions. More tempted to claim that the transmitters worked alternately on different frequencies, according to some algorithm, for kryptażu transmitted information.
Another issue is the hypothetical power radio transmitters: the size of the chamber and the size of a transformer station tank for the cooling tubes of Power radio station, I conclude that it was large, and appreciate it for at least a dozen - tens of kW. A mystery is how the electricity supply to the building - there is no trace of a line or overhead cable.
Another mystery is coming to a radio modulator. It does not matter whether it was telegraphy, Hellschreiber or just a audio signal: we always have to be generated and sent somewhere. By whom? I do not think the place was the “brains” of the entire project, the objects were too modest resort. So the next question: why? Next: what path signals and sent here? Radioline? Telephone cable? Imported recorded on discs or reels drutofonów already known? Antenna location meant that radiated in exactly the direction north - south. Direction south is obscured Bandwidth
Sudetenland with the highest: Giant. At low RF attenuation bring up - that the Germans could not ignore. Thus north? Open, without obstacles to the farthest horizon. Baltic? As if a little too far. Berlin? Without meaning, there was the confident, stable system of long-range multiple telephony. Connectivity up? Similar centers were built in Krotoszycach and under Strzegomia - may constitute a logically linked to the whole? It is certain that the mystery Rosochy and other radio stations they took with them the victorious Soviet Army soldiers, given the each radio equipment dismantled.[…]”
Source: http://akmecinus.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html
Hello. I am interested in the radiostation you mention. I knew a man assigned there during WWII. He has since died. Can you give specific directions to the site or even latitude and longitude? Perhaps road directions from Liegnitz (now Legnica, Poland).
Are there any photographs available from the war or anytime, even up to the current time? What was the identification of German units assigned there from 1940-1945?
Is it correct that Willmannsdorf, which is known as Stanislawow, Poland today, is very close to the radio station?
Thanks,
dang130
USA
The ruins are located here: 51.072778,16.004527
Some photos are here:
http://www.forum.eksploracja.pl/viewtopic.php?t=3872
And video here (I haven’t seen it, as got no access to youtube at work and my own laptop is broken):
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlVkA7zb6ik
I don’t know anything about the German unit assigned there and I’m afraid that info is not widely known.
So, it would be great if you shared with us whatever you know about that place, whatever your source told you about it.
In fact, I haven’t met anybody who knew somebody stationed there.
The German soldier I knew was born in 1910 and died in 1991. He was from Neusalz, Schlesien, now Nowa Sol, Poland on the Oder River. He served from the late 1930’s until early 1940’s as an enlisted man in the Luftwaffe in Willmannsdorf, close to Liegnitz. Later he was assigned elsewhere in the western front area. He was in what I would call the equivelant of the Signal Corps in the US military. He mentioned Willmannsdorf many, many times. His Soldier’s Book (Soldbuch), which I have, has many entries stamped with “Liegnitz.” It makes perfect sense to me the site in today’s Poland was a communications or signal site of some kind since the soldier was trained and served in that capacity. He never spoke about specifics of his duties there or what the site’s function was. I would like to know more, too. Thank you for the pictures. Where did the soldiers live?..up on the hill in the brick building or barracks or in the town or village?
Thanks from USA
One of the members of that polish historic exploration forum gives a brief description of buildings.
1 - main building with the spacious basement
1a - a concrete floor with three sqaure holes closed with concrete
2 - fuel tank
3 - quite large underground object
4 - remnants of living quarters (size not mentioned)
5 - 3 conrete bases of radio antenna
6 - same structure as 5, just a bit smaller
I think there could be also a platoon or two stationed in a village.
Was he in Luftwaffe signals ? or signals intelligence?
He was definitely in the Luftwaffe so I assume Luftwaffe Signals but I am not knowledgable about how signals were structured in the German WWII military.
Are there good places to stay in the Legnica area if I ever come in person to investigate? I would be interested in a Professional Polish and English speaking trustworthy private guide/driver with transportation for two passengers. Perhaps even able to speak German, too. My interest would include Nowa Sol (Neusalz) to Gora (Guhrau) and then down to this area of Stanislawow (Willmannsdorf) and Legnica (Liegnitz). Perhaps some east of Wroclaw (Breslau) also. Is there a good hotel in Nowa Sol? A visit would be for perhaps three or four days.