Heavy Artillery Battalions as an Element of Strengthening the Firepower of the Polish Infantry Division at the End of the 1930s

Abstract

The article discusses the process of developing heavy artillery in Polish infantry divisions at the end of the 1930s. At the time, the intention was to strengthen the firepower of infantry tactical units, whose combat capabilities began to decline compared to similar divisions in other European armies. As part of this process, the formation of heavy artillery battalions for infantry divisions began in 1937. However, due to financial and equipment difficulties, until 1939 such battalions were created for only seven out of thirty infantry divisions. In addition, these battalions had not three, but two batteries with three guns each. Thus, the heavy artillery battalion had only six guns in total, and not twelve, like the regular artillery battalions. In infantry divisions where heavy artillery divisions were formed, positions of Divisional Artillery Commanders were also created as the nucleus of artillery headquarters at the tactical level. However, the formation of the aforementioned squadrons was based on the existing heavy artillery regiments, which reduced their staffing status and mobilization possibilities. Thus, while the creation of heavy artillery battalions for infantry divisions did undoubtedly strengthen the combat capabilities of the divisions themselves, on the scale of the entire artillery it did not significantly strengthen the Polish army as a whole.