PISTOL
OF MAJOR HENRYK SUCHARSKI
Museum of the Second World War
The Belgian-made FN Model 1910 pistol, caliber 7.65 mm, belonged to Major Henryk Sucharski. After being liberated from German captivity, he served in the Polish 2nd Corps in Italy from January 25, 1946. Due to his deteriorating health, he was hospitalized from August 19, 1946, in Military Hospital No. 92 in Naples.
At the end of August, he met with
a military chaplain, Father Jan Merta (1912–2022), who heard his confession. During their farewell, Sucharski gave the priest the pistol he had used in 1945–1946. Anticipating his death, the major wanted at least his personal weapon to return to Poland.
A few days later, on August 30, 1946, Major Sucharski died. He was buried at the Polish Military Cemetery in Casamassima. The funeral ceremony was conducted by Father Merta, who continued to care for the cemetery until 1968. After returning to Poland, the priest became one of the initiators of the exhumation and transfer of Sucharski’s remains to Poland, fulfilling the major’s final wish.
In later years, Father Merta lived and served in Przemyśl. He regarded the pistol as his most valuable possession. In 1998, during a Mass marking the 55th anniversary of his priesthood, he presented the pistol to Colonel Henryk Dziewiątka, then commander of the 14th Przemyśl Armored Brigade.
In September 2025, General Henryk Dziewiątka donated the pistol to the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk. The artifact, once belonging to the commander of the Military Transit Depot, will become part of the permanent exhibition in the emerging Westerplatte Museum, a branch of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk.
“In the life of museum professionals, miracles sometimes happen. The transfer of Major Sucharski’s pistol to our collection 80 years after his death would have been difficult to imagine until recently. Our joy is all the greater because Gdańsk is becoming the place where memorabilia of the commander of the peninsula’s defense are being consistently gathered. Some of them are already in the collection of the Museum of Gdańsk. Without these objects, building a compelling and meaningful museum narrative about Westerplatte, one of the most important Polish memorials, would be extremely difficult,” said Prof. Rafał Wnuk, Director of the Museum.
Until the end of March 2026, as part of the “Entrance into History” series, Major Sucharski’s pistol will be displayed in the museum building in
a showcase on level −3. The aim of the series is to present exceptional objects in the museum space that have not previously been shown in the main exhibition.
As part of the “Entrance into History” series at the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, visitors can see the pistol that belonged to the commander of the Military Transit Depot at Westerplatte, Major Henryk Sucharski (1898–1946). The weapon is a donation from General Henryk Dziewiątka. In the future, it will be displayed in the new building of the Westerplatte Museum.
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