ORP Burza (Thunderstorm) was a of the Polish Navy

Polish Navy

The Marynarka Wojenna Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej - MW RP Polish Navy, is the branch of Republic of Poland Armed Forces responsible for naval operations...

 which saw action in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

History

ORP Burza was ordered on 2 April 1926 from the French shipyard Chantiers Naval Francais together with her sister ship Wicher. She entered service in 1932 (roughly 4 years after the initial deadline), and her first commander became kmdr Bolesław Sokołowski.

On 30 August 1939 the Polish destroyers ORP Burza, Błyskawica and Grom were ordered to execute the Peking Plan

Peking Plan

The Peking PlanThe "Peking" in the name is the traditional English spelling of the former name of the city that is now the capital of China, which is now spelled in the pinyin system 'Beijing'. At the time, the city was not the capital, and its name was Peiping. Before the Second World War in the...

, and the warships headed for Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

. On 1 September 1939, Polish destroyers met the British destroyers and . The British ships led the Polish ships to Leith

Leith

-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....

, and at night the Polish destroyers arrived at Rosyth

Rosyth

Rosyth is a town located on the Firth of Forth, three miles south of the centre of Dunfermline. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the town has a population of 12,790....

.

Burza assisted British forces off Norway in April 1940, and in the English Channel in May, 1940. Burza escorted convoy HX-217 as part of Escort Group B-6. While attached to Escort Group B-3, Burza escorted convoys ONS-167, HX-228, and SL-147/MKS-38. Burza was detached from ONS-167 to defend Convoy ON-166

Convoy ON-166

Convoy ON 166 was the 166th of the numbered ON series of merchant ship convoys Outbound from the British Isles to North America. Sixty-three ships departed Liverpool 11 February 1943; and were met the following day by Mid-Ocean Escort Force Group A-3 consisting of the USCG Treasury Class Cutters...

. While attached to Support Group 8, Burza escorted convoy SC-145 and the October 1943 convoy to establish British air bases in the Azores

Azores

The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...

. In 1944, Burza became a training ship, and in 1945 she became a submarine tender

Submarine tender

A submarine tender is a type of ship that supplies and supports submarines.Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally do not have the ability to carry large amounts of food, fuel, torpedoes, and other supplies, nor to carry a full array of maintenance equipment and...

 for Polish submarines. The Polish crew left the ship in 1946, when Burza was transferred to the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

.

In 1951, the ship was returned to the Polish Navy

Polish Navy

The Marynarka Wojenna Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej - MW RP Polish Navy, is the branch of Republic of Poland Armed Forces responsible for naval operations...

 and towed to Gdynia

Gdynia

Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...

 in July. Burza was overhauled and entered service in 1955. In 1960, she became a museum ship

Museum ship

A museum ship, or sometimes memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public, for educational or memorial purposes...

. After Błyskawica replaced her in that role, she was scrapped in 1977.

Commanders

• kmdr Bolesław Sokołowski (1932-33)
• kmdr ppor. M. Majewski (1933-37)
• kmdr ppor. Włodzimierz Kodrębski (1937)
• kmdr ppor. Stanisław Nahorski (1937-40)
• kmdr ppor. Antoni Doroszkowski (1940)
• kpt. mar Jan Tchórznicki (temporary)
• kmdr ppor. Zbigniew Wojciechowski (1941-42)
• kpt. mar. Franciszek Pitułko (1942-43)
• por mar. Stanisław Kinka (temporary)
• por. mar. Przemysław Wesołowski (temporary)
• kmdr ppor. Wacław Trzebiński (1944-46)

Armament

1932-1940:

• Four 130 mm Schneider-Creusot guns (4xI)
• Two 40 mm Vickers - Armstrong AA cannons (2xI)
• Four 13,2 mm Hotchkiss AA machine guns
  Hotchkiss machine gun
  Hotchkiss machine gun:*Hotchkiss M1909, light machine gun also known as the "Hotchkiss Mark I" in British service*Hotchkiss M1914, medium machine gun*Hotchkiss M1922, light machine gun*13.2 mm Hotchkiss machine gun, heavy machine gun...
  
   (2xII), from 1935
• Six torpedo tubes 550/533 mm (2xIII)
• Two depth charge launchers
• One depth charge thrower Thornycroft
• 30 mines

1940-1942:

• Four 130 mm Schneider-Creusot guns (4xI)
• One 76 mm Mk Vna gun
• Two 40 mm Vickers - Armstrong AA cannons (2xI)
• Four 13,2 mm Hotchkiss AA machine guns (2xII)
• Eight 12,7 Vickers AA machine guns (2xIV)
• Three torpedo tubes 550/533 mm (1xIII)
• Two depth charge launchers
• Two depth charge throwers Thornycroft

1942-1946:

• Two 130 mm Schneider-Creusot guns (2xI)
• One 76 mm Mk Vna gun
• Four 40 mm AA Mk VIII cannons (1xIV)
• Four 20 mm AA Oerlikon cannons
• Three torpedo tubes 550/533 mm (1xIII)
• One hedgehog
  Hedgehog (weapon)
  The Hedgehog was an anti-submarine weapon developed by the Royal Navy during World War II, that was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers to supplement the depth charge. The weapon worked by firing a number of small spigot mortar bombs from spiked fittings...
  
  
• Two depth charge launchers
• Four depth charge throwers Thornycroft

From 1955:

• Four 100 mm guns (4xI)
• Eight 37 mm AA cannons (4xII)
• One depth charge launcher
• Four depth charge throwers