
Chilling never-before-seen pictures have emerged that show the first shots of the Second World War being fired.

The heart-stopping images show the Nazi battleship SMS Schleswig-Holstein sending shots blazing towards Danzig harbour on Poland's Westerplatte peninsula at close range in the early hours of September 1, 1939.

Fired at dawn, the shots began the Nazi invasion of Poland and saw Britain declare war on Germany for a second time two days later.

They triggered the six-year conflict that tore Europe, Japan and the USA apart and left 70 million people dead.

The black and white snaps were taken by a German sailor and have ended up in the hands of a British historian who came across them on research trips to the country in the 1960s.

An album of them is now up for auction in Ashford, Kent and are expected to sell tomorrow for £250.

The beginning of World War II: This never-before-seen image shows the Nazi battleship SMS Schleswig-Holstein firing what is believed to be the first shot of the Second World War in Danzig, Poland on the Westerplatte peninsula at dawn on September 1 1939. The vessel fired at close range destroying the nearby harbour. It was the beginning of the Nazi invasion of Poland, known as the September Campaign, and saw Britain declare war on Germany two days later to start the Second World War

This striking image shows the harbour at Danzig, Poland being set ablaze after it was shot at close range by the Nazi battleship SMS Schleswig-Holstein in the early hours of September 1, 1939. It is now going up for auction for £250 in Ashford, Kent

Destruction: After the very first shots were fired by Nazi warships the Polish port at Danzig were soon completely ablaze. The offensive marked the beginning of the Battle of Westerplatte, the first battle of the Second World War, which after seven days of fighting saw Poland fall to the Nazis. The Polish Army's efforts are still celebrated to this day and are a symbol of resistance

A telling picture shows a Polish general surrendering after the Nazi invasion of Poland began on September 1, 1939

Gloating Nazi chiefs are pictured waving their hands in the air with a sign celebrating the Schleswig-Holstein's bombing of Danzig harbour on Poland's Westerplatte peninsula in early September

Two days after SMS Schleswig-Holstein fired the first shots of the war in Danzig, Nazi chief Hermann Goering visited the destroyed town. There are several pictures available of him inspecting the damage in the newly-unearthed album

Nazi boss Herman Goering is pictured (third right) inspecting the damage in the German port town of Danzig two days after the first shots were fired by German warships. These images are some of the first on record of World War II

Nazi boss Herman Goering and other leaders of the Third Reich are seen visiting the charred remains of Westerplatte

It took the Nazis seven days to get the Polish to surrender after invading in the early hours of September 1. Here German soldiers are pictured celebrating the occupation of Westerplatte with the erection of a swastika on September 7, 1939

A group of Polish men are pictured after being taken prisoner by the Nazis during the September Campaign that began the Second World War. This is just one of several images unearthed in a never-seen-before album from September 1939

German sailors are pictured collecting Polish ammunition after it invaded the country, triggering the Second World War after Britain declared a conflict with Germany in early September 1939

This is the Nazi warship Scharnhorst that formed a key part of the September Campaign when the Nazis took over Poland in September 1939. It successfully sank the British armed merchant cruiser Rawalpindi in November 1939

The shots marked the beginning of the Battle of Westerplatte, the first battle of the Second World War, which after seven days of fighting saw Poland fall to the Nazis.

It saw German Army, naval and air forces attack the country at Danzig, bombing Poland's Military Transit Depot on the Westerplatte peninsula.

The heroic efforts to by Polish forces are still celebrated to this day and Westerplatte soon became a symbol of Polish resistance.

Matthew Tredwin, of C&T Auctioneers where the images of the battle are going under the hammer, said: 'It is a fascinating album and very historical as it seems to record the very first shots fired in anger in the Second World War.

'The pictures are clearly captioned identifying the German ship and the attack on the Westerplatte peninsula.

'An overwhelming message you take from flicking through the album is the contempt German servicemen held against their enemies from the very start of the war.

'There are lots of photographs taken on board Scharnhorst showing the might of her guns as well as her crew happily posing for the camera after the sinking of a Royal Navy ship.

'There are also images that show the ship completely iced up from when it carried out patrols in the north Atlantic in the winter of 1939. It is one of the finest captioned albums of its kind that that I have come across.'

Celebration: A crew of German men on board the Nazi warship Scharnhorst after it successfully sank the armed British merchant cruiser Rawalpindi in November 1939

The German sailor who took the pictures in the album up for auction is believed to have transferred to Scharnhorst after. Here four men are pictured celebrating the ship's sinking of an armed British merchant vessel in November 1939

Scharnhorst's crew are seen celebrating the sinking of the British armed merchant cruiser Rawalpindi in November 1939

Pictures show the Nazi ship Scharnhorst having its float plane being winched on board in Polish waters in November 1939

Members of the Nazi warship Scharnhorst are pictured inspecting its float plane after it was hauled on board near Poland

The floatplane of the Nazi Scharnhorst boat, which successfully sank a British armed merchant cruiser off Poland in 1939

On the lookout: Nazi seamen are pictured looking out to sea on the Scharnhorst after the outbreak of World War II in 1939

Signal operators on board the Nazi warship Scharnhorst are seen preparing for an offensive campaign in Polish waters

Britain declared war on Germany two days after the images were taken and by September 7 Polish forces had surrendered at Westerplatte.

On the same day Nazi chief Hermann Goering visited the destroyed town, with several pictures showing him inspecting the damage.

Another shot from the album shows German soldiers waving a Swastika flag atop of a fortified wall that has had a huge hole blown through it.

There are also pictures of a Polish general surrendering and dozens of defeated soldiers being marched away with their hands up.

The identity of the German sailor whose album it was is not known but he later transferred to the German battleship the Scharnhorst.

There are pictures of Scharnhorst in all its glory after it managed to sink British cruiser Rawalpindi two months later in November 1939.

Young sailors take pictures of each other on board the Scharnhorst encased in ice due to the harsh Polish weather conditions

The SMS Schleswig-Holstein used to destroy the naval depot at Danzig served at the Battle of Jutland in the First World War and was one of the few vessels Germany was allowed to keep afterwards.

In 1939, as Adolf Hitler seized more territory across Europe and readied for war, the ship made a courtesy visit to Danzig, which was a free port largely populated by Germans.

In August, Britain and France signed a pact vowing to defend an independent Poland while Hitler made unreasonable demands on the country to hand over Danzig to Germany.

The Fuhrer had withdrawn from two non-aggression pacts over Poland and started preparing for invasion over the summer.

Britain and France made repeated demands to keep the Nazis out of Poland, but envisioning the Third Reich's takeover of Europe, Hitler ignored them.

When the doomed negotiation talks broke down Germany attacked Westerplatte, with the Schleswig-Holstein being used as a 'Trojan Horse' to fire the opening shots.

This is the album containing never-before-seen images of the first days of the Second World War. The front cover shows a Nazi flag and a swastika