 Having become Chief of the Directorate of the Polish Navy in October 1939, in December Sikorski recognized the role played by the Polish Navy in the war and ordered that naval matters be concentrated under the command of its chief, Jerzy Świrski.This meant that for the first time, the Polish Navy became independent of the Army.In 1940 after the fall of France, the Polish Ministry of Military Affairs, evacuated to the United Kingdom which became the war time base of the Polish Government in Exile.