Germans invade Poland Summary
Poland's Invasion by Germany
The invasion of Poland was on the part of Germany and would be the beginning of the Second World War, which would plunge the whole Europe to 6 years of bombardments, battles, and deaths of both military and civilians.
Germany Invades Poland-France and Britain Declares War.
The technical operation, known as the "White Case" (in German, Fall Weiss), began on September 1, 1939.
Background to the invasion of Poland
From 1937 onwards, the idea of the Lebensraum or "living space", so necessary for Nazi Germany, was born, because having that meant that the country could move forward.
This meant that Germany had to occupy a series of lands that had once been united, so it relied on the great German masses living outside the country to start a series of revolutions that would eventually lead Germany to occupy the territories.
Within this summary of the invasion of Poland by Germany we must know that in 1938 Hitler annexed Austria and in March 1939 Czechoslovakia, Bohemia and Moravia, lands where the German population was quite high.
After this, Poland was left alone in the face of the Nazi threat, especially from August 23, 1939, when the Non-Aggression Pact between Russia and Germany was signed, which gave Hitler complete freedom of movement.
The invasion of Poland by Germany
Now we have to go back to September 1, 1939, when the invasion of Poland by Germany from the west began, with the German army entering at various points.
Similarly, and as stipulated in the Non-Aggression Pact, Russia was entering from the east on September 17, causing the country to fall rapidly.
This meant that the Republic of Poland could barely mobilize its troops and on 27 September Warsaw was occupied and annihilated by the army on 6 October.
Thus, we can say that the invasion of the country was carried out in such a way that it was rather a lightning war, in which the Polish government could not even defend itself from the attacks of both nations.
Casualties during the conflict
From 1 September to 6 October, 11 battles took place in Poland, which was enough to put an end to one country. This left a large number of casualties within the defeated country that we will see below:
Killed in combat
It is impossible to know the number of civilians killed during the joint invasion of Russia and Germany, although post-war studies have made it easier to know the number of military casualties.
- Military casualties, approximately 6,300.
- Wounded: 133,700 men.
- Prisoners of war: 694,000.
The members of the army who were apprehended experienced in their own flesh the German and Soviet hatred of that nation, in many cases, were forced to build the concentration camps and were then tried in courts-martial.
Undoubtedly, a fundamental point in the summary of the invasion of Poland by Germany is the consequences of this act.
The beginning of the Second World War
On August 25, 1939, and fearing a German attack, Poland decided to sign a series of pacts with Britain and France, seeking military aid if necessary.
Following the incidents of 1 September, on 3 September, the two European nations declared a joint war on Germany, although neither of them mobilized their soldiers to become their ally, as they preferred to create lines of defense to contain the imminent German advance.
Film Germany Invades Poland 1939
The invasion of Poland gave rise to modern warfare that was literally powered by the internal combustion engine.
Poland Division and destruction of the industry
Within the Non-Aggression Pact, Russia and Germany decided on a joint invasion that would end the division of the country into two sectors.
Within the Soviet sector, it was decided to relocate all Polish industry to the interior of Russia, leaving the country in misery.
On the German side, the great persecutions of the Jewish population, which was eliminated either in the concentration camps or by starvation, would begin due to the fateful living conditions.
Polish society was also severely repressed for having opposed the change of power, to which was added the great hatred that Germany had of that country (an element that can be corroborated if one studies modern history).
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