Introduction
Throughout the mid and late 1930s, France and Britain attempted a foreign policy of appeasement, meaning that they were trying to maintain peace throughout Europe, whilst making limited obligations and concessions against German demands. Many Britons like and favored the revision of the territorial and military rights under the terms of the Treaty of the Versailles. Further, neither Britain nor France were prepared militaristically ready to engage in a war against Nazi Germany.
One of Adolf Hitler’s first foreign policies as German’s leader was to create a non-aggression pact with Poland in January 1934, however this was controversial with Hitler supporters as Poland held many previous German provinces (West Prussia, Poznan, and Upper Silesia) as the aftermath of World War I under the Treaty of the Versailles. On the other hand, this pact eliminated the possibility of a joint Polish-French military alliance against German before it rearmed itself.
France and Britain watched bitterly but without protest as Germany rearmed itself (1935-1937), repeated militarization of Rhineland in 1936 and the annexation of Austria on March 1938. On September 1938, many Czech border regions were ceded to Germany at the Munich conference, France and Britain put pressure on the French ally, Czechoslovakia to comply with the demands of Germany. Unfortunately, the Germans dismembered the Czechslovak state in March 1939 in violation of the Munich agreement. As a response, France and Britain guaranteed the integrity of Poland. In addition, as a response to a response by Germany, Hitler formally aligned itself with the Soviets after signing a non-aggression pact with the Soviets in the summer of 1939. This essentially prevented an eastern invasion of Germany therefore allowing Germany to allocate more forces to the Western front later on. Furthermore, this pact stated that Poland will be split between the Soviets and the Germans, allowing for an undisturbed invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany on September 1st, 1939.
Invasion
At 4:45 am, 1.5 million Nazi troops invaded Poland along its 1,750 mile border with German territory. The Nazi Luftwaffe bombed strategic airfields, thus allowing for minimal air resistance from Poland whilst maintaining air superiority in the area. German naval U-Boats attacked Polish naval targets in the Baltic Sea. France and Britain responded by declaring war on Germany on September 3rd, 1939 sticking to its guarantee of Polish integrity, thus beginning World War II.
Under the terms of the Soviet German pact, the Soviet Union invaded Poland on September 17th, 1939, therefore officially securing its portion of Poland. The demarcation line between German and Soviet occupied Poland was on the Bug River.
There were more than 2,000 armored units and over 1,000 planes of Nazi Germany which effectively neutralized Polish defenses and allowed for German forces to march towards Warsaw swiftly, beginning a gigantic encirclement of the city. Following large amounts of shelling and bombing, Poland officially surrendered to Germany on the 27th of September, 1939. Polish forces were defeated just weeks after the invasion. This is only one example of how powerful Nazi Germany’s military had become.
Aftermath
On October 1939, Germany annexed former German provinces of Poland that were along the German eastern border. Remaining cities of German occupied Poland, such as Warsaw, were organized under the Gernalgourverment (General Government) under a civilian governor general, Lawyer Hans Frank. Later on, Nazi Germany gained control of Soviet controlled Poland in June 1941, after Operation Barbarossa had commenced. Nazi occupation of Poland lasted until January 1945, nearing the end of World War II.
Social Studies for Fun 