Invasion of Poland - A/H

Extra Reading Help 

1. Audio  of a  words  in both English and Spanish. Will also translate phrases.
 2. Google Search - Espana: The word can be typed in English, and the search finds results in Spanish, including images
3. Google Arabic

4. Google Translate:Can work in any language necessary

German Invasion of Poland

September 1st, 1939

You know aggression when you see it.

It is when someone, or even a country, uses force to get what they want.  Bullies use aggression in school all too often in many different ways.  

When it is countries being aggressive it might involve one country violating by force the rights of another country, particularly its rights to its own land. It can involve an attack or invasion that is carried out because of the greed of the attacking country.  

Napoleon Invading Russia - 1812

Map of Invasion of Poland

The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War was an invasion of Poland by Germany and  the Soviet Union  that marked the start of World War II in Europe. In a defensive war you say you are doing it because someone attacked you first, and this is what Germany said had happened, but it was a lie.

Germany did not want to be blamed for starting the war, so they got some dead bodies from one of their Concentration Camps. 

They then went to a radio station in Germany right on the border with Poland. They dressed the bodies in Polish uniforms and spread them around. Then they pretended like they were the Polish attacking the radio station. 

Gleiwitz radio station where the Germans faked an attack

The next day, on September 1st, 1939, the Nazis invaded Poland.

Germans taking a rest while they are invading

They did not do it alone. Even though the Germans hated the Communists in The Soviet Union  they had made a secret agreement with the Soviets to attack and split up Poland. Germany came from the West on September 1st, and the USSR ( Soviets) came from the East 16 days later.

Germany came from the left. The Soviet Union came from the right. The red line shows where they had agreed to stop. Why would either side make this agreement if they knew they would be fighting each other soon???

The German invasion would be short, as the they completed their victory by October 6th, 1939 (That was only 35 days.).Germany would take over the Western part of Poland, and the USSR would take over the Eastern part.

Map showing how Poland was divided

 Germany was able to do this so quickly because they used a new way of war called Blitzkrieg. It is when you send your planes over an enemy, and your fast moving tanks through and around them.  Then your foot soldiers follow. Blitzkrieg means “Lightening War” because it moves so fast.

German planes, tanks,and soldiers working together in a blitzkrieg attack

The sad thing is what happened in Poland after the fighting was over. The way the Germans thought and would act was supported by something their leader, Hitler, said before the attack was started. 

German soldiers cutting the beard of a Jewish man. It was part of their religious beliefs that they were to have beards. Why do YOU think the Germans did this?

William (Welek) Luksemburg's Story

Welek around 2000

Welek after WW II in 1947

Click on THIS to hear (Less than 2 minutes)Welek tell the story of what he experienced the first night of the invasion.

When the war was over six years later 2,700,000 Jews who were alive in Poland when the war started had been murdered.  That is 90%.  

Poland: The skull symbols show where the Germans had extermination camps where they took Jews to murder them