Posted on 09/01/2004 9:06:06 AM PDT by lizol
Remembering Germany's Darkest Day
Exactly 65 years ago, on Sept. 1, 1939, German troops crossed the border into Poland. The attack caused the outbreak of World War II -- the single biggest catastrophe of the 20th century.
"Tonight for the first time, Poland fired shots against our territory and regular soldiers. We have been returning fire since 5:45 a.m. And from now on, we will retaliate, bomb for bomb."
With these words on Sept. 1, 1939, Adolf Hitler announced that German troops had marched into Poland. The evening before, SS soldiers disguised as Poles attacked the radio station of Gleiwitz, a town on the German-Polish border, and transmitted a message for the Polish minority in the region to take arms against the Germans. This fictitious act of aggression was to serve as an alibi for the attack on Poland.
Hitler had long been on the warpath. Fifteen years previously, he wrote in his book "Mein Kampf," that the Germans should seize more Lebensraum -- living space. Besides, his rationale went, peace between populations was impossible. Only war could determine survival.
Relations with Poland were already strained during the Weimar Republic, due to the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, which laid down territorial acts of transfer to Poland. The state of East Prussia was separated from the German Reich by a Polish corridor, something barely any German politicians were prepared to accept.
Strategy of deception
When the National Socialists took power in 1933, Hitler pursued closer ties to Poland for tactical reasons -- he wanted to create an impression, at least to outsiders, of his readiness for peace. In 1934, he signed a pact of non-aggression with Poland.
"There may be differences between our two countries in future, but the catastrophic effects of trying to solve them through actions of war would in no way be in proportion to any possible gain," Hitler said. "The German government was therefore pleased to find that the leader of the Polish state, Marshall Pilsudski, shares this opinion, and that this mutual realization has been turned into a contract, that won't just be of equal use to the Polish and German peoples, but also will contribute significantly to the preservation of peace generally."
But the truth was that peace was not on Hitler's agenda. Instead of pursuing peace, he fuelled his plans for expansion. In 1938, Austria was annexed by the German Reich, then Czechoslovakia -- both without any military resistance.
Poland's weak position
Poland's fate was sealed when, at the end of August, 1939, Hitler surprisingly negotiated a pact of non-aggression with Stalin. In a secret protocol, it was decided -- Poland would be divided up between Germany and the Soviet Union. Just one week later, Germany marched on Poland.
Although the Polish government knew of Germany's war preparations, the attack came as a surprise. In the early morning hours of Sept. 1, the German battleship "Schleswig-Holstein" opened fire on the Polish city of Danzig. Hours later, Hitler spoke in front of the Reichstag assembly.
"Those who distance themselves from the rules of humane warfare can expect nothing else from us but that we do the same," he said. "And I will lead this war -- no matter whom we fight -- until such time that the security of the Reich is guaranteed."
Two days later, England and France declared war on Germany. World War II had officially begun.
Huh. This line is usually trotted out annually on August 6th and 9th. Guess the author was on vacation then.
Too bad he didn't do what Patton did, and call Stalin a "sukin syn"
I would have figured Dresden would have been the darkest day (or actually it was pretty bright come to think of it).
I agree with the other FReeper who said that the day the Nazis took power was Germanys darkest day. But Sept 1 1939 led to all the misery for Europe.
Sadly if the Nazis didn't take power in Germany, the Communists would have. The Weimar Republic was doomed one way or the other.
I'm holding out for August 1, 1914, as being the darkest day, not only for Germany, but for the West.
This fact is conveniently ommitted from many textbooks.
Also omitted is the fact that the Poles were starting to stabilize the situation when the Russians attacked their rear on September 17 (I think it was). Whether the Poles could have actually held out against the Germans if they only had a one-front war is debatable but perhaps they could have bought enough time for the French and British to get off their rear ends. The Soviets sealed their doom.
Also omitted is the incredible brutality of the Soviet occupation of eastern Poland from 1939-1941. They murdered or deported over one million Poles, I've read.
Why?
It's a shame probably, but I don't recall what happened on that day.
It's the day Germany declared war on Russia.
Actually April 6, 1917 was even darker. The day the US declared war on Germany. It was all over for them.
Right. I blame it all on the Versailles Treaty and the constitution, which was too weak. Fortunately, the Founding Fathers of Germanys 2nd Republic learned from the faults of their parents.
Yep, if only the French had listened to President Wilson, and not tried to get their pound of flesh from the Germans after the war. Oh well, it wasn't the last time the French refused to listen to us.
Militarily, the Brits and French were beaten up by the Kaiser, only the American help changes significantly the outcome of WW1. There were internal papers of the British Defense Ministry, saying that they had money for just 4 more weeks. Then the US joined the war...
It was pretty arrogant from the French to ask for reparations and take away 1/4 of the territory. I can´t judge Wilsons domestic policy, but he was definitely right with his idea of the sovereignty of the people. Letting the people decide would be the best solution - even today in Chechnya.
changes = changed
The French demands all but guaranteed WWII. The reparation bills were so high that the German currency had to go into free fall because it couldn't be paid. Only after such bitterness could a Hitler receive the vote he did, although he did not receive a majority vote (30%, in fact) in the fateful election of 1932. Hitler's favorite speech in those days was about the Versailles Treaty. Germany had stood down it's army, not knowing that the peace treaty they would finally receive would be so drastic.
Exactly. Hitler became so popular, especially during his first years, because he gave the people work (well, which kind of: building Autobahnen for a fast transport of the army, building defense lines at the borders) and more important: he gave Germany back its national pride. When the war came near, it must be said that the vast majority of Germans did not want to attack Poland, they feared the response of Britain and France, and they saw no advantage or right for them. That´s what I´m told by my Grandma´s. Even Generals planned to assasinate Hitler in 1938. It´s a tragedy, and I think that all this horror would not have happened if the people had known what was going to happen - no normal citizen ever thought of the idea to kill all European Jews, or to bomb/shoot civilians. I think that actually 10% were convinced Nazis, and the others were either resistance fighters, silent people who tried to get out of trouble, silent people who had to support the Nazi crimes and people who actively and voluntarily helped the Nazis without believing their ideas.
I have a elderly neighbor born in Germany, 1936, and emigrated to the U.S. in 1957. To this day, Gerlinde will defend Hitler because he brought back full employment to Germany. Her father died in a Soviet prisoner of war camp, and her 14 year-old brother went out to fight in 1945 and they never saw him again, but...... Hitler did bring full employment. I can't understand her reasoning so we don't talk about it anymore.
When the war came near, it must be said that the vast majority of Germans did not want to attack Poland, they feared the response of Britain and France, and they saw no advantage or right for them. That´s what I´m told by my Grandma´s.
William Shirer pointedly commented that in contrast to the wildly cheering German crowds of 1914, nobody was cheering in Berlin, 1939, for Hitler's war.
no normal citizen ever thought of the idea to kill all European Jews, or to bomb/shoot civilians. I think that actually 10% were convinced Nazis, and the others were either resistance fighters, silent people who tried to get out of trouble, silent people who had to support the Nazi crimes and people who actively and voluntarily helped the Nazis without believing their ideas.
It's the 80%+ sheeple that can go along with any society to it's end.
BTW, Gerlinde who was born near Nuremberg doesn't hate Jews. She takes her annual 1 month vacation back home to Germany, and if she hates any group it's the former East Germans.:)
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