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Great pics. Its intriguing to look at the group of smiling enthusiastic faces and wonder how few must have seen the war to its end...did they have any idea about the full extent of their fuhrer's plans at that point?
Great pics. Its intriguing to look at the group of smiling enthusiastic faces and wonder how few must have seen the war to its end...did they have any idea about the full extent of their fuhrer's plans at that point?
Because of MP.net I have a new found respect for the Polish soldiers in WW2. I love looking at the invasion photos. Thanks!
You're making assumptions about these pictures.Originally Posted by rhinofromcanada
Some History lecture:
The Polish September Campaign — known also as the "Polish-German War of 1939," in Poland sometimes as the "1939 Defensive War" (Wojna obronna 1939 roku), in Germany as the "Polish Campaign" (Polenfeldzug), and by the German General Staff codenamed Fall Weiss ("Case White") — was the World War II invasion of Poland by military forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union and by a small German-allied Slovak contingent.
The campaign began September 1, 1939, one week after the signing of the secret Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, and ended October 6, 1939, with Germany and the Soviet Union occupying the entirety of Poland. None of the major participants — Germany, the Soviet Union, Poland or the Western Allies — expected that this German invasion of Poland would lead to a war surpassing World War I in scale and cost.
The invasion of Poland marked the start of World War II in Europe as Poland's western allies, the United Kingdom and France, on September 3 declared war on Germany.
The September Campaign was the second military campaign to witness the use of German Blitzkrieg tactics (the Germans had first employed them in unofficial assistance to Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War).
Following the German-staged attack on 1 September 1939, German forces invaded Poland's western, southern and northern borders. Defending the long borders, the Polish armies were soon forced to withdraw east. After the mid-September Polish defeat in the Battle of Bzura, the Germans gained undisputed advantage. Polish forces then began a withdrawal south-east, following a plan that called for a long defence in the Romanian bridgehead area where Polish forces were to await an expected Western Allies counterattack and relief[7]. On September 17, 1939, the Soviet Red Army invaded the eastern regions of Poland. The Soviets were acting in co-operation with Nazi Germany, carrying out their part of the secret appendix of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (the division of Europe into Nazi and Soviet spheres of influence), which secured Hitler's right flank, and allowed him to concentrate on attacking the Allies, without worrying about Soviet Russia to the east. In view of this unexpected Soviet aggression, the Polish government and its high command decided that the defence of the Romanian bridgehead was no longer feasible and ordered the evacuation of all troops to neutral Romania. By the beginning of October, Germany and the Soviet Union had completely overrun Poland. The Polish government (which never surrendered) together with many of its remaining land and air forces successfully evacuated to neighboring Romania and Hungary. Many of the evacuees subsequently joined the recreated Polish Army in allied France, French-mandated Syria and the United Kingdom.
In the aftermath of the September Campaign, Poland, even under occupation, managed to create a powerful resistance movement and contributed significant military forces to the Allies for the duration of World War II. Germany captured the Soviet-occupied areas when it invaded the Soviet Union (June 22, 1941), and the Soviet Union would later recapture these areas in 1944. Between them the German and Soviet occupations were responsible for the death of over 20% of Poland's citizens and the effective end of the Second Polish Republic.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Poland
German troops dismantle a Polish border checkpoint,
September 1, 1939, as World War II begins.
German Me 110 fighter plane.
German Panzer 35(t) tanks in Poland.
German Junkers Ju 87 dive bombers.
Polish PZL P.11 fighter plane.
Polish 7TP light tank.
Polish PZL.37 Łoś bomber.
Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov signs the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Behind him stand (left) German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop and (right) Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin.
Deployment of German and Polish divisions, September 1, 1939.
Dispositions of opposing forces, August 31, 1939, and the German plan.
Polish infantry in action.
The German battleship Schleswig-Holstein shells Poland's Westerplatte.
German forces during failed assault on Warsaw's Wola district, September 9, 1939.
Polish Bofors 40 mm antiaircraft gun and a bombed Polish Army column during the Battle of the Bzura.
Motto painted on a German Ju-52 transport plane: "Whether figures, gasoline, bombs or bread, we bring Poland death."
"The stab in the back": Dziennik Chicagowski [Chicago Daily] – The Polish Daily News, September 19, 1939.
Situation after September 14, 1939.
German bombers over Warsaw.
Near the end: TIME magazine, September 25, 1939.
Execution of some 300 Polish POWs at Ciepielów by the German 15th Motorized Regiment.
October 5, 1939: Wehrmacht parade down Warsaw's Aleje Ujazdowskie, watched by Adolf Hitler and other Nazi officials. During the parade, the city's population were ordered to stay home and keep their windows shut. To deter assassination attempts, the Germans held 412 civilians hostage. These included Warsaw University's most prominent professors as well as civilian city authorities, including Mayor Stefan Starzyński.
Soviet (left) and German officers meet after the Soviets' invasion of Poland.
Survivor of bombing of Warsaw.
Graves of Polish soldiers at Powązki Cemetery, Warsaw.
Last edited by corran.pl; 12-18-2005 at 09:53 PM.
Nice update there, thanks.
Good thread. Some of those German photos are quite powerfull.
Interesting thread.
Does anyone know,which units from Waffen-SS took part in the invasion?
Far as i remember,there was troops from "Totenkopf",but it was not yet a division-size unit in those times??
Please correct,if i`m wrong.
Turre
For the 1939 invasion of Poland, three SS regiments ("Deutschland", "Der Führer(Adolf Hitler")", and "Germania") were grouped into a division, the SS-Verfügungstruppe ("Special-Purpose Troops")
Txs to wikipedia
http://img28.exs.cx/img28/5026/poland096da.jpg
A few of these fellas are wearing Helmet covers that would date this picture well after 1939/40.
I might be wrong, but it does certainly appear that way.
*( the soldier closest to the camera in the forground. )*
Arbeitsdienst,thanks for answer.
Turre
What were Germany´s losses Vs. Polish losses? It's allways said how easily Germans took Poland, but what were their losses?
Who are the guys in black uniforms?
and what assumptions would those be????
imagine yourself for a second with two of your boddies surrounded by a platoon of enemy soldiers, espetially after a combat action thats the most dangeres time for a POW,
I belive those are border guards/ costum agents, just a guess
As for SS units in Polish campaign - there was also marine company SS "Danziger-Heimwehr" which took part in Westerplatte assault.
They were caught in ambush by polish garrison during assault and slaughtered (lost almost 50% of the unit).
Germany:
KIA-10572
MIA-3409
Wounded-30322
Russia:
KIA-737
MIA-?
Wounded-?
Poland:
KIA-70.000
MIA-?
Wounded-133000
POW in Germany-694000
POW in Russia-217000
From Wikipedia.
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