On This Day: September 1, 1939 – Germany Invades Poland, Starting World War 2
The Day World War 2 Began: Germany Invades Poland on September 1, 1939
Some moments in history become watershed events that alter the very course of civilisation. One of them is the September 1, 1939. On this day, the German army crossed the Polish border, igniting the most destructive and murderous war in human history.
That single act didn’t just officially begun the Second World War. it also changed the maps of the world. This warrants understanding what may have provoked such an an outrageous act. To answer that, we will have to revisit the aftermath of the last world war and the decisions that plunged Europe into this abyss.
The Aftermath of World War I
World War I was from 1914 to 1918 which was meant to be the “war to end all wars.” Instead, the outcome was a shattered globe. Countries went bankrupt, countless lives were lost, and empires crumbled to ash. Germany was on the losing end and suffered the most.
The Treaty of Versailles took away Germany’s territory, limited its army, and made Germany pay steep reparations. Many Germans considered this to be a great embarrassment. The aftermath of World War I was full of bitterness and people were eager for solutions.
This anger made people turn to radical solutions. Adolf Hitler’s rise to power was the most radical, as he promised to return German pride, break the treaty, and restore the country.
The Road to War
During the 1930s, the Treaty of Versailles was virtually ignored by Hitler. His visions of a greater German empire, the remilitarisation of the German army, and the commencement of troop marches into previously prohibited zones were of no consequence to other nations. Most of them turned a blind eye.
Britain and France, on the other hand, suffering from the scars of the first World War, chose to appease instead of facing yet another battle scenario. The attempts were of no use, as Hitler continued to conquer. In the year 1938, he conquered the remainder of Austria as well as portions of Czechoslovakia. Europe’s belief that that was the end of it, caused them to fall into a dangerous tranquility. He had other plans.
Poland was to be the next target. Claiming the Danzig corridor (a land corridor belonging to Poland that stretches from the German border to the Baltic Sea) was the first part of his agenda. The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, along with the secret agreement that was in question, was a part of the German appeasement strategy. In Poland, the pacts were publicly shown to be protective agreements devoid of conflict. The truth was that they were nothing more than mutual promises of peace that concealed a primary agenda focused on the division of Poland.
September 1, 1939 – The Day War Began
At dawn on September 1, 1939, the German Army crossed the Polish border, where they rained destruction on the cities from the sky, alongside the land invasion, with the warsaw bombing being the first of hundreds, and their modernised method of overwhelming offence earned itself the title of Blitzkrieg strategy, or lightning warfare.
Polish defenders shown great valour, but they stood no chance against such overwhelming odds. Their unfortunate situation became exacerbated by the Soviets invading the from the east.
On September 3, they decided enough was enough: France and Britain teamed up and declared war on Germany. What started as the Nazi occupation of Poland transformed into the Second World War.
Why It Still Matters
The invasion of Poland was not simply a matter of a battle. It was a demonstration of how the absence of discipline combined with some very poor diplomatic moves could lead to a global catastrophe. There was so much blood, so much yearning, so many lost hopes, and so much carelessness. The world simply didn’t act on it with the swiftness it needed.
The following 6 years were to set the stage for a global war with horrific consequences. It was as if the world had become a burning ghost of civilisation swallowed by death and shadow.
The Holocaust was a dagger to the heart of humanity on its darkest day. It stripped the world bare and emblazoned on it the realization that no matter how far humanity progresses, the cruelty of man toward man remains. The world post 1945 still bears the scars of the brutality reflecting in its very core the darkest secrets the world would ever wish to hide.
Looking Back Today
In the context of the WWII chronicles, September 1 of 1939 falls as the day the peace in Europe vanished. It goes to show how understanding peace and ignoring its warnings can be dangerous.
In the context of world wars, this date is monumental as one of the invasions started a series of events that plagued the world. Such aspirations and angers when left unattended to can create a catastrophe more gigantic than one could imagine.
The date September 1 of 1939, where the first gunshots were fired in Poland, the world let its guard down and it roughly resulted in one of the most regrettable events in history.
References
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Germany Invades Poland, September 1, 1939 – United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
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The Outbreak of World War II – The National WWII Museum, New Orleans
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The Treaty of Versailles and its Consequences – Imperial War Museums
Very Informative