Date 1 September 1939 at 04:45 am, shot salvo German training ship Schleswig-Holstein named aimed at a Polish garrison headquarters in Westerplatte Peninsula started the outbreak of World War (PD) II.
This is the height of adventure aggression of Adolf Hitler after he tore the Versailles Treaty in 1935, annexed Austria in March 1938 and in September is still in the same year, German troops occupied the Sudetenland and parts of Czechoslovakia. And March 1939, Germany invaded the entire territory of Czechoslovakia - a denial of the Munich Agreement with the Anglo-French.
Poland defeated Germany with the strength of 44 divisions, while Poland has 40 divisions plus 10 cavalry brigades, consisting of 1.75 million troops, 935 aircraft and 500 tanks are mostly obsolete. German offensive movement relies on speed, which opened with its air force, followed by layers of steel penetration corps led by General Heinz Guderian.
When the plan was brought before Hitler; reaction of Chief of General Staff General Franz Halder only half-hearted, cold and far from enthusiastic. Halder problem remembering the former Chief of General Staff General Ludwig Beck replaces the previous months, which was resigning because of protests against German aggression into Czechoslovakia. Now the time came for him to face the same situation.
Unfortunately, Hitler's aggression tastes better accommodated by the weak attitude of the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Premier Edouard Daladier in Munich Agreement. And now Halder together Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch, the top leadership of the German armed forces, desperately trying to raise the issue of reaction to the Soviet Union's invasion of Poland because it will provoke strong reactions Josef Stalin. It is better this dissuade Hitler. But Hitler was lightly dismissed that and instead lecture them endlessly about the concept of the Third Empire (Third Reich), which requires a land area of the wider powers as living space, rather than German soil that has been available, create a sustain period of 1,000 years into the future. As usual lengthy Hitler 'speech' and no one could stop him. The result? As ever, Hitler's aggression remain.
That is grappling with the implementation strategy of the deadly double against Poland. Left wing, Northern Army Group led by Marshal Feodor von Bock with 630,000 personnel and the right-wing Southern Army Group led by Colonel-General Gerd von Rundstedt to 886,000 personnel; two powerful forces that are supported with 2,000 combat aircraft and 1700 tanks stormed to clamp Poland. In this movement the central force in Posen Poland by the Germans deliberately neglected to cut logistics, so it will not be able to move to defend Warsaw. While Warsaw itself is clamped again from the north by the 4th Army and Army Pommerania 3rd East Prussia under the command of General Walther von Reichenau.
On the other hand Guderian Armoured Corps continues to break through into Poland.After two weeks, he had arrived at the castle Bret Litowsk. And three days later, September 17, 1939, he had met with German tanks moving troops from the south under von Rundstedt in Woldowa, on the banks of the River Bug. Now the Polish forces mutilated without power and the only matter of time. Strategy Nazi Germany later termed as Blitzkrieg, Lightning War, which also re-applied by Hitler to invade Western Europe, May 1940.
When the Polish resistance increasingly tamed. Halder and Brauchitsch agree to let Warsaw which has been isolated to give up on their own, they are sure it will happen soon because of lack of logistics, which means massive famine occurred in the Warsaw population. But Hitler intervened to order that the Polish capital this helpless destroyed by bombs. Both military leaders are protesting loudly. Because there is really a barbaric thing, and no benefit at all from the perspective of military and humanitarian traditions.
But Hitler had other purposes. He did not want to Warsaw fell intact into Soviet hands.The problem now was follow-Stalin invaded Poland from the east on September 17.Proverbial let the Germans work hard, Stalin lived to receive the results. For Hitler destroyed Warsaw better to have no economic value for the Soviets. Halder later said that he and Brauchistch so angry because he had lied to Hitler and Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, that in fact civilians and the political adventurers themselves rather than both the traditional German upbringing full of military discipline. Because he and Brauchitsch learned while in the field of battle between Germany and Poland that the Soviet Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact existing, non-aggression pact, non-aggression pact signed on August 23, 1939 in Moscow.
Poland though then lost in the surrender of the last garrison in the town with 17 000 personnel Kock October 6, remains a very heroic resistance given Poland for almost a month more, and even cause admiration Wehrmacht officials, such as Guderian and Halder own. Persistence Poland was impressive because the following year France, Belgium and the Netherlands get their turn destroyed Germany was only able to survive on a daily basis. Unlike the Poles who had to face two giants at the time, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
While we do not know Hitler actually had time to panic, when Britain declared war on September 3, and a few hours later, followed by France. He did not suspect that after all this time both countries were silent a thousand languages on the act of aggression before, this time for Polish affairs quite different. Both countries were simultaneously declared war on Nazi Germany. "What should we do next? "Hitler asked many times to Ribbentrop in a tone of panic.
It was in the waiting room palace chancellor Berlin, Marshal Hermann Goering interrupted to a general who were waiting for was called Hitler: If we lose this war, oh our Lord! Minister of Propaganda Dr. Joseph Goebbels who happened to be in the same room only silence in silence.
On the other hand the German people themselves are not very enthusiastic to welcome the emergence of this new world war, is different when World War I erupted in 1914, when the public was cheering waving his hand toward the line after line of soldiers advancing to the battle front. Now the situation is different, the German people were afraid of him at once horrified because the shadow of World War I still have not disappeared completely.
It seems that now everyone in the ring in protest of Hitler's speech reminded of Fritz Thyssen, German industrialist heavy equipment; who risked appearing alone in the Reichstag building. He is listed as the only member of the Reichstag who openly protested Hitler's aggression. He loudly predicted the invasion of Poland would give birth to a new world war in Europe. For that according to him, the German war machine will not be enough to win the war is going to happen. And Hitler was the one who sparked the war.
Thyssen predictions come true - May 8, 1945, nearly a six-year, for the second time since World War I, Germany had to admit defeat to the Allies.
