After World War I, the German Empire was defeated and forced to accept the Treaty of Versailles of the Allied Powers!
Germany gave up a large amount of territory in the east that had historically belonged to Poland. Germany's dislike of Poland was even greater than that of Britain and France. The reasons include Britain's attitude towards Germany turning to tolerance, France's military thinking turning to defense, and morale being depressed.
situation, it is not easy to start another war, and at the end of World War I, Germany only lost the two provinces of Alsace and Lorraine to France. These two provinces have changed hands to other countries many times in history, and their ethnic composition is complex and complex.
It is difficult to determine its ownership, but in the case of Poland, Germany not only wants to restore the territory it had in 1772, but also wants to lose Silesia, an important industrial coal-producing area, and cede Danzig, a purely German city, and the "corridor area"
Giving Poland the nominal title "Libreville" separated the German mainland from East Prussia, severely restricting the development of the latter.
After the war, Germany lost a total of 13% of its imperial territory and 12% of its population, of which Poland accounted for a very high proportion. Seckter, who was born in the eastern part of Germany, hated Poland even more. He once said: "Poland's
The existence is intolerable and irreconcilable with Germany's own needs. Poland must perish and will perish." and instilled in the army the belief of "destroy Poland". Later, this idea was also accepted by senior officials in Berlin.
The Prime Minister of the Weimar Republic, Joseph Weiers, once openly stated that "Poland must be punished."
British Prime Minister George Lloyd once said: "Poland has been given too much and it will cause big trouble in the future.
After Adolf Hitler came to power, he finally decided to solve the Polish problem!
April 20, 1939, was Hitler's 50th birthday. In recent days, he was often angry, indicating that he had no patience.
Time was passing; he believed that he only had a few years left in good health to complete his mission. As usual, Hitler's birthday in 1939 was celebrated with a grand military parade. The scene was majestic - the three armed forces of the Wehrmacht and the
The SS were all represented.
The purpose is to warn the enemy.
At Hitler's explicit request, the latest medium-sized guns, heavy tank guns, anti-aircraft machine guns and air force searchlights were displayed. Groups of fighter jets and bombers roared past overhead, numerous and scary.
The foreign envoys who attended the military parade each had their own impressions of the largest military parade in German history. They also did not ignore the significance of having Czechoslovak President Hacha as the guest of honor and placing him next to Hitler.
Although this military parade frightened many people, most Germans were proud to see such a powerful armed force.
The 50th birthday was also an excuse to launch another wave of propaganda praising Hitler.
For many admirers, he was Germany's savior: "The Führer was the only man in this century who could seize the thunderbolt of God and remake it for humanity." For others, he was better than the Messiah - God.
Me: "My children regard the Head of State as God who gives orders and arranges everything for all things. In their eyes, the Head of State is the Lord of all things."
Primary school students were also taught to sing carols: "Adolf Hitler is a savior and a hero. In the vast world, he is the noblest. He lived for Hitler and died for Hitler. God is Hitler, and he rules the brave new world."
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On August 22, the head of state summoned senior generals and their staff officers and held a special meeting in the spacious reception room.
"The purpose of bringing you here is to describe the political situation to everyone, so that you can clearly see the various factors that I rely on to make action decisions, and at the same time, it is also to enhance your confidence." He said that the conflict with Poland
Sooner or later it was bound to break out, and there were many reasons why it was best to act immediately. "First of all, there are two personal factors: my own personality and Mussolini's. The main thing is that everything depends on me and on me.
Survive, because I have political genius. Perhaps, no one will have the same confidence in the German people as me in the future. Therefore, my life is a factor in the big value. But I can be eliminated by a criminal or fool at any time.
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The second personality factor is the Prime Minister of Italy. If he has any shortcomings, it is questionable whether Italy will still be loyal to their alliance...
On the other hand, there are no outstanding figures either in Britain or France. "Our enemies are only people below the level. They have no personality, no masters, and no action figures!"
In addition, the political situation is also favorable, with competition in the Mediterranean and tensions in the East. All these favorable conditions at present will no longer exist in two or three years. "No one knows how long I will live. So it is better to fight now."
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Then he became more specific. He said that relations with Poland were unbearable.
"The decision we face is to either fight or be eliminated sooner or later. What can the West do? It is nothing more than launching an attack from the Maginot Line or blockading the Empire!"
Goering took the lead, and other generals also followed suit and applauded enthusiastically.
"My Führer!" Marshal Göring said, "the troops will fulfill their responsibilities."
Although there was applause, Goering and other generals unanimously opposed the war because everyone believed that Germany was not ready for war. There was only enough ammunition for 6 weeks, and steel, oil and other important supplies were also in short supply.
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Like his generals, Hitler was well aware of this, but he was considering a different kind of war: blitzkrieg, a full-scale surprise attack with enough troops and combat intensity to ensure a quick victory.
This is both a strategic and tactical concept. He once vowed to never let the suffering caused by the long war reappear on German soil.
This is why he only arm the troops in breadth rather than depth. The productivity of standing weapons is high and large-scale production capacity is not organized for long-term war. This method of organizing the German economy is
Hitler did this intentionally. His goal was to produce weapons quickly, not to increase or restructure the arsenal.
A series of blitzes, sustained by short-term bursts of production, would make Hitler look powerful.
He avoided large-scale production for conventional warfare because it meant economic ruin. His philosophy was a poor man's philosophy, and success could only be achieved by daring. He had achieved a series of cheap victories by using the adventurous approach to war, and this
The adventure of war was exactly what his wealthier enemies wanted to avoid at almost all costs.
The Blitzkrieg not only suited his nature as a gambler, but also suited his status as a dictator. A democratic country cannot withstand such sudden economic forces.
For example, after concentrating on the production of tanks, there is immediately a shift to civilian production. What might hurt a democratic country is not suitable for a country with peculiar economic weaknesses and strengths.
Hitler's blitzkrieg also stunned his generals because their theories still stemmed from the past.
They did not understand like Hitler that when it came to fighting, Germany was far better prepared than Britain and France. This was a gamble, but he estimated that he could quickly win over Poland and never have to fight Britain and France. The strange thing is
The problem is that they will feel that revenge is futile. He must use some method to neutralize the West, or use intimidation or force.
The soldiers who listened to Hitler explain the invasion blueprint on the morning of August 22 did not express a word of criticism, and the field generals who were brought in after lunch to listen to the lecture did not raise any objections. The Führer advised them not to show mercy.
"Might makes right." After saying this, he announced that the invasion of Poland might be scheduled for dawn on Saturday, August 26.
Friday, August 25, was a critical day and the busiest day. As soon as the Polish problem was resolved, he was ready and determined to make another comprehensive proposal to Britain. For example, he was willing to accept the British Empire and personally guarantee it.
of continued existence.
However, if Britain rejected his proposal, he said viciously: "Then there will be a war."
And this was his last suggestion.
Half an hour later, at 3:02 pm, he approved Yu Foxiao's order to attack Poland. On the surface, his bet was motivated by opportunism. However, it should be admitted that Hitler was a cunning master of daily politics.
His foreign policy did have its basic goal: to control the European continent step by step. This policy was closely related to his radical anti-Semitic program.
In Rome, the German ambassador, accompanied by Ciano, walked into the Venecia Palace with the unusual letter he had drafted earlier that day.
At 3:20, Ambassador Hans Georg von Mackensen handed the document to Mussolini.
Mussolini was realistic and had to face the fact that the Italian army, which was so weak in Albania, did not have the morale, training and skills to fight a real war!
The war was postponed and a new date was quickly set.
The day for the attack on Poland was set for Friday, September 1; no action would be taken in the West. This instruction was sent to senior officers, who in turn communicated it to the field commanders in the most confidential manner.
Issue a special order.
By 4 p.m., the execution order to start the invasion had been implemented; troops and equipment had begun to move to the front line near the border. At the same time, the head of the SS Security Service also issued special orders to a secret German unit on the Polish border.
.Before this, Reinhard Heydrich had made a plan - "Himler Battle"!
Provided Hitler with an excellent excuse to launch an attack.
The advance team of the Security Service, disguised as Polish soldiers and guerrillas, would stir up trouble on the border on the eve of the invasion. Exactly four hours later, they would launch an attack on a forest station and destroy a German customs building. This was the most important.
The radio station in Gleiwitz was briefly occupied.