Operation "Weiss". How the Second World War began

Seventy years ago, our country experienced the most terrible and destructive moments of the new history, forever changing the course of Russia's development and the fate of Russian people. But for the whole world, the war began a little earlier, in 1939, when the Nazi government decided to treacherously attack Poland without warning. It is this event that is considered the beginning of the Second World War.

The alignment of forces

In 1939, Europe was in a very tense international situation: the spirit of war was everywhere, but nobody believed to the very beginning of direct military action on the part of Germany. In addition, the majority of the population of Britain and France, the countries that are members of the anti-fascist coalition, advocated a peaceful solution to the German conflict.

But the plans of the Wehrmacht never envisaged any diplomatic agreements, from the very beginning all German actions were thought out in advance, and peace talks and agreements proved to be a strategic move to divert attention of rivals.

Nazi Plans

Only after years the public could understand how the Second World War began and what was the reason, because this event led to a complete rearrangement of forces in Europe and throughout the world.

With the advent of the Nazis to power, Germany's priorities were aimed at achieving only the goals - the approval of the German nation over others and sole domination. For several years the economy of the country was actively reviving, the military complex was being built up, and the younger generation grew up and was brought up in the spirit of the exceptional mission of Germans on earth.

Prehistory

By 1939, Germany had reached a rather high level of development, and the next step of the fascist government was the idea of expanding the "living space" through a military campaign in eastern Europe. Thanks to a skillful and thoughtful policy, Hitler was able to convince the leaders of France and England that he does not intend to deploy military operations in Europe in the near future against any country.

Therefore, the Polish campaign of the Wehrmacht became a kind of surprise for Chamberlain and the head of France, in Europe until the last hoped for the success of diplomatic negotiations.

Official reason

Between Germany and Poland, there have always been reciprocal territorial claims, including on some African countries. But the main conflict erupted around the way to the Baltic Sea and the city of Danzig, to which the Germans have long been trying to claim rights. Hitler and Ribbentrop several times inconclusively inclined Poland to the voluntary recognition of the German authorities, threatening Warsaw with a war and the subsequent division of the country, as they had just done in Czechoslovakia.

Warnings did not work, Poland refused any cooperation with the fascists. But this did not upset the Hitlerite milieu: the Wehrmacht operation had already been developed and ready for implementation in the ruling circles of the Wehrmacht.

The Nazi strategy

Hitler's propaganda actively disseminated information about the fault of Poland in unleashing the conflict, and the reason for the discord was the fact that Warsaw refused to return Germany to the free city of Danzig.

Plan "Weiss" provided for a quick and almost unrequited capture of the entire territory, the destruction of infrastructure and the establishment of its own regime. For these purposes, it was planned to use aviation, infantry and tank troops, as well as a special unit responsible for misleading the Polish generals about the objectives of the main German forces.

The plan of Germany's attack on Poland was thought out to the smallest detail: the Wehrmacht's army must surround the enemy's main forces from the south and not give him time to mobilize and deploy the main forces. Hitler hoped that Britain and France would not dare enter the war, since they were constrained by the previously signed peace treaty, but still provided for the possibility of opening a second front and put the army led by generals V. Leib to guard the western borders with France, Belgium And the Netherlands.

Readiness of the parties to war

Given the state of the economy and the armed forces that Germany / Poland possessed in 1939, the outcome of the Nazi operation was quite predictable. The army of Hitler was much superior to the rival in terms of technical equipment. In addition, the Germans managed to organize a quick and successful mobilization, about which until the end of Warsaw, virtually nothing is known.

The Polish army was considerably inferior in numbers, moreover, from the very beginning the government decided to deploy all forces along the borders on a fairly large territory. Such a wide dispersal weakened the army and made it most vulnerable to a powerful and massive blow to the opponent.

Reason for attack

From the very beginning, Operation Weiss provided for several provocative measures aimed at provoking aggression on the part of Poland. Hitler announced to his generals that soon there will be a strong reason for the beginning of hostilities, and whether it will be plausible-no longer matters, since the winners are not judged.

August 31, 1939 a group of German saboteurs posing as Polish activists broke into the building of the radio station of the city of Glejvica, took a few shots and pronounced an agitation text in Polish against Germany. Immediately they shot several people brought with them. Later it turns out that they were disguised German criminals.

Invasion

In response to the "aggression" from Warsaw in the early morning of September 1, 1939 , German bombers inflicted several crushing blows on the military infrastructure of Poland, a little later the ships joined the attack, and the army launched massive offensive operations throughout the border.

Operation Weiss, whose start date is also considered the first day of the Second World War, provided for the rapid destruction of the entire Polish aviation complex, so the first attacks were committed to the airfields of the country. Already at the beginning of hostilities, the Polish leadership understood all the futility of warfare, but there was still hope for help from the countries of the anti-fascist coalition, so the defense continued.

Course of events

Despite the suddenness of the Nazi attack, the rival's troops exerted fierce resistance. Events in Poland in September 1939 unfolded with lightning speed: after the destruction of all the Warsaw Air Force, Hitler let in the tank troops. The opponent was not ready to repel the attack, the more flat the location helped the Nazis to rapidly advance into the country.

September 3, Britain and France declared war on Germany, and, by agreement with Poland, these countries had to immediately intervene in the fighting. French military forces even crossed the border, but almost immediately were withdrawn. So the allies of the anti-fascist coalition missed the only moment when their intervention could still stop the fascists' offensive.

Cruel battles

The border battles in Pomerania and Silesia ended in complete defeat and the retreat of the Polish troops. The Weiss plan fully justified itself: after just five days of hostilities, the Nazis gained a free path to Warsaw. Successful attacks by the SS allowed them to divide the Polish army into several scattered units that had no connection with the center, nor a single plan for further action.

The fighting continued near Warsaw, the defenders of the city valiantly fought and, despite a considerable superiority of forces, for several days kept the defense. But the German side used a devastating attack from the air, more than five thousand bombs were dropped, after which the capital surrendered.

Defeat

Operation "Weiss" led to the complete collapse of the Polish army. By September 17, many of the Polish military units capitulated or were taken prisoner. But the fierce fighting lasted until October. Polish generals wanted to break through the German defense and go to Romania, where it was planned to organize a hotbed of resistance and wait for help from the Allies.

The situation was aggravated by the introduction of Soviet troops, while Stalin considered the German government to be his ally, besides, the two countries were bound by a non-aggression pact, so that the Soviet army entered the Polish lands under the pretext of settling the situation in a disintegrating state. The direct participation of the Soviet Union in the Polish-German conflict is not proven, this time the Kremlin chose to take a wait-and-see attitude.

Neither England nor France were in a hurry to enter their troops, so with the fall of Warsaw, and a little later, and other major cities, the independent state of Poland ceased to exist. In the following months, the guerrilla war continued, and some parts of the defeated forces continued to fight in the armies of the countries of the anti-fascist coalition.

The reaction of England and France

In the way the Second World War began, and, most importantly, how it continued, there is a large share of the fault of the allied countries - England and France. The Polish operation was for the Wehrmacht the first attempt to seize the territory by military means, so Hitler did everything possible to protect himself from the opening of a second front in case of entry into the war of European countries.

A treaty of non-aggression was concluded with the governments of Britain and France, and the military leaders of Germany believed that even with unfavorable development, Chamberlain would not dare to intervene. And it turned out: the Allied countries were not ready for the Polish operation of Hitler and for several days they delayed the decision to declare war. Only September 3, England formally entered into the fight against fascism, followed by France, Australia, the African Union and Canada. The United States up to a certain point adhered to neutrality.

The declaration of the German war had little in common with the humanistic desire to help the Polish people: both Britain and France were seriously concerned about Hitler's growing strength and were afraid primarily of the integrity of their own countries.

Results

Millions of dead, hundreds of destroyed cities, redefined borders and spheres of influence - all this brought with them the Second World War. Germany's attack on Poland was an inevitable fact. With the coming to power of the Nazis, the outbreak of hostilities was only a matter of time. The first experience of the victorious war was very successful, the Nazi state significantly expanded its borders, adding the city of Lodz, Poznanski, Pomorskie, Silesian, Kielce and part of the Warsaw lands.

They managed to snatch their pieces of victory to other countries, the USSR returned Western Ukraine and Byelorussia, Slovakia some areas that formerly left Poland for the Versailles peace, and Lithuania returned the Vilnius region.

The Polish campaign of the Wehrmacht, aimed at the destruction of the independence of this state, the division of territories and the establishment of its own authority as a great power, justified itself for all purposes. After the victory, Germany again tried to lull the vigilance of Britain and France, offering them peace, but the countries responded with a resolute refusal and began a systematic struggle against the fascist regime.