1 War in Europe The German Invasion of Poland September 1, 1939 Nazi Germany Invades Poland Blitzkrieg Warfare “Lightning Warfare” Series of quick wars against diplomatically isolated states before they could get mobilized. Hitler’s reasoningLessons of WWI
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War in Europe - FCPS of Poland... · 1 War in Europe The German Invasion of Poland September 1, 1939 Nazi Germany Invades Poland Blitzkrieg Warfare “Lightning Warfare” Series
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War in EuropeThe German Invasion of Poland
September 1, 1939 Nazi Germany Invades Poland
Blitzkrieg Warfare
� “Lightning Warfare”
� Series of quick wars against diplomatically isolated states before they could get mobilized.
� Hitler’s reasoning� Lessons of WWI
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Why Blitzkrieg?� Military
� Fear of a drawn out conflict
� Political � Public Opinion
� Economic� Never transfer into a full
wartime economyHeinz Guderian
creator of Blitzkrieg
What is Blitzkrieg?� Offensive style of warfare
� Comes from the lessons of World War I
� Emphasis is on movement, speed, and flexibility� Tanks smash border defenses and encircle enemy troops� Motorized infantry follows� Tanks move on to next area� Mass of traditional infantry follows motorized infantry,
motorized infantry moves on � All along, there is air support by Nazi Luftwaffe
The Campaign in Poland
� Known as “Case White”� Germans use 52 division (1 million men)� Statistics
� Germans use 1,500 tanks and 1,200 aircraft
� Poland has 300 tanks and 400 aircraft
� Two Groups: North and South� Warsaw reached by September 8
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Bombing of Warsaw� Germans
respond to resistance with civilian bombing.
� This is a new kind of war.
The Collapse of Poland� September 17 �
Stalin sends Red Army into Eastern Poland.
� End of September �Poland Defeated
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Important Outcomes� 90,000 Poles create exile
army in Britain� Largest exile army of war
� Enigma Machine� Poles had been working on
breaking German code� British would later use it to their