Defensive war 1939 - Print1-SEPTEMBER.pdf · The German attack on Poland and the beginning of the...

Defensive war 1939https://1september39.com/39e/calendar/2065,1-SEPTEMBER.html2021-03-23, 00:37

1SEPTEMBER

EventsThe German attack on Poland and the beginning of the Second WorldWar. At 4.45 am, the German battleship Schleswig-Holstein beganshelling Westerplatte, the Military Transit Depot in the Free City ofGdańsk, defended by a garrison (about 200 soldiers) under thecommand of Maj. Henryk Sucharski and Cpt. Franciszek Dąbrowski. Forseven days, the Poles heroically repelled repeated German attacksfrom the sea, land and air, becoming a symbol of Polish resistance.

The defense of the Polish Post in Gdańsk (commanded by KonradGuderski). The Poles surrender in the afternoon, when the mail buildingis set on fire. A month later they are shot by the Germans.

Operation "Tannenberg". The organized and planned German murderof civilians, especially the Polish elite in the western territories of theRepublic of Poland, is carried out by the Selbstschutz (sabotage unitsrecruited from members of German minority living in Poland) andsecurity police (the so-called Einsatzgruppen).

The bombing of Wieluń. One of the first attacked towns is Wieluń,bombed by the Luftwaffe - the number of victims is estimated ataround 1,200 civilians.

Photographs

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