Poland Flashcards
Describe German-Poland relations pre 1933?
Germany and Poland had always had a history of enmity which was worsened when the Treaty of Versailles gave land to Poland and created the polish corridor
Who did Poland look to make alliances with?
What was the consequence?
-in 1936 the Poles said they were willing to support France if they decided to drive German troops out of the Rhineland in 1936.
-Although the French never did this, the poles had shown themselves as willing to fight Germany
Describe German polish relations from 1935 to 1937
1935; Germany wanted to show she was willing to negotiate over the polish corridor
up to 1937; several high level meetings in which the Nazis tried to make a more formal alliance with Poland that included military support in the event of a war
What did Germany say they wanted to establish with Poland in a military alliance?
The right to build road links to East Prussia, and even floated the idea of a mutual war against the USSR, offering the poles the Ukraine if they won
HOWEVER - the poles resisted this knowing that an alliance with Germany could mean war with the USSR and they wanted to be seen as a valuable ally to both
What aggravated the Nazis about Poland?
Polands unwillingness to make a formal alliance
What did Hitler offer Poland in 1939?
He offered Poland to be part of the Anti-comintern pact in 1939 but he knew the poles would refuse this as it would mean war with the USSR
How did the balance of power shift in Eastern Europe in 1939?
The Nazi-Soviet pact and Pact of steel meant that Poland was now surrounded by Allies on both sides- The Nazi soviet pact secretly said that Germany and the USSR would invade Poland and divide it up between themselves
What evidence is there that the invasion of Poland was a political miscalculation?
It can be argued that Hitler did not believe the guarantee made by Britain and France to uphold polish independence if attacked, leading Hitler to calculate he could invade Poland without risking a world war
What did Hitler outline at the Hossbach memorandum 1937?
-Germany would require lebensraum
-The immediate aims of Anschluss (contravene TofV)
-The destruction of Czhecoslovakia (contravene TofV)
What supports the notion Hossbach demonstrates hitler had intended war
Obsessed with what was his impending death, Hitler, according to Hossbach, told the meeting that his discussion of policy should be regarded ‘in the event of death as his last will and testament’
How can Hossbach challenge an internationalist viewpoint?
There are clear deviations from Hitlers actual actions;
-No mention of war with Russia is made
-Only a campaign with Czechoslovakia is named, and this is in 1943 rather than 1939
YET it is clear from the memorandum Hitler was preparing for war
