The Polish Crisis 1939

By Danny Noh, Joon Kyu Lee and Anthony Gokianluy

Why Poland:

• Danzig/Polish Corridor (Treaty of Versailles, cuts off East Prussia)

• Posen (Agricultural lands, want to increase resources)

• Lebensraum (Living space)

• Common border for the invasion of Russia

• Base for future attacks on Eastern Europe

History of the Crisis (A Timeline):

• October 1938: Hitler demanded that the Danzig (of Gdansk) region of Poland be ceded to Germany

• Port area had been under Polish administration since the Potsdam agreement.

• March 1939: Poland refused to cede Danzig, and in March of 1939, negotiations began between Germany and Poland

• March 30, 1939: Both France and Great Britain pledged to defend Poland in the event of a German attack.

• April 1939: German troop concentrations on the Polish border began.

• April to June 1939: Hitler makes several statements about Polish "atrocities" to German citizens in Danzig

• August 1939: Signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact• September 1, 1939: Invasion of Poland• September 3, 1939: Great Britain and France declare war on

Germany, beginning of the Second World War

The Polish Crisis:

• The conflict between Germany and Poland (supported by Britain and France) over the Danzig territory

Polish Maps

Significance of the Crisis

• The Spark to WW2

• Aggressive German Foreign Policy

• Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in action

• Marked failure of Appeasement