•2 years
September 17, 1939 - Soviet aggression against Poland.
On the morning of September 17, 1939, the Soviet Union launched a military attack on Poland. In this way, Stalin fulfilled the secret agreement with Hitler from August (the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact), which provided for a joint aggression against the Republic of Poland, occupation and division of its territory, as well as the actual elimination of the Polish state. The Third Reich and the USSR initiated the outbreak of World War II over the course of more than two weeks. The Red Army struck Poland along the entire length of the eastern border of the Second Polish Republic (over 1400 km). The attack was carried out with immense force on two fronts. The Poles, who had been fiercely fighting against the German army since September 1, were stabbed in the back. The situation was further worsened by the directive of the Supreme Commander Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły to avoid fighting with Red Army units and to withdraw Polish Army units to Romania and Hungary. Soviet occupation began in Poland, which eventually led to the Katyn massacre and the mass deportations of Poles to the east. Furthermore, this date symbolizes the beginning of the permanent loss of the Eastern Borderlands and the deprivation of independence for the Republic for several decades.
On the morning of September 17, 1939, the Soviet Union launched a military attack on Poland. In this way, Stalin fulfilled the secret agreement with Hitler from August (the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact), which provided for a joint aggression against the Republic of Poland, occupation and division of its territory, as well as the actual elimination of the Polish state. The Third Reich and the USSR initiated the outbreak of World War II over the course of more than two weeks. The Red Army struck Poland along the entire length of the eastern border of the Second Polish Republic (over 1400 km). The attack was carried out with immense force on two fronts. The Poles, who had been fiercely fighting against the German army since September 1, were stabbed in the back. The situation was further worsened by the directive of the Supreme Commander Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły to avoid fighting with Red Army units and to withdraw Polish Army units to Romania and Hungary. Soviet occupation began in Poland, which eventually led to the Katyn massacre and the mass deportations of Poles to the east. Furthermore, this date symbolizes the beginning of the permanent loss of the Eastern Borderlands and the deprivation of independence for the Republic for several decades.
Show original content
6 users upvote it!
3 answers