Battles of the Ages: World War II 1939

Marcus Caldwell

Battles of the Ages: World War II 1939

Copyright © 2023 by Marcus Caldwell

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

First edition

Contents

Introduction

I. GERMAN INVASION OF POLAND

Prelude

Battle of Mokra

Battle of Westerplatte

Battle of Mława

Battle of Tuchola Forest

Battle of Hel

Battle of Wizna

Battle of the Bzura

Battle of Przemyśl

Battle of Brześć Litewski

Battle of Kobryń

Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski

Siege of Warsaw

Battle of Kock

II. SOVIET INVASION OF POLAND

Prelude

Battle of Lwów

Battle of Wilno

Battle of Grodno

Battle of Szack

Battle of Wytyczno

III. WINTER WAR

Prelude

Invasion and First Battles

Suomussalmi–Raate Engagement

Engagements in Lapland

IV. ATLANTIC FRONT

Battle of the River Plate

V. PACIFIC FRONT

Prelude

Battles of Khalkhin Gol

Battle of Nanchang

First Battle of Changsha

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

In 1939, the world teetered on the edge of a monumental shift that would forever alter the dynamics of global power, the resilience of the human spirit, and the very nature of warfare. The battles of World War II, igniting that year, transcended traditional military conflicts, representing profound clashes of ideologies, economies, and entire civilizations.

This year began in the shadow of escalating tensions. The Treaty of Versailles, established after World War I, had planted deep seeds of resentment and retribution within Germany. Concurrently, the global economic distress of the 1930s, epitomized by the Great Depression, severely undermined the stability of economies and societies worldwide. In these conditions of discontent and despair, the groundwork for another catastrophic conflict was laid.

Adolf Hitler, ascending to power in Germany in 1933, was aggressively expanding his military reach and challenging the limits set by the Treaty of Versailles. His objectives were unambiguous: to recover lost German territories and to extend his dominion eastward, forging a vast empire for the Aryan race. The Munich Agreement of 1938, surrendering the Sudetenland to Germany, was merely a stepping stone for his grander aspirations. Simultaneously, other nations, notably Japan and Italy, harbored their own ambitions for expansion, setting the stage for a conflict of global proportions.

The onset of World War II was marked on September 1, 1939, with Germany’s invasion of Poland. This unprovoked act shattered the fragile veneer of peace. Germany’s use of blitzkrieg or lightning war tactics devastated the Polish defenses. A combination of tanks, motorized infantry, and relentless aerial bombardments sliced through Polish lines, encapsulating and decimating entire divisions. The rapidity and ferocity of this assault stunned the world, heralding a new chapter in the annals of warfare.

The suffering of Poland was not limited to military defeat; it represented a dire humanitarian crisis. The German incursion was characterized by extraordinary atrocities against civilians, exposing the genocidal motives of the Nazi regime. Concurrently, the Soviet Union, having allied with Germany through the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, invaded Poland from the east on September 17, effectively bisecting the nation between two ruthless dictators: Hitler and Stalin.

Britain and France, in response to Poland’s fall, declared war on Germany, yet their capacity to mitigate the plight of Poland was limited. This led to the Phoney War, a phase of relative inactivity on the Western Front. However, this lull was misleading, as it was a period ripe with intense military preparations, espionage, and diplomatic schemes. The reverberations of the war extended beyond Europe, influencing political strategies in Washington, Tokyo, and other global capitals.

The year 1939 was marked by stark contradictions. It showcased the pinnacle of contemporary military technology with advanced tanks, aircraft, and battleships, while simultaneously reviving the age-old horrors of war, including mass executions, sieges, and famines. The conflict extended beyond traditional battlegrounds, engulfing factories, research labs, and propaganda outlets. This comprehensive mobilization blurred the distinctions between soldiers and civilians, frontlines and home fronts.

Delving into the specific battles of 1939 reveals a tapestry of valor and atrocity, innovation and devastation. From the siege of Warsaw, where Polish forces valiantly contended against overwhelming odds, to the naval engagements in the Atlantic, where the fate of nations hinged on the capabilities of submarines and warships, each confrontation contributed to the broader narrative of the war.

Reflecting on the tumultuous events of 1939, with the advantage of hindsight, there’s a profound appreciation for the complexity and uncertainty of those times. The decisions taken, the lives sacrificed, and the paths chosen during that year dictated the trajectory of the rest of the war and shaped the ensuing century.

I

German Invasion of Poland

Prelude

On the fateful day of January 30, 1933, a seismic shift occurred in the political landscape of Europe: Adolf Hitler and his National Socialist German Workers’ Party seized control of Germany. This moment marked not just a change in leadership, but the beginning of a chilling era defined by expansionist ambitions and oppressive ideologies. Contrary to some beliefs, Hitler’s aggressive plans for Poland weren’t a continuation of any pre-existing Weimar Republic aspirations. His vision was stark and ominous: to invade and partition Poland, annex Bohemia and Austria, and transform neighboring states into economically subservient satellites or puppet regimes.

In pursuit of this grandiose strategy, Hitler initially adopted a guise of diplomacy towards Poland, aiming to sway public opinion in Germany. This diplomatic dance culminated in the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934, a masterstroke in deception. Earlier, Hitler had cunningly worked to erode the alliance between Poland and France, hoping to draw Poland into the Anti-Comintern Pact, thereby creating a united front against the Soviet Union. In exchange for joining this coalition, Poland was tantalizingly offered territories in Ukraine and Belarus. Yet, these offers came with a heavy price, threatening to reduce Poland to a mere vassal state under Germany’s thumb.

Amidst this geopolitical chess game, the Poles harbored deep-seated fears. They sensed that their hard-won independence hung by a thread. Hitler, who had brazenly dismissed the sovereignty of Poland as early as 1930, viewed them and other Slavic peoples as inferior, unworthy of statehood.

Meanwhile, in the Free City of Danzig, a fervent desire to rejoin Germany brewed among the predominantly German population. This sentiment echoed in the territories separating East Prussia from the rest of Germany. The Polish Corridor, a contentious strip of land with a Polish majority, had been a bone of contention between Germany and Poland for years. Allocated to Poland after the Treaty of Versailles, it was a symbol of Polish sovereignty and German loss. The city of Danzig, with its significant German population, had been cut off from Germany and stood as an independent entity, fueling German desires for reunification.

Hitler saw in these sentiments a golden opportunity. He sought to exploit the situation in Danzig and the Corridor, using it as a pretext for war. He promised to liberate the German minorities, aiming to overturn the territorial losses of 1918. It was a narrative steeped in nationalism, setting the stage for one of the darkest chapters in modern history.

In a masterful display of propaganda, Germany branded its 1939 invasion as the Defensive War, painting itself as a victim of Polish aggression. Hitler spun a narrative claiming that Poland had initiated the conflict and that Germans in Poland were being subjected to brutal persecution and forced from their homes. He lamented the series of border violations as an affront to Germany’s status as a major power, insisting that Poland had flagrantly disrespected German borders.

In a twist of irony, Poland had earlier engaged in its own territorial ambitions at the expense of Czechoslovakia. Following the Munich Agreement — to which Poland was not a party — it pressured Czechoslovakia into ceding the Český Těšín region, a territory with a Polish majority that had been a subject of dispute post-World War I. Poland’s annexation of this area and several Slovak villages later became a pretext for Slovakia’s participation in the German invasion.

By 1937, Germany escalated its demands, eyeing the strategic city of Danzig. Hitler proposed constructing an extraterritorial highway through the Polish Corridor, linking East Prussia to the rest of Germany. Poland, however, viewed this with suspicion and fear, concerned that acquiescence would lead to a gradual erosion of its sovereignty, much like what had transpired in Czechoslovakia.

Polish leaders, mistrusting Hitler’s intentions, and the British, alarmed by Germany’s burgeoning power and its threat to the balance of power, took steps to counteract these moves. On March 31, 1939, Poland formed a pivotal military alliance with the United Kingdom and France, banking on their support to safeguard its independence and territorial integrity against German threats.

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and his Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax, harbored hopes of negotiating a deal with Hitler, particularly over Danzig and potentially the Polish Corridor. They clung to the belief that war could be averted and that Germany might be content with limited territorial gains. However, lurking beneath these surface-level disputes was a larger struggle for dominance in Central Europe.

In private, Hitler revealed a different agenda. For him, the issue of Danzig was merely a facade. His true objective was the pursuit of Lebensraum — living space — for Germany, a goal that would plunge Europe into one of its darkest chapters.

As the shadow of war loomed, Germany’s approach became increasingly belligerent. On April 28, 1939, Hitler boldly renounced the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact and the Anglo-German Naval Agreement. Negotiations over Danzig and the Polish Corridor came to a standstill, leading to a diplomatic stalemate between Germany and Poland. During this tense period, Germany discovered that the Soviet Union had not formed an alliance with France and Britain against them. Intriguingly, the Soviets were open to an alliance with Germany against Poland. Hitler, anticipating a potential conflict, had already instructed his military to prepare for the Case White scenario – a plan for a military solution to the Polish problem.

In May, Hitler explicitly revealed to his generals that the invasion of Poland would be a different ball game compared to the annexation of Czechoslovakia. He declared that German unification was almost complete, but further expansion would require bloodshed. He was unequivocal about Poland’s fate – there was no avoiding conflict. Danzig was merely a pretext; the real goal was the expansion eastwards to secure living space and food supplies. The Baltic states’ issue also needed resolution. Hitler made it clear that sparing Poland was out of the question.

On August 22, a week before the outbreak of war, Hitler delivered a chilling speech to his military commanders at Obersalzberg. He laid bare the ruthless objective of the war: the physical annihilation of the Polish people. He had even prepared specialized Death’s Head units for this brutal task in the East.

The geopolitical landscape shifted dramatically with the