A Polish train lays destroyed after a German attack in 1939 the ground At the last possible moment the pilots released the bombs flung by a trapeze like arm to avoid hitting the aircraft's propeller Each carrying more than 1 000 pounds 450 kg of bombs the Stukas struck Polish army units bridges railways airfields and lines of communication Their objective was to paralyze Polish defenses and clear the way for masses
of German tanks motorized infantry and artillery crossing the border from GERMANY VERSUS POLAND three directions The bulk of the German At the dawn of World War II Germany infantry followed on foot Accompanied by possessed enormous advantages over Poland infantry on trucks and motorized artillery The German army contained 2 5 million troops the armor quickly smashed through the while Poland had 280 000 troops The German air force had approximately 3 600 aircraft while Polish frontline forces and reached deep Poland had barely half as many Additionally into Poland Rampaging across Poland over Poland's most important areas were close to the next several weeks German forces German controlled territory which bordered encircled large pockets of Polish troops Poland on three sides A rapid German strike ensured that these areas fell quickly Germany The Russians invaded Poland from the also had economic advantages The annual east two weeks later The entire campaign budget of Berlin Germany s capital city was lasted approximately five weeks greater than that of the entire nation of Poland Poland had been subjected to a new type of war far different from the protracted stalemate of World War I 1914 1918 As he watched a teacher lead a group of students toward trees for shelter Polish military officer Wladyslaw Anders described a scene he witnessed that suggested this war would be a brutal one Suddenly there was the roar of an aeroplane The pilot circled descending to a height of fifty meters As he dropped his bombs and fired his machine guns the children scattered like sparrows The aeroplane disappeared as quickly as it had come but on the field some crumpled and lifeless bundles of bright clothing remained The nature of the new war was already clear
BLITZKRIEG WARFARE Anders was seeing the rehearsal for the German blitzkrieg or lightning war In this new style of warfare coordinated aircraft tanks and mechanized and motorized units provided rapid overwhelming firepower against the enemy's frontline forces The speed of their movement left enemy defenses confused and unable to organize counterattacks The Germans ability to strike swiftly and deeply into the heart of enemy territory meant armies could avoid the deadlock of the World War I trenches This conflict was also a total war involving civilian populations as never before Behind the rapid advance supply and communication lines were set up to enable the invading forces to continue pushing forward but the swiftly advancing armored forces would not wait At the same time propaganda campaigns attacked enemy morale The goal was to quickly eliminate the enemy's ability and will to resist The evolution of blitzkrieg was possible because of Germany's military buildup during the 1930s and its highly developed organization and coordination of its forces Blitzkrieg proved extremely effective in the early months of World War II After crushing Poland Germany turned its attention to France In the spring of 1940 Germany used blitzkrieg to seize France in a matter of weeks German leader Adolf Hitler then turned his attention to the United Kingdom But in the summer of 1940 the Stuka proved extremely vulnerable to modern British fighter planes The Stukas were withdrawn from the Battle of Britain More limitations of German blitzkrieg were revealed when Germany invaded the Soviet Union in the summer of 1941 drawing the Soviets into the
leutſches Docf in dangee Cond Itfeee Madht am Weidhselsteomd A Nazi banner reads German villages in Danzig land keep a faithful watch on the banks of the Weichsel hinting at their upcoming invasion of the town in
