Innocent Polish sheep?

In the history of every state there are heroic pages that this state is proud of. There are such heroic pages in the history of Poland. One of such glorious pages of Polish history is Operation Zaluzhie — the armed occupation by Polish forces of part of Czechoslovakia that occurred 11 months before the start of World War II.

“With the greed of a hyena” - with these words W. Churchill praised the behavior of pre-war Poland, hastening to grab its piece from the doomed in Munich to tear to pieces Czechoslovakia. “The heroic character traits of the Polish people,” the famous British politician summed up, “should not force us to turn a blind eye to his recklessness and ingratitude, which for several centuries inflicted immeasurable suffering on him.” Indeed, the reckless ambitions of the Poles on the eve of the tragedy of 1939 were far from being limited to the Teshinsky region. In Warsaw, they made plans to tear vast territories in the East and even raved about a "march to Berlin."

A brief chronology of the events of such a glorious page in the history of the Polish state:

February 23, 1938. Beck at the talks with Goering declares Poland’s readiness to reckon with German interests in Austria and emphasized Poland’s interest in “the Czech problem”.

March 17, 1938. Poland presents an ultimatum to Lithuania demanding the conclusion of a convention guaranteeing the rights of the Polish minority in Lithuania, as well as the abolition of the paragraph of the Lithuanian constitution, which proclaims Vilnius the capital of Lithuania. (Vilna was illegally captured by the Poles a few years ago and incorporated into Poland).

On the Polish-Lithuanian border, Polish troops are concentrated. Lithuania agreed to accept the Polish representative. If the ultimatum is rejected within 24 hours, the Poles threatened to march to Kaunas and occupy Lithuania. The Soviet government, through the Polish ambassador in Moscow, recommended not to encroach on the freedom and independence of Lithuania. Otherwise, it denounces without warning the Polish-Soviet non-aggression pact and, in the event of an armed attack on Lithuania, will reserve the freedom of action. Thanks to this intervention, the danger of an armed conflict between Poland and Lithuania was averted. The Poles limited their demands on Lithuania to one point - the establishment of diplomatic relations - and abandoned the armed invasion of Lithuania.

May 1938 The Polish government is concentrating several units in the Teszyn region (three divisions and one brigade of border troops).

August 11, 1938 - in a conversation with Lipsky, the German side announced its understanding of Poland’s interest in Soviet Ukraine.

September 8-11, 1938. In response to the willingness expressed by the Soviet Union to come to the aid of Czechoslovakia, both against Germany and against Poland, the largest military maneuvers in the history of the revived Polish state were organized on the Polish-Soviet border, in which 5 infantry and 1 cavalry divisions participated, 1 motorized team as well as aviation. The Reds advancing from the east were completely defeated by the Blue. The maneuvers ended with a grand 7-hour parade in Lutsk, which was personally received by the “supreme leader” Marshal Rydz-Smigly.

September 19, 1938 - Lipsky brings to the attention of Hitler the opinion of the Polish government that Czechoslovakia is an artificial entity and supports Hungarian claims regarding the territory of Carpathian Rus.

September 20, 1938 - Hitler tells Lipsky that in the event of a military conflict between Poland and Czechoslovakia over the Teschyn region, the Reich will side with Poland, that Poland has completely free hands behind the line of German interests, that he sees a solution to the Jewish problem by emigrating to the colony in accord with Poland, Hungary and Romania. And then events developed as with Poland itself in 1939.

September 21, 1938 - Poland sent a note to Czechoslovakia demanding a solution to the problem of the Polish national minority in Tieszyn Silesia.

September 22, 1938 - the Polish government urgently announces the denunciation of the Polish-Czechoslovak treaty on national minorities, and a few hours later announces an ultimatum to Czechoslovakia on the annexation of lands with the Polish population to Poland. On behalf of the so-called "Union of Silesian Rebels" in Warsaw, recruitment to the "Tesinsky Volunteer Corps" was quite openly launched. The formed units of "volunteers" are sent to the Czechoslovak border, where they organize armed provocations and sabotage.

Handshake of Polish Marshal Edward Rydz-Smiglá and German Attache Colonel Bogislaw von Studnitz at the Independence Day parade in Warsaw on November 11, 1938. The photograph is notable for the fact that the Polish parade was especially tied to the capture of Tieszyn Silesia a month earlier. The parade specially hosted a column of Teshinsky Poles.

September 23, 1938 - the Soviet government warned the Polish government that if Polish troops concentrated on the border with Czechoslovakia invaded its borders, the USSR would consider this an act of unprovoked aggression and denounce the non-aggression pact with Poland. In the evening of the same day the response of the Polish government followed. His tone was arrogant as usual. It explained that it was conducting some military activities for defense purposes only.

September 24, 1938. The newspaper "Pravda" 1938. September 24. N264 (7589). on p.5. publishes an article "Polish fascists are preparing a putsch in Tieszyn Silesia." Later, on the night of September 25, in the town of Konsk near Trzynets, the Poles threw hand grenades and fired on houses in which Czechoslovak border guards were located, as a result of which two buildings were burned down. After a two-hour battle, the attackers retreated to Polish territory.

Similar clashes occurred that night and in a number of other places in the Teshinsky region.

September 25, 1938. The Poles raided the Frishtat railway station, fired at it and threw grenades.

September 27, 1938. The Polish government reiterates its demand for the "return" of the Tieszyn region to it. Throughout the night, gunfire and machine gun fire, grenade explosions, etc., were heard in almost all areas of the Teshinskaya oblast. The most bloody clashes, as reported by the Polish Telegraph Agency, were observed in the vicinity of Bohumin, Teshin and Yablunkov, in the towns of Bystritsa, Konska and Skshechen.

Armed groups of "rebels" repeatedly attacked Czechoslovak arms depots, Polish planes daily violated the Czechoslovak border. In the newspaper "Pravda" 1938. September 27. No. 267 (7592) on page 1, the article "The rampant arrogance of the Polish fascists" is published.

September 28, 1938. Armed provocations continue. In the newspaper "Pravda" 1938. September 28. No. 268 (7593) On page 5. The article "Provocations of Polish Fascists" is published.

September 29, 1938. Polish diplomats in London and Paris insist on an equal approach to solving the Sudeten and Teshin problems, the Polish and German military agree on a line of demarcation of troops in case of invasion of Czechoslovakia. The Czech newspapers describe the touching scenes of a "military fraternity" between the German fascists and Polish nationalists. A gang of 20 armed with automatic weapons attacked the Czechoslovak border post near Grgava. The attack was repelled, the attackers fled to Poland, and one of them, being wounded, was captured. During interrogation, the captured bandit said that there were many Germans in their unit living in Poland.

On the night of September 29-30, 1938 the notorious Munich Agreement was concluded.

September 30, 1938. Warsaw presented Prague with a new ultimatum, which was to be answered 24 hours later, demanding the immediate satisfaction of its claims, which required the immediate transfer of the Teszyn border region to it. The newspaper "Pravda" 1938. September 30. No. 270 (7595) on p. 5. publishes an article: "Provocations of aggressors do not stop." Incidents "at the borders."

October 1, 1938. Czechoslovakia cedes to Poland the region where 80 thousand Poles and 120 thousand Czechs lived. However, the main acquisition is the industrial potential of the occupied territory. The enterprises located there produced at the end of 1938 almost 41% of the pig iron smelted in Poland and almost 47% of steel.

October 2, 1938. Operation Zaluzhye. Poland occupies Tesin Silesia (Tesen-Frishtat-Bohumin district) and some settlements on the territory of modern Slovakia.

(The fate of these territories is interesting. After the collapse of Poland, Orava and Spis were transferred to Slovakia. After the end of World War II, the lands were again occupied by the Poles, the Czechoslovak government was forced to accept this. To celebrate, the Poles organized ethnic cleansing against ethnic Slovaks and Germans. In 1958 territories were returned to Czechoslovakia. Now part of Slovakia)

October 1938 The national triumph in Poland on the occasion of the capture of the Tieszyn region. Jozef Beck was awarded the Order of the White Eagle, in addition, the grateful Polish intelligentsia awarded him the title of Honorary Doctor of Warsaw and Lviv Universities. Polish propaganda chokes with delight. On October 9, 1938, Gazeta Polska wrote: "... the road that is open for us to a sovereign, leading role in our part of Europe requires in the near future tremendous efforts and the resolution of incredibly difficult tasks."

Polish soldiers pose with the Czechoslovak coat of arms depicted near the telephone and telegraph building they seized during Operation Zaluzhe in the Czech village of Ligotka Kameralna-Polish, Komorní Lhotka-Czech., Located near the town of Teszyn

On September 1, 1939, Dressed in Steel and Armor and led by Rydz Smigly, began the march in the opposite direction - towards the border with Romania. And in less than a month, Poland disappeared from the map for seven years, along with its ambitions and the habits of a hyena. In 1945, she reappeared, having paid for her insanity with six million Poles' lives. The blood of six million Polish lives for nearly 50 years has cooled the insanity of the Polish government. But nothing lasts forever, and again louder and louder shouts begin to be heard about Greater Poland “from sea to sea”, and in Polish politics the greedy grin of a hyena, already familiar to everyone, begins to appear.

Polish soldiers on a captured Czech checkpoint near the Czechoslovak-German border, near a pedestrian bridge built in honor of the anniversary of Emperor Franz Joseph in the Czech city of Bohumin. The not yet demolished Czechoslovak border pillar is visible.

Poles replace the Czech name of the city with Polish at the city railway station of Tesin.

The entry of Polish occupation forces into the Czechoslovak city of Tesin

The entry of Polish occupation forces into the Czechoslovak city of Tesin

The entry of Polish occupation forces into the Czechoslovak city of Tesin

The entry of Polish occupation forces into the Czechoslovak city of Tesin

Polish troops occupy the Czechoslovak village of Jorgov during an operation to annex the Czechoslovak lands Spis.

The Czechoslovak monument in the city of Bohumin, broken by the Poles during Operation Zaluzhye, against the backdrop of the city hall.

The city of Bohumin was the extreme point of the operation, and it was there that the meeting of Polish troops with German took place. Subsequently, from this city 35 thousand Czechs were forced to emigrate to Czechoslovakia on their own or were expelled.

In the photo there is a square called Masaryk Square in honor of the first president of Czechoslovakia, Tomasz Garik Masaryk (1850-1937).

Recording of the conversation of the German Ambassador to Poland G. Moltke with the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Poland, J. Beck

Foreign Minister Beck invited me to his place today in order to, as he emphasized, given the seriousness of the situation and the loyal relations between our governments, provide secret information about local political events in recent days.

First, he pointed to the famous demarche of the Soviet government, which he again described as a propaganda campaign that did not matter much. He thinks that the Polish answer was quite clear and unambiguous. In this regard, he once again pointed out that the Polish government will never cooperate with the Soviet Union, since it intervenes in European affairs. This is an unbending line of Polish politics. Although he assumes that we know this, he thinks that at such a serious time as now, it will not hurt to repeat this truth again. Incidentally, Poland had the impression that Romania shared this view; in any case, you can rely on King Carol II.

Then Mr. Beck turned to the Czechoslovak question. He mentioned that the Prague government’s response note received yesterday regarding the Tieszyn region does not contain new provisions. According to other sources, however, he clearly hinted at a letter sent by Benes addressed yesterday to the Polish president - no doubt that the Czechs would agree to negotiate on territorial issues. On the French and English sides, urgent demarches were simultaneously taken to make Poland participate in the negotiations. The Polish government sent a note to the government in Prague tonight, in which, referring to an agreement concluded with the Czech government as early as 1919, demand a referendum on the fate of the disputed areas, and the areas inhabited only by Poles should be immediately given to Poland. In response to the idea given to him to take on guarantees for what remained of the Czech state itself, he put forward the thesis that in the future Poland could take responsibility for the territory of Czechoslovakia only with the consent of Germany and Hungary.

At the end of the conversation, Mr. Beck expressed the hope that in the areas claimed by Poland, there would be no contradictions with German interests. Today he sent all the material on the plane to Ambassador Lipsky. Thus, the latter can clarify and clarify which areas Poland is applying for.

p. 224

Print. from: Akten zur deutschen auswartigen Politik. 1918-1945 ". Serie D, B d. I I, S. 7 8 6 - 7 8 7.

It is printed here according to the book: Documents and materials on the eve of the Second World War 1937-1939. in 2 volumes. Moscow. Political Publishing House. 1981.

From W. Churchill's book, World War II, Volume 1, An Impending Storm

Chapter eighteen

"MUNICIPAL WINTER"

"The heroic character traits of the Polish people should not force us to turn a blind eye to his recklessness and ingratitude, which for several centuries caused him immeasurable suffering. In 1919, it was a country that the victory of the Allies after many generations of division and slavery turned into an independent republic and one from the main European powers.Now, in 1938, due to such an insignificant question as Teshin, the Poles broke up with all their friends in France, England and the USA, who returned them to a single national life and which they should soon need so much help. We saw how now, while the glimmer of German power fell on them, they hastened to seize their share in the plunder and ruin of Czechoslovakia. At the time of the crisis, all doors were closed for the English and French ambassadors. even the Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs was not allowed in. It should be considered as a secret and tragedy of European history that people capable of any heroism, some of whom are talented, valiant, charming, constantly show such huge flaws in almost all aspects of their state life. Glory in times of rebellion and grief; infamy and shame during periods of triumph. The bravest of the brave too often have been led by the most infamous of the vile! And yet, two Poland always existed: one of them fought for the truth, and the other creeped into meanness. "

Appetite is known to come with eating. Before the Poles could celebrate the capture of the Teshinsky region, they had new plans:

On December 28, 1938, in a conversation between the adviser of the German Embassy in Poland, Rudolf von Schelia and the newly appointed Polish envoy to Iran, J. Karsho-Sedlevsky, the latter declared: “The political perspective for the European East is clear In a few years, Germany will fight the Soviet Union, and Poland will support Germany, voluntarily or involuntarily, in this war. For Poland, it is better to definitely side with Germany before the conflict, since Poland's territorial interests in the west and Poland's political goals in the east, before only in Ukraine can only be secured by the Polish-German agreement reached in advance.Karsho-Sedlevsky will subordinate his activities as the Polish envoy to Tehran to the realization of this great Eastern concept, since in the end it is necessary to persuade and induce also the Persians and Afghans play an active role in a future war against the Soviets. "

December 1938. From the report of the 2nd department (intelligence department) of the main headquarters of the Polish Army: "The dismemberment of Russia lies at the heart of Polish politics in the East ... Therefore, our possible position will be reduced to the following formula: who will take part in the partition. Poland is not "must remain passive at this remarkable historical moment. The task is to prepare well in advance physically and spiritually ... The main goal is to weaken and defeat Russia. "(See Z dziejow stosunkow polsko-radzieckich. Studia i materialy. T. III. Warszawa, 1968, str. 262, 287.)

January 26, 1939. In a conversation with German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, held in Warsaw, Polish Foreign Minister Jozef Beck states: "Poland is laying claim to Soviet Ukraine and access to the Black Sea."

March 4, 1939. After long economic, political and operational research, the Polish command completed the development of a plan of war against the USSR. "East" ("Washud"). (See Centralne Archiwum Ministerstwa Spraw Wewnetrznych, R-16/1).

However, here the Poles broke off with the next opportunity to again act as a hyena and rob for free, hiding behind the back of a stronger neighbor, because she, Poland, was seduced by the opportunity to rob a richer neighbor than the USSR:

March 20, 1939. Hitler put forward a proposal to Poland: to agree to the inclusion of the city of Danzig in Germany and to create an extraterritorial corridor that would connect Germany with East Prussia.

March 21, 1939. In a conversation with the Polish ambassador, Ribbentrop again presented demands for Danzig (Gdansk), as well as the right to build an extraterritorial railway and motorway that would connect Germany with East Prussia.

March 22, 1939. In Poland, the first partial and hidden mobilization (five units) was announced in order to provide cover for the mobilization and concentration of the main forces of the Polish army.

March 24, 1939. The Polish government submitted to the British government a proposal for an Anglo-Polish pact.

March 26, 1939. The Polish government issues a memorandum in which, according to Ribbentrop, "German proposals for the return of Danzig and extraterritorial transport routes through the corridor were rejected in an unceremonious manner." Ambassador Lipsky said: "Any further pursuit of the goal of these German plans, and especially regarding the return of Danzig to the Reich, means a war with Poland." Ribbentrop again verbally repeated the German demands: Danzig’s unambiguous return, extraterritorial ties with East Prussia, a 25-year non-aggression pact with a guarantee of borders, as well as cooperation on the Slovak question in the form of the defense of this area accepted by neighboring states.

March 31, 1939. British Prime Minister H. Chamberlain announced Anglo-French military guarantees for Poland in connection with the threat of aggression from Germany. As Churchill wrote about this in his memoirs: “And now, when all these advantages and all this help have been lost and discarded, England, leading France along with her, suggests guaranteeing the integrity of Poland - the very Poland that was only six months ago with greed hyenas took part in the robbery and destruction of the Czechoslovak state. "

And how did the Poles react to the desire of England and France to protect them from German aggression and the guarantees received? They again began to transform into a greedy hyena! And now they sharpened their teeth to grab a piece from Germany. As American researcher Henson Baldwin noted in his book, during the war years he worked as the military editor of the New York Times:

“They were proud and too self-confident, living in the past. Many Polish soldiers, saturated with the military spirit of their people and their traditional hatred of the Germans, spoke and dreamed of a“ march to Berlin. ”Their hopes well reflect the words of one of the songs:

... clad in steel and armor,

Rydz-led Smigly,

We will march to the Rhine ... "