European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 31, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Hitler fourth from right and other Putsch conspirators before their 1924 trial. Meeting in Munich from left Mussolini Hitler an interpreter and Chamberlain lews arrested during the week of the broken class Are marched through Berlin Hitler salutes his troops in Vienna after Germany s annexation of Austria. Minister in Irlvy had to Luck is he was hooted Down in righteous voices crying peace think had hardly dried no Munich Hitler had Mil even finished protesting he had no More ambitions truly he ordered his army to prepare Lur the final liquidation n the remainder of Czechoslovakia. I Liller had no love for slavs either and liquidate they would. In the first week of november 19 in. was still professing his Complete Confidence in the i in the second week. Hitler s obsession with the news went to brutal excesses in the week of the broken Glass synagogues burned shop windows smashed and shops looted thousands of lews beaten whipped and thrown into concentration Camps. It All added to a slowly growing moral revulsion in Many quarters but Little was being done to Slop in. If the Munich pact was the shameful Low Point in tin Era of appeasement historians generally agree thai i litter s own tactics of diplomatic deceit and military bully san would sink lower still when in 1939 i decided to resolve the polish question the carving up of Poland. He talked much about Germany s need of / ebb Myraum living space especially to the East. Poland you understand would have to cease to exist. I Liller had by now sensed that both England and trance would go to any lengths to avoid War wrote Shirer. " our enemies Are Little Worms Hitler assured his wary generals. I saw them at Munich " in the Soring of that year 1939, a very Good year for the i Sihrer he celebrated his 50th birthday by watching his military grown sevenfold in four years Parade before him in Berlin. Confident he could handle the Allied Worms he signed a pact of steel with Italy which would soon be attacking Little Albania and began to press hard on the polish to agree to the restoration of the once German but now free City of Danzig to the Reich. In return he promised to extend their non aggression Pacl by 25 years and guarantee Poland s frontiers. Word had spread that guarantees from h ller were like threats from anybody else that the Fuhrer was in the protect lion business in the Way of a Chicago gangster let him protect you or he d rub you oui. Poland desired neither to be protected by Hitler nor to Sec Dan in return to Germany. By then the German Leader s reputation Lor double dealing had caused even the Good Chamberlain to awaken from his reverie. As i Hitler drummed up the i ase against Poland. Chamberlain Rose in the i Louse of commons and Lei Lared that Britain would help the poles if Olliev were Altai Keil. I Ranee also had a military Aid treaty with Poland. 1 lie difficulty was thai Britain s army was in m great shape and i Rani e s military mentality had gone soil. I Tiller would Brood about not being Able to buy ii the British wrote Shirer but still did not believe the appeasers would intervene. He went about abolishing More treaties including the i non aggression Wilh Poland the country he now labelled Germany s Public i Jimmy number one flu guessing game among observers in i Europe was whether Hitler would take Poland by Force or try i dam e his Way to Mother Munich. After a summer of mane vering Wilh words and War machines Germany happened to be holding training exercises near the polish bord Erthe Fuhrer concluded one of history s foulest agreements i Lis partner in crime this Lime the russians. After some negotiation in his Rush Rush style he Telegram de the russians to gel on Board and not to lose any Lime because the Lemon Between Germany and Poland is intolerable and Poland s current attitude Means thai a crisis May arise any Day. Faced Wilh such arrogance. Germany has already decided to safeguard the interests of the Reich Wilh every Means at her the pact Between the nazi and communist lilacs in which they agreed not to attack each Oiler was signed on aug. 21, 1939. In a secret protocol they agreed to Divide up Poland Estonia Latvia Lithuania and Finland. Following his usual pattern Hiller was manufacturing fake incidents to prove to the German people that Poland had attacked Germany first and polish barbarians were murdering innocent germans now All was in order. The Fuhrer had said it there uie in was. Talk War was Over. A million and a half German troops moved to their jump off Points. In the Dawn hours of sept. I without any declaration of War Llie most potent military machine yet made by Man Blitzkrieg de Poland and drove with frightful efficiency toward Warsaw from the North South and West. I i War that would spread like Delibr Tati Kindeth i d it run if Lac out the Larl fluid begun. In Hilli Rhada Liland and in War thirst that Hail lobe satiated the average ii Man Al time did Mil appear to share his thirst observed Shirer Mil in i rom anyway. In Berlin Shirer wrote the people in ilii1 streets were Apa Lii Tii despite the immensity ill tin new s thai greeted them in inc morning papers Chi were simply Daed to Wake up Ami nil themselves in a War who h the Wen sure the i Pulirer would somehow avoid. There were no sue h pro War Ali is those of i i4. Having lied so Otto non his was in Power. Hiller could not refrain from. Thund naga few More lies to the Gullible German people. You know said the dictator the endless attempts i made for a peaceful clarification and on and on. If they did t know no one was saving. Cautious generals who might disagree Ith their f Sihrer would feel his contempt and be shuttled Oft to career oblivion if nol worse and the robot i ii Lime Lull no i Liller appointed party Hacks and yes men would rubber stamp anything. Poland meanwhile being stormed Over by a is was Daed for a different reason. Us trying to survive beneath the screaming of s Uka Ulivi Law Robers trying to get out of the Way of whole divisions of tanks clashing Forward 40 Miles a Lav. Al Iurii a lightning War where one did nol go through the formality of obviously mobilizing and declaring one s intention to make War was nol the gentleman s Way but the Way of a mechanized crunching Lugger Naul the likes of which the world had never seen. On sept. 3, Britain and France technically honouring their agreements dec tired War on Germany. It was Loo Lale for Poland with its valiant obsolete and Over matched military As German Thunder blew them a Wal. The desperate poles even sent horse cavalry snorting and charging against tanks. They were splat Lead. In 48 hours the polish air Force was destroyed. In a week most of its army had been crushed though some units continued on Page 0 August 31,1989 stripes Magazine
