Poland: State Under Siege

September 1, 1939: Barely two decades old, Poland found itself surrounded by the two expansionist great powers of Europe - Germany and the Soviet Union. At the outbreak of war, Poland’s expansionist neighbors invaded from all sides, pushing for Warsaw and overrunning the outnumbered and outmoded Polish army. With France and Great Britain reluctant to fight another costly war against Germany, over the long weeks of September

Poland collapsed militarily, politically, economically, and socially. Hitler and Stalin committed their empires to not only the defeat of the Polish military and the partition of Polish territory, but also the elimination of Poland’s national identity.

Join us as we travel through history to examine Poland’s desperate prewar diplomatic maneuvers, its defense against the onslaught of the Wehrmacht and the Red Army, and its struggle to survive occupation.

Explore the Experience

Explore moments that capture what it was like to live during the Invasion of Poland.

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German Führer Adolf Hitler and General Walther von Brauchitsch at a victory parade after the defeat of Poland

September, 1939
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War Breaks Out

September, 1939
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Polish soldiers with anti-aircraft artillery near the Warsaw Central Station during the first days of September

September, 1939
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Edward Rydz-Smigly, Polish propaganda sign

1937
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Polish child in the ruin of Warsaw

September 1939
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During the siege of Warsaw, starving civilians walk past the skeletons of horses already stripped of their meat.

September, 1939
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German Troops after the Battle at Westerplatte

September 1939
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Polish War Propaganda. Translation: “To Arms! United we shall conquer the enemy!"

September 1939
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Captive Jews from Kraków Ghetto await slave labour

1939
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War Propaganda

September, 1939
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A ten-year-old girl mourns the death of her older sister, who was killed by German bombers in a field in Warsaw while digging for potatoes.

September, 1939
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Red Army troops stand beside a BA-20 armoured car in Brest-Litovsk, where the two invading armies met. German officers stand in the background.

September 20, 1939
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Pro-British March following British declaration of war, Warsaw

September 3, 1939
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Polish Boys read Mickey Mouse during Siege of Warsaw

September, 1939
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Prewar: Warsaw, Poland

December 31, 1938
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Soviet WWII propaganda poster urging the civilians to beware of the spies. Note the villain seen in the shadow is wearing a Polish parade uniform

1939
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How "experts" viewed the probable course of World War 2, surveyed by a British newspaper. Poland was expected to "take the attention of half the German army for six months or more."

September 1, 1939
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Explusion of Poles from central Poland following the campaign

October 1939

"I am determined to solve (1) the Danzig question; (2) the question of the Corridor; and (3) to see to it that a change is made in the relationship between Germany and Poland that shall ensure a peaceful co-existence. In this I am resolved to continue to fight until either the present Polish government is willing to continue to bring about this change or until another Polish Government is ready to do so. I am resolved to remove from the German frontiers the element of uncertainty, the everlasting atmosphere of conditions resembling civil war. I will see to it that in the East there is, on the frontier, a peace precisely similar to that on our other frontiers.”

Adolf Hitler, Chancellor of Germany ( September 1, 1939 )

“The air rocked. Fountains of sand, stones and smoke rose up. Shattered trunks and branches of trees, pieces of human bodies and weapons flew in the air. The deafening thunder of explosions was interrupted from time to time by the shill screams of the dying.”

Wladyslaw Baran, Warrant Officer ( September 1939 )

“The extent of the death, destruction and disorganization this combined fire caused in three short hours was incredible. By the time our wits were sufficiently collected even to survey the situation, it was apparent that we were in no position to offer any serious resistance.”

Jan Karski,
Lieutenant, Mounted Artillery Division ( September 1939 )

Meet The Team

Emily Scammell

Emily Scammell is a second-year MA student from Alabama concentrating in Strategic Studies. Before coming to SAIS, Emily graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Comparative Politics and a minor in Hunger Studies. She took a gap year after undergraduate to intern with the U.S. Department of State in DC and London. At SAIS, Emily is a Research Assistant for Dr. Thomas Keaney. She hopes to work abroad in post-conflict rehabilitation after graduation.

Emily Scammell

Quartermaster

Ben Chase

Ben is a second-year MA student concentrating in Strategic Studies. Before SAIS, he earned an MA in History from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, focusing on state formation in the Middle East and counterinsurgency efforts in the Sultanate of Oman. He was a researcher for the 2015 ISR to Colombia covering the rise of the FARC in the 1970’s and 80’s. Ben also serves as the department’s coordinator for the Shakespeare on War and Politics series.

Ben Chase

Quartermaster

Zack Fellman

Zack Fellman is a second-year Strategic Studies MA student and an Adjunct Fellow at CSIS’ Transnational Threats Project. Prior to SAIS, he spent three years at CSIS conducting field research on militancy and threat financing across the Middle East and South Asia. At SAIS, Zack is the research assistant for Professor Thomas Mahnken and was a researcher for ISR 2015 to Colombia. Zack graduated from Colgate University with a BA in Peace and Conflict Studies.

Zack Fellman

Research Lead

Jeb Benkowski

Hailing from Wisconsin, James “Jeb” Benkowski is a graduate of Yale University, where he received a bachelor’s degree with distinction in security studies focusing on cybersecurity and Sino-American security. He speaks Mandarin, and worked in Singapore before returning to the U.S. for graduate school. At SAIS, he is a strategic studies concentrator with a minor in China Studies and the research assistant for Phillip Merrill Center Director Eliot Cohen. During his first year, he participated in three staff rides and was elected to SAIS’s student government.

Jeb Benkowski

Research Lead

Kate Sliney

Kate is a second-year strategic studies concentrator focused on U.S. strategy in Asia. Outside of class, she researches and builds web-based interactive visualizations on maritime transparency for CSIS. She is currently a research assistant for the Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies under Professor John McLaughlin, and she serves as the department’s coordinator for the You Were There Speaker Series under Amb. Eric Edelman. Prior to SAIS, Kate spent four years living in Asia and speaks Mandarin.

Kate Sliney

Web Designer/Public Affairs Officer

Kait Lavinder

Kait Lavinder is a second-year MA student at SAIS, where she studies the European economy, energy, and environment policy. She spent this past summer in Berlin interning in the Press Section at the U.S. embassy. Her responsibilities included preparing the U.S. Ambassador for questions from German media about the NSA scandal. Lavinder is the President of SAIS Consulting Club and Chairwoman of the SAIS Global Women in Leadership Conference. Her background is in journalism.

Kait Lavinder

Logistics Lead