Myth Busting (or Obalanie Mitów, for Our Polish Chanters)

Sounds like a job for us!
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Uh, no. Sorry guys, I loved your show, I mean SCIENCE! What's not to love? But I'm going to bust a couple of historical myths today. More up my alley than yours I think, but I have no doubt that if there were things that were alleged to go fast, or things that are supposed to go BOOM, you'd be just the guys to call on.

But not today.

Today I want to talk about Poland in World War II and, as a special treat, introduce you to an historical (kind of) YouTube channel I stumbled across over the weekend (thanks to a tip from one of the readership) which also features a band which is, I understand, very popular in Poland. In fact, our own Polish Correspondent Paweł has mentioned them on more than one occasion.

(No, it's not the Foo Fighters, PLQ, you can keep reading...)

Polish Cavalry on Maneuvers in the 1930s

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As a kid I learned that in World War II, Germany invaded Poland and in the space of a month forced Poland to surrender. During that short campaign I was taught that the Polish horse cavalry actually charged German tank units and were shot to pieces. The first statement has some truth to it, but it's certainly not the truth. The second statement is absolute horse dung. (Seeing as how we're talking about cavalry here.)

In reality the Poles fought hard, damned hard, killing 16,343 Germans, destroying 236 panzers, and shooting down 246 Luftwaffe aircraft. The Germans were rather shaken at the ferocity of Polish resistance and that some of their own tactics weren't as good as they thought.

Hitler had wanted to invade the West soon after the Polish campaign, his generals convinced them that they needed to rethink some of their tactics. If they suffered the same level of casualties against the French, with their very large army compared to Poland's, they might face a repeat of the First World War. Or worse.

Hitler agreed to a postponement, eventually, because of the weather the Germans didn't invade the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France until the spring of 1940. The Poles bought the West eight months. Eight months in which the western Allies essentially sat on their hands, they too expected a repeat of WWI in which staying on the defensive proved to be the winning plan. They were wrong.

Now as to Polish cavalry, men on horseback, attacking German tanks? Didn't happen. At least not in the way the propagandists and journalists (but I repeat myself) claim it happened. You can read full accounts here and here, but I'll synopsize what happened for you. (A brief off-the-top-of-my-head history lesson. A general account of Polish cavalry and propaganda can be read here. )

It's the evening of the 1st of September 1939. A German infantry battalion is resting after a hard day's slog into Poland, the invasion seems to be going well. While the tankers get all the press, these men marched into battle much the same way as Frederick the Great's troops went to war. On foot.

In a field near the town of Krojanty, in Polish Pomerania (parts of Pomerania lie in Germany as well, it's called Pomorze in Polish, Pommern in German) Polish scouts have discovered the enemy infantry, resting, obviously tired from a long day. The Poles don't care, their ancient enemy has again violated the land of Poland, for that they must die.

Polish cavalry emerges before the tired Landsers can react, many are killed, the rest are scattered as Polish steel slashes down upon the old Teutonic enemy. The Germans flee in great disorder, those who can still move anyway.

But nearby German reconnaissance elements, mounted in armored cars, react to the Polish attack and counterattack the Polish horsemen. Men on horseback are no match for machine guns firing from behind armor. With no antitank support available, the Polish cavalry are forced to fall back, leaving a number of men and horses dead upon the field.

The attack bought time for nearby Polish units to fall back to more defensible positions. It takes time for a rattled and demoralized infantry battalion to regroup and for the officers to convince the men to advance one more.

The next day, after German tanks had also arrived on the scene, a number of journalists came upon the site of the recent battle. One newsman, from Italy, assumed that because there were German tanks on the field, and a number of dead Poles and their mounts, that the Poles must have insanely attacked German armor. On horseback.

The Germans present weren't going to argue with that report, it made people forget about the embarrassment of having a battalion from the mighty Wehrmacht defeated and dispersed by Polish cavalry.

In later years the western Allies added to that myth, the goal being to paint the Germans as these efficient bad asses with this really efficient army. It's all about appropriations after all, then as now. If you paint your enemy as larger than life, you'll get more money. Sad but effective, after all, your average western politician doesn't like spending money on the armed forces unless you hold a metaphorical gun to their collective heads. In late 1939, early 1940, the Wehrmacht was that metaphorical gun. (Truth be told, the British and the French were all set to pick up where they left off in 1918. The Germans weren't.)

Remember, the Poles weren't just fighting the Germans, the Soviets stepped in to steal their piece of Poland as well. A piece they hold to this day. (Even though the USSR is long gone.)

Strength of the forces attacking Poland:

Starting on 01 Sep 39

Germany: 60 divisions, 6 independent brigades, 9,000 artillery pieces, 2,750 tanks, and 2,315 aircraft.

Slovakia (a German puppet): 3 divisions

Joined on 17 September:

Soviet Union: 33+ divisions, 11+ independent brigades, 4,959 artillery pieces, 4,736 tanks, and 3,300 aircraft.

Total manpower: 1,500,000 Germans, 466,516 Soviets, and 51,306 Slovaks

Strength of the forces defending Poland:

Poland: 39 divisions (24 of which were mobilized on September 1st), 16 independent brigades, 4,300 artillery pieces, 210 tanks, 670 tankettes (essentially a very small tank), and 400 aircraft.

Total manpower: approximately 1,000,000 men.

The cost?

Germany: 16,343 killed, 3,500 missing, 30,300 wounded 236 tanks destroyed, and 246 aircraft lost.

Slovakia: 37 killed, 11 missing, and 114 wounded.

Soviet Union: 5,327 killed, missing, and wounded - 43 tanks destroyed

Total attacking casualties: 59,000

Poland: 66,000 dead, 133,700 wounded, 660,000–690,000 captured, 132 tanks and armored cars destroyed, and 327 aircraft lost.

Total Polish casualties: 859,700–889,700 men. (Source)

Some of the German POWs held by the Poles at the cessation of hostilities in 1939.
Not the usual picture we're used to seeing of the Wehrmacht during the Polish campaign, is it?
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If you get the impression that I really like the Poles, you'd be correct. I have written of their cavalry before, and probably will again. To the brave men and women of Poland, may you always be free in truth as much as you have always been free in your hearts! Niech żyje Polska!

As for the band and the new historical website? The band is Sabaton (which also has this meaning - A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's armor that covers the foot) these guys from Sweden perform a number of songs with an historical basis, now they have a YouTube channel which combines the two - Sabaton History. Here's the first episode, which covers a battle in Poland in September of 1939. Again proving to the Germans that the Poles were not pushovers on the battlefield!

Let me know what you think. I didn't think I'd care for these guys at first, but hey, history, it's what I live for!