Katyn — 1943

When Poland was divided between Russia and Germany in 1939, over 180,000 Polish prisoners of war fell into Soviet hands: officers were segregated in special camps. In April 1943, the Germans discovered a mass grave in Katyn forest near Smolensk, later found to contain the remains of 4,400 Polish officers, and accused the Russians of mass murder, summoning an international team of experts to investigate the crime. Although the Russians long blamed the Germans for the atrocity, in 1990 they at last admitted responsibility.

The victims had their hands wired behind their backs (above) and had been shot in the back of the head. This evocative photograph sums up the fate of tens of thousands of victims of mass murder during the war.

The German-sponsored international experts (below, all but one from Axis or occupied countries) examining of the bodies of Katyn. When the London-based Polish government in exile suggested an impartial International Red Cross investigation, the Russians broke off diplomatic relations.

German-Russian Happy Times

The best of friends? Russian and German officers chat at Brest-Litovsk on September 18, 1939. The Russians show their rank on collar badges: the traditional epaulettes, hated symbol of the tsarist officer class, were to appear after the German invasion. The black-uniformed German is a panzer officer. In less than two years, these men would be trying to kill each other.

The Führer at the Front

Adolf Hitler made several trips to the Polish front in September 1939. Here he receives the salute of General der Panzertruppen Heinz Guderian, one of the authors of the blitzkrieg that made German victory possible.

Polish Resistance Fails

The remnants of the garrison of Warsaw, marching out of the city (above) after its surrender, September 27, 1939. Most of the buildings show the damage inflicted by German bombardments and air-raids.

Poland had a large Jewish population, and the invading Germans rapidly set about rounding it up: an aged Jew is detained in Warsaw (below).

Polish Soldier Off to War — 1939

Rites of passage and, all too probably, their final meeting: a Polish woman slips something into her husband's knapsack as he leaves for the front, September 1939.

IT’S WAR!!!

Newspaper placards in London announce the German invasion of Poland, September 1, 1939.