Books in Brief: The Polish Campaign 1939

The Polish Campaign 1939, by Steven Zaloga and Victor Madej (Hippocrene Books, 195 pp., $19.95)

Forget the legendary cavalry charge against the tanks, according to the authors of this detailed and technical account of the Nazi invasion of Poland. The only actual charge was a success: A saber charge wiped out a German battalion, but before the Poles could return to their own lines several armored cars arrived on the scene and killed twenty troopers with cannon fire. Italian war correspondents visiting the battlefield the next day were told that the Poles had died while charging German tanks, which became a feature of German propaganda believed to this day. The outcome of any war with Germany was a foregone conclusion: “The tragic predicament of Polish strategic planning was that the Polish army was in a hopeless position if it was fighting the Wehrmacht alone.” Yet the authors do fault the efforts of Josef Pilsudski, commander in chief of the army since 1919, to stifle modernization; the flawed leadership of his successor, Edward Rydz-Smigly; and the political pettiness that hindered the forging of alliances with Czechoslovakia and Lithuania. Polish strategy called for the waging of a fighting retreat, night attacks, and maneuvering until the allies arrived—which they never did. “The steel in a soldier’s soul would not shield him from exploding shell and shrapnel. The Polish allies betrayed their trust and condemned Poland to hope and sacrifice for a lost cause; an old (and new) story.” Heroism, the authors write, “is measured by the hopelessness of the situation. Any soldier can fight when adequately prepared and equipped with the newest technology. Struggling against overwhelming numbers and resources requires true courage.” And they offer a taste of gall and wormwood: “It is not entirely surprising that the Poles themselves should have promoted the myth of the heroic Polish cavalry charge against German tanks in 1939. For many Poles, it is a metaphor for more recent confrontations. It hardly seems less plausible than student attempts at reform in 1968, the various attempts at economic reform in the strikes of the

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The Polish Campaign 1939, by Steven Zaloga and Victor Madej (Hippocrene Books, 195 pp., $19.95)

Forget the legendary cavalry charge against the tanks, according to the authors of this detailed and technical account of the Nazi invasion of Poland. The only actual charge was a success: A saber charge wiped out a German battalion, but before the Poles could return to their own lines several armored cars arrived on the scene and killed twenty troopers with cannon fire. Italian war correspondents visiting the battlefield the next day were told that the Poles had died while charging German tanks, which became a feature of German propaganda believed to this day. The outcome of any war with Germany was a foregone conclusion: “The tragic predicament of Polish strategic planning was that the Polish army was in a hopeless position if it was fighting the Wehrmacht alone.” Yet the authors do fault the efforts of Josef Pilsudski, commander in chief of the army since 1919, to stifle modernization; the flawed leadership of his successor, Edward Rydz-Smigly; and the political pettiness that hindered the forging of alliances with Czechoslovakia and Lithuania. Polish strategy called for the waging of a fighting retreat, night attacks, and maneuvering until the allies arrived—which they never did. “The steel in a soldier’s soul would not shield him from exploding shell and shrapnel. The Polish allies betrayed their trust and condemned Poland to hope and sacrifice for a lost cause; an old (and new) story.” Heroism, the authors write, “is measured by the hopelessness of the situation. Any soldier can fight when adequately prepared and equipped with the newest technology. Struggling against overwhelming numbers and resources requires true courage.” And they offer a taste of gall and wormwood: “It is not entirely surprising that the Poles themselves should have promoted the myth of the heroic Polish cavalry charge against German tanks in 1939. For many Poles, it is a metaphor for more recent confrontations. It hardly seems less plausible than student attempts at reform in 1968, the various attempts at economic reform in the strikes of the