Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: The Fate of Poland (1)
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< World War II - The Fate of Poland (1) >
February 23, 1940
Paris, the "City of Lights," capital of France
Polish Foreign Minister Józef Beck sat with an anxious expression, waiting to be called.
With Poland’s main forces completely surrounded, France had done nothing but repeat its promises to join the war soon. Having run out of patience, Polish Commander-in-Chief Rydz-Śmigły had finally dispatched Beck, his foreign minister, to France with direct orders to get an answer, one way or another.
With Poland’s airspace and its only sea route blocked by the German military, Foreign Minister Beck had been forced to travel to Romania and board a passenger ship, taking a long, roundabout journey to reach France.
By the time he arrived, however, the Radical Party cabinet—the very one that had repeatedly promised to join the war—had already resigned en masse, replaced by a new French Socialist Party government.
His predicament, a foreign minister of a sovereign nation left to wait endlessly with heavy sighs, seemed to mirror the very fate of Poland itself.
When he was finally summoned, Józef Beck came face to face with France’s new prime minister and foreign minister.
“Welcome, Polish Foreign Minister. I am François de La Rocque, Prime Minister of France.”
“Józef Beck, Foreign Minister of Poland, Your Excellency. It is a bit late, but as France’s ally, allow me to congratulate you on your appointment as Prime Minister.”
Despite Beck’s deliberate emphasis on the word “ally,” La Rocque merely offered a faint smile, giving no definitive response and leaving Beck’s stomach in knots.
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Paul Baudouin, the French Foreign Minister.”
As soon as the simple introductions were over, La Rocque spoke as if making a declaration.
“I must ask for your understanding regarding the delay in this meeting; we have been exceedingly busy of late. Unfortunately, time is rather short, so I believe we must get straight to the point.”
Beck felt a surge of anger, moving beyond disbelief at La Rocque’s brazen attitude toward an allied nation, but Poland was in the weaker position, so he had no choice.
“As you know, France has pledged to protect Poland against Germany. Until now, you have taken no action while the German army ravaged Poland, citing internal affairs, but I believe the time has come for France to act.”
Hearing Beck's words, La Rocque tilted his head with a smile and opened his mouth.
“That’s rather strange. As I recall, France’s declaration to protect Poland from Germany never included a promise that France would intervene even if Poland launched a preemptive invasion and was then counterattacked. Was there such a provision, Foreign Minister?”
“There was not. It was strictly a defensive alliance, stating that we would protect Poland in the event of an unprovoked military conflict initiated by Germany.”
As the French Prime Minister and Foreign Minister conversed leisurely, treating him as if he weren't even in the room, Beck felt his world go dark.
He hadn't arrived with high hopes, but it seemed France’s new government wasn’t even willing to offer empty promises.
“D-Does that mean you are abandoning Poland?”
“Let’s be precise with our words, shall we? The alliance between France and Poland was a promise that if one was attacked first by Germany, the other would strike from the rear. However, it was not we who handed Germany a pretext for war, creating a situation where we could not intervene.”
Józef Beck was seized by despair. The once-spirited diplomat who had dreamed of a new order led by Poland, the *Międzymorze*, was now confronting the total failure of the Polish Second Republic’s foreign policy.
“Prime Minister! If you abandon us here, Poland’s only fate is to become prey for Germany and the Soviet Union. Are they not both enemies of France?”
“That is France’s affair. It is not the business of a country that overestimated its own strength, signed a non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union without consulting its allies, and then unilaterally attacked Germany.”
As Józef Beck stood there, his face a mask of devastation, La Rocque glanced at his wristwatch and smiled faintly.
“Oh, my. It appears we are running short on time. Minister?”
At La Rocque’s glance, French Foreign Minister Baudouin handed Beck a diplomatic document. With trembling hands, Beck accepted the paper. He read its contents and squeezed his eyes shut.
*Expressing regret over Poland’s inappropriate actions as an ally, France hereby revokes its guarantee of independence provided to Poland.*
After handing over the short, concise document that crushed Poland’s last hope, La Rocque smiled brightly and spoke.
“You’ve had a long journey, Foreign Minister. I wish you a safe trip back.”
-
Watching the dejected Józef Beck shuffle out of the room, the French Foreign Minister, Paul Baudouin, glanced at La Rocque and asked.
“They are still an ally. Is it truly acceptable to cast them aside like an old shoe?”
“Ah, do not worry. All alliances must be determined by their strategic value. An old alliance is worthless if it has no present value; it only becomes a hindrance to France’s great march forward. The previous government fell because they failed to understand that.”
It was La Rocque who had fanned the flames of public animosity toward Germany, urging the nation to protect Poland and sending the Radical Party government to the Second Munich Conference. But the moment public opinion soured on fighting Germany for a Poland that was performing so poorly in the war, he swiftly pinned all the blame on the Radicals and seized power.
In François de La Rocque’s mind, everything—ideology, diplomacy, all of it—was merely a matter of opportunity cost.
“Loyalty to useless allies, ideology, and the like are worthless in modern diplomacy. We must focus solely on the tangible benefits for a great France. That is also why I appointed you, a Christian activist, rather than a member of the Socialist Party.”
“Your Excellency. Spanish Foreign Minister José Félix de Lequerica has arrived.”
Just as he finished speaking to his foreign minister, La Rocque heard his aide’s report and broke into a grin.
“Now, let us forget about useless old allies and go meet a new friend who can be of use to France.”
-
February 24, 1940
Government Chancellery, Berlin, Northern Germany
“Signs of a Soviet invasion of Poland, you say?”
The intelligence, arriving just as we were steadily gaining the upper hand against Poland and preparing for a final offensive, was giving us all a headache.
“Yes. The information comes from the Finnish embassy. The Soviet offensive in Finland has halted, and a significant number of troops have begun to withdraw. The circumstances suggest they intend to break their non-aggression pact and take advantage of a cornered Poland.”
Hearing my words, Minister of Defense Ludwig Beck scowled and spat out.
“What? Are they scheming to let us do all the work while they reap the rewards?”
This was precisely the kind of damn mess I had hoped to avoid by pursuing friendly relations with Poland instead of fighting them. But they had attacked us first, and now that ship had sailed…
At least Finland’s advance warning gave us some time to prepare. It seems Finland held out better than in the original history, so helping them was worthwhile. That’s a relief.
“If the Soviets invade Poland, how much time do we have?”
It was the Director of the Abwehr, Wilhelm Canaris, who answered my father’s question.
“It is impossible to say for certain at this time. The Abwehr’s resources are concentrated on France, Italy, and Poland. Moreover, the Soviet NKVD is not an easy opponent to provoke recklessly.”
If we could at least estimate when the Soviet preparations would be complete, we could formulate a response, but even that was unknown. It was truly a bleak situation.
“Considering they have to reposition their forces from Finland to the Polish border and prepare an offensive, it will take at least two weeks at the absolute fastest. But beyond that, I can’t guarantee anything.”
The opinion came from Ludwig Beck. This meant the timing of the Soviet offensive depended entirely on when Stalin had decided to backstab Poland.
If he made the decision only after seeing Poland’s main forces surrounded by us, we might have some breathing room. But if he had decided on the invasion in advance and already had a plan, they would attack the moment their troops were in place.
“What should we do?”
“Since it has come to this, why not launch an all-out offensive before they finish their preparations and occupy everything up to Warsaw, the former territory of the Kingdom of Prussia?”
The answer from Field Marshal Ludwig Beck to my father’s question nearly made me faint.
“If we do that, we will lose all the diplomatic standing we have worked so hard to build.”
Foreign Minister Weizsäcker voiced his opposition, but Ludwig Beck still looked displeased.
Warsaw had briefly been German territory under the name South Prussia from the late 1700s until the Napoleonic Wars.
But Warsaw was the capital of Poland.
We had only managed to get Britain to recognize our occupation of Danzig and Posen because we were the ones who had been invaded, and because we had graciously liberated Czechoslovakia and even thrown them a few scraps. If we acted so rashly now, the consequences would be unmanageable.
“Are you suggesting we shed our blood only to let the Soviets gobble up Poland? There are many in the military who are already dissatisfied with only taking back the Danzig Corridor and Posen. We should have at least reclaimed Upper Silesia!”
Upper Silesia, represented by Katowice, was originally German territory. However, after the last war, when territorial disputes between Germany and Poland continued, the Allied powers intervened and ceded the area to Poland.
Though small in size, it was a major coal-producing region and highly industrialized, making it another piece of land Germany desperately wanted back. The problem was…
It wasn’t just territory lost due to the Treaty of Versailles; it had been officially ceded through the arbitration of the League of Nations. It was also Poland's core industrial zone, which was why Britain had been so reluctant.
Getting the notoriously difficult British to recognize the recovery of Danzig and Posen was the result of immense diplomatic effort, but the military couldn’t seem to grasp that.
“By that logic, we should reclaim all the territory taken by France and Belgium. There would be no end to it…”
“Shouldn’t we, someday? At least, that is the opinion of the military.”
I almost clutched the back of my neck at Ludwig Beck's words. Just when I thought the German military had quieted down after the failed military coup, their hawkish tendencies were starting to re-emerge now that things were looking up.
This was a problem.
Even if we tried to negotiate a reasonable settlement with Poland and the Soviets to preserve the Polish state, our relations with the Soviets were already hostile due to our support for Finland, and our relations with Poland, the country we had just been invaded by, were at rock bottom.
Furthermore, the Soviet Union was already treated as a public enemy by the international community. If we were caught colluding with them now, the condemnation would be unimaginable.
Finland, our most steadfast ally, albeit a small nation, would feel betrayed.
“In any case, we cannot demand any additional territory besides Danzig and Posen. We are already at war with Italy, and France is effectively a hostile nation. We cannot afford the risk of giving Britain another pretext to turn against us.”
“Vice-Chancellor, I understand what the current government prioritizes in its foreign policy. But as I said, there are not a few within the military who are dissatisfied with the Fourth Reich’s diplomatic approach.”
Ludwig Beck took a step back after hearing my words, but his point was a painful one.
I had worked so hard, running myself ragged to improve the military’s perception of the Fourth Reich, but life is never easy, it seems…
“However, Vice-Chancellor, in my view, letting the Soviets swallow Poland whole is far more dangerous than damaging our diplomatic standing.”
Just as I thought Beck was finally backing down, the next to speak was the staunch anti-communist, Director Canaris. My head was starting to ache…
“At this point, isn’t Poland’s destruction a foregone conclusion? They have already suffered immense losses at our hands, and what remains of their main army is surrounded by us in Danzig and Posen.”
Director Canaris was right. Their remaining units were tied up facing our forces. If the Soviets invaded now, it would be just like the invasion of Poland in the original history. The Soviets would sweep through the empty eastern half of Poland with ease.
“Then we must find a way to achieve both. We must prevent the Soviets from getting a free meal in Poland without angering the British.”
“If it were that easy, do you think we’d be having this discussion?”
“We must sign a peace treaty with Poland before the Soviets finish their preparations for attack. That way, their army can be fully deployed to the eastern front.”
I held no illusions that Poland’s militarists and nationalists would be grateful and become our allies.
Nor did I think Poland could defeat the Soviet Union on its own. But against a Soviet army still suffering from the aftereffects of the Great Purge and struggling even in Finland, they could at least buy some time.
If we could buy even a little time for us to deal with Italy and for Finland to regroup, that alone would be a great help to us.
“These are the same people who were willing to go to war with Hitler rather than give up Danzig. Do you really think they’ll accept so meekly?”
“That is my biggest concern as well, but…”
Just when you solve one problem and catch your breath, another one explodes. This era is truly dreadful.
“We have to try. Please have a little faith in the results our Foreign Ministry has shown thus far. Isn’t that right, Minister Weizsäcker?”
“Hmm. It is worth attempting, but whether they will agree…”
What? I can’t believe Weizsäcker, of all people, is being so lukewarm. As I stood there, stunned, my father spoke with his trademark cynical smile.
“Then this matter can proceed under the Vice-Chancellor’s responsibility. You brought it up, so you will be responsible for making it happen.”
“…I will do my best, Chancellor.”
I replied with a deeply reluctant expression, but Hjalmar Schacht pushed it a step further.
“I don’t need your best. Bring me results.”
Ah, seriously. That damn father of mine…