September 1, 1939, 7:45 p.m.

Fifteen hours have passed since the Second World War, but for many German officers who fought in the last World War, it seems like 15 days have passed. Because the Wehrmacht achieved more in these 15 hours than in the first 15 days of the last world war.

Two of the four armies of the Polish Army on the Western Front completely collapsed!

The Primorsky Army was broken through from the center of the line by the 19th Panzer Army, and the 1st and 2nd Brigades of 5 divisions and 3 brigades were almost completely annihilated. The 27th Division, which was on the northernmost front, was almost surrounded, and its flanks were being attacked by the headquarters of the 10th Panzer Division (also belonging to the 19th Panzer Corps). The 9th Division, which was placed on the southern front, began to abandon its position and move southward to avoid the doom of total annihilation. And the backs of the two divisions of the eastern tactical cluster of the Primorsky Army were also completely exposed, and they were in a desperate situation of being attacked by the enemy on their backs.

From the point of view of military science, the Polish Primorsky Army, with its 100,000 troops, had now completely collapsed, and it was only three or four days before all the units except the 9th Division were completely annihilated.

The fate of the Polish Army Group Krakow on the Southern Front was even more tragic, with up to 6 divisions and 3 brigades being attacked by the German 10th Army and the 14th Army, the 16th Panzer Army broke through from the edge of its northern front (the junction of the Polish Army Krakow and the Rhodes Army), the 15th Panzer Army broke through the frontal defense of the Krakow Army, and the 22nd Panzer Army broke through the southern edge of the Krakow Army (the junction with the Carpathian Army). The 8th Army, with its 5th Panzer Division and the 8th and 28th Infantry Divisions, stormed the border defenses of Army Group Krakow in eastern Upper Silesia - as of 7:45 p.m. on 1 September, the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Panzer Divisions, and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Light Panzer Divisions were participating in the fierce battle against Army Group Krakow.

Therefore, the fate of the Krakow Army Group can be imagined, the entire army group has been cut into three sections, and the breakthrough German armored forces and air forces have broken the rear assembly area of the army group into a pulp. The entire chain of command was also completely disorganized, with most of the regiments and battalions in a state of being in a state of fighting on their own.

The situation of the Rhodes Army was slightly better, although the 16th Panzer Army that broke through from its southern flank was very strong, but after achieving a breakthrough, the Panzer Army did not entangle with the Rhodes Army, but advanced in depth, trying to join the Fourth Army (that is, the 19th Panzer Army) that attacked Poland from the direction of Pomerania, and completed the encirclement of the Polish Poznan Army and the Lodz Army. At the same time, the 15th Panzer was used to complete the encirclement of the Krakow Army and the Prussian Army Group (the Polish Army's General Reserve).

Therefore, the direct responsibility for the attack on the Rhodes Army was only the 4 divisions and 1 banner of the German 8th Army (the 10th, 17th, 24th, and 30th Infantry Divisions and Joseph. Dietrich commanded the motorized SS "Adolf. Hitler's Guard Banner"), the forces were relatively weak. By 7 p.m., most of the defensive line of Army Group Rhodes was still intact. But the fact that a powerful German armored unit had burst through its southern flank and was striking in depth put the Army Group in crisis.

As for the Poznan Army, it did not encounter any powerful attack from the ground, and the four infantry divisions and two cavalry brigades under the army group were all intact.

Compared to the near-total collapse of the Western Front, the situation on the Polish Northern Front was quite good, and the offensive of the German 3rd Army was still relatively "traditional", so it did not form a fatal breakthrough. The defensive lines of the Polish Army Modlin (2 divisions and 3 brigades) and the Narev tactical group (2 divisions and 2 brigades) remained intact.

Moreover, behind the Modlin Army and the Narev tactical group, there was also a newly formed Veshkov tactical group (3 infantry divisions) as the general reserve of the Northern Front. Therefore, the defense of the northern front now looks quite stable.

The situation on the southern front of the Polish army was also good, except for the 14th Panzer Corps, which was part of the German 22nd Army, which broke through the right flank of the Carpathian Army (and the junction of the Krakow Army), the main line of defense was also considered intact.

In addition, there is also a "Lithuanian battlefield" in the Polish campaign of this time and space. The attack was carried out by the German Baltic Army Group, while the defense was carried out by the Polish Lithuanian Army Group (mainly by the Lithuanian Civil Defense Forces). Although the German Baltic Army Group did not have armored and light divisions, their progress was still rapid, because the defending Lithuanians had no intention of fighting. Fifteen hours after the start of the battle, the units belonging to the Baltic Army Group had already advanced the front 10-15 kilometers into Lithuanian territory.

At 7:45 p.m. on September 1, just after the third Luftwaffe air raid on Warsaw, the Polish commander-in-chief, Rez Himigvi, arrived at Warsaw Castle, the official residence of the Polish president, by car.

And his mood at this time can actually be expressed as "good". Because in his opinion, such a German onslaught would not last long, and when their offensive momentum was exhausted, the Polish army would be able to play its trump card - the Lublin tactical cluster with 3 infantry divisions, a semi-mechanized cavalry brigade and an armored cluster (division level)!

"Everything is in the hands of our troops, and although the Germans achieved a breakthrough in both the north-west and south-west directions, they paid a heavy price for it (hundreds of casualties!). They traded casualties for the speed of the breakthrough, so it was unsustainable. ”

This is how the Supreme Commander of the Polish Army addressed the President of Poland Ignazi. Mośichitsky reported on the latest state of the battle. He did not mean to lie, but the news reported below was very confusing, and probably in order to reduce the responsibility for the rout, the commanders of both Primorsky Army Group and Army Group Krakow reported exaggerated results - which was common in war, but Khimigvi also took it for granted that the German breakthrough was based on huge losses, so he did not discount the results reported below, and completely believed it.

"Their losses are heavy?" The President of Poland asked. "How many?"

"Primorsky Army Group reported killing 20,000 German devils, and Army Group Krakow said it killed 22,000. Army Group Rhodes reported 7,000 killed, while Army Group Modrin and Army Group Carpathians reported figures of about 3,000. Lithuanian Army Group reported killing 2,000 Germans. ”

"Killed 57,000?" Ignazi. Mośchicki asked, "Are there really so many?" ”

"There may be a discount," Rez-Himigwe said, "and that's normal, and the reports below will always exaggerate some of the results." However, considering that the Germans launched two major battles and three smaller attacks at the same time, their losses on the first day of the attack should not have been less than 40,000 men. ”

This is completely the thinking of World War I, and the breakthrough of the attacking side is all exchanged for a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood!

"President, I think we can announce to the outside world that 60,000 enemies have been destroyed, and Britain and France can report that 45,000 enemies have been destroyed." Rez Himigvi reported two figures that were quite "conscientious". "In addition, we can also report the counterattack plan to Britain and France."

"Ready to fight back?"

"Yes," Rez-Shimigvi said confidently, "we expect that the Germans, after breaking through the Primorsky Army Group's defenses, will pounce on Warsaw in order to force us to sue for peace...... And we don't have strong reserves behind Primorsky and Poznan armies, which could make it easier for the Germans to break through. ”

In the opinion of Field Marshal Rez-Himigvi, the German troops breaking through from the Southern Front (breaking through the line of Army Group Krakow) would soon be blocked by the Prussian Army Group, the general reserve of the Polish army, thus creating a situation in which the Germans broke through alone on the North-Western Front.

"We estimate that in the next week or two, the situation is likely to evolve into the 'Battle of the Marne'." Rez Himigvi said with great certainty. The "Battle of the Marne" was a classic in the 20s, 30s, and all Polish and French military strategists dreamed of fighting the same battle.

Rez-Himigvi pondered: "The Germans will break through from the northwest and force their way into Warsaw." And we will organize a battle of the 'Marne' west of the Vistula. It was planned to invest the main forces of the Poznan Army, the first part of the Lodz Army, the first part of the Primorsky Army and the powerful Lublin tactical cluster. The total strength will reach 10 divisions and 5 brigades, plus a mechanized cluster! ”

"Okay, then I'll be relieved." Ignazi. Mościcki pondered for a moment, and then said, "Is it possible to tell Britain and France about the plan for the 'Battle of the Vistula'?" ”

The Polish president meant to let the British and French military strategists come together to consult with them.

"Yes," said Reiz-Shimigwe, "we need the help of Britain and France in order to carry out the 'Battle of Vistula'. If they could send ten squadrons of fighters to Warsaw over German airspace, the battle would be a sure victory! ”

The Polish Air Force was almost wiped out on the first day of the war and has now completely lost the ability to cover ground forces for operations. Therefore, one could only hope that Britain and France would send planes to fly over Germany at night for reinforcements.

"Okay, I'll instruct Foreign Minister Baker to talk to Britain and France......"

As soon as the Polish president finished speaking, the ringing of an antique telephone on his desk suddenly rang. Ignazi. Mośichitsky reached out and picked up the receiver of the telephone, put it to his ear, and immediately heard the voice of Foreign Minister Joseph. Baker's voice trembled.

"President, the Soviet ambassador has just arrived, and the Soviet Union ...... Demand that we dissolve the federation and make Ukraine independent! (To be continued.) )