Poland obliged to make war reparations to Austria and Germany after WWI. Why?

Problem is there hadn't been devastations in Poland. The devastations had been in Prussia, Russia and Austria.

You should keep that in mind. Because the destruction hadn't been aimed at Poles or Poland.


I've read a number as high as 1,23 Mill people....

All Chinese believed 100% that the Great Wall could be seen from space with the naked eye - many Polish historians operate along the same lines.

My point about archaeology could be expanded a bit - more Poles have dug more in Egypt than has ever been dug up in Poland. That's not because there's nothing in Poland - my area (Pruszków to Podkowa - west of Warsaw) is littered with primitive iron furnaces (which armed the Vandals in their great drive south) but no-one is interested. The only time you get any interest is when someone wants to build a house - then of course the investor has to pay for ex - spurts to excavate everything.

That's sad...Why do you think that is so?

Poland? Poles? Hello? I love Poland and consider myself Norwegian-Polish patriot but come on... It is Poland and not America China or Russia...

You know pretty well that modern history is based on the first "modern" history books which were created to use as "propaganda" tools in furthering their nationalism and this was happaning in a time when Poland wasn't on the map and that her speakers weren't much fond of her...

Did you learn that in Grunnskolen? Somehow I doubt it. Nothing prevents Poland from doing as much research as they want. However, as everything else in life it's about money. There's more worldwide interest in archaeological finds from say Egypt than Poland. Therefore there's more money to be made doing research in that region. Don't make things complicated when they really aren't.

Ummm...I for one are foremostly interested in the history of central Europe.
For example the century find of the Sky disc of Nebra is much more interesting to me than any pyramid.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebra_sky_disk

Or the recent archeological finds that the modern Saxony was much more crowded 5000 years back than today... probably all Celts.

I have come to known Poles as very interested in their history...possibly BECAUSE they had been "wiped from the map" for some time. At least more than in the history of Egypt!

That's why I wonder...

Or at least very interested in certain bits of their history.

This damages didn't disappeared by miracle. After the war and regaining independence, Poland had to deal with it and it was our problem, as our houses were burned.

This destruction was aimed at Poles as citizens of Prussia, Russia and Germany.

Crap!
Poles had been part of the armies of Prussia, Russia and Austria

As far as my reference to the Vandals is concerned, I think very little has been available in English. I have produced a translation of work by Stefan Wojda, the Polish archaeologist who pointed out the nature of the Iron Age inhabitants, which is, I think, the first time it has been produced in anything other than Polish. Although I was somewhat sceptical, his claims do make sense and I checked on the internet that at least some other experts on the period accepted the principle of his conclusions. The link to the Vandals is a widely accepted association, although Wojda did not specify this himself.)

See: englishwarsaw.blogspot.com/2009/05/mochow-ancient-history.html

This has a link to a PDF document with the translation.

At the end of the war when they saw that it may been possible for the Poles to rgain independance they tried to sabotage it. For instance putting veteran Ukrainian units in those days Lemberg...

BB durign the war I hardly think that it was aimed at Poles or a newborn Poland but when they started to lose... or when they saw it as an big oppurtunity for the Poles to regain independance or start an uprising... they tried to halt it somehow...

Re Varsovian's comment, 'was littered' might be more appropriate. My local site is now covered by a huge distribution centre.

Why?

because Poland isn`t independent.

Believe me...at the end of the war the fate of the Poles was not on the mind of the Germans.
To much concerned with their own fate and the abyss of the changing world order, civil war and a looming revolution soviet style.
Not to mention that the territorial losses had been forced onto Germany in 1919 as the war was long over.

Who knows if the german government would had agreed to all that if they had known in 1918....
Hence the Dolchstoss-legend! ;)

Adam Zamoyski is descended from the Polish magnates who ruled Zamost.

This one?

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zamo%C5%9B%C4%87#History

Maybe not Germans but, Prussian officers. There were plans to retake some of the lands back I guess. But the there were some Polish forces guarding the new made borders and didn't fall for provocations. I don't have much proof of it. But I guess it may been quite possible don't you agree?

There is an uprising Poles are regaining ground and the German stab is doing nothing with it? Especially the "Posen" born Germans?

Yes that's the place. I must have read about it in a book that anglicized the spelling.

And from another famous magnate family - Czartoryscy (his mother was Elżbieta Czartoryska and he's the Chairman of the Board of the Princes Czartoryski Foundation):

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czartoryski_family

Erm...Prussian officers were Germans, you know? ;)
Officers of the German Empire under the Kaiser....


Not really Gruni.
Germany was on the brink of destruction with a civil war already raging, also in the army, threatening to destroy the old world order, in the midst of losing the biggest war to date with an absolute uncertain future, still starving to death because of the Anglo-french blockade, with no idea that they would lose 1/4 of their territory soon...no, Poles had been not much in the german minds.

But if there would had been surely some literature about that. But nothing I read till today showed any sign of the East featuring in any way in the mess Germany had been in 1918.

The re-shuffling of the borders later in Versailles was the starting point actually...

I think the Prussian officers would be rather offended by this statement.
And these weren't the people you would like to offend, right?

I know the Volksdeutsche formed the SS troops in the Ukraine and many other Eastern European countries.

The commies had their Comintern, so I can imagine the nazis could have formed a similar organization. Just a guess.

Why?
Do you have an idea which position Prussia took in the German Empire?


Nope...Volksdeutsche could gain entry in the German SS divisions. The foreign SS divisions were for foreigners...like Ukrainians or other eastern European countries.


Hitler tried to build an anti-comintern alliance...even inviting Poland.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Comintern_Pact

Yeah. That's why I thing they would be offended by calling them common "Germans".

Well...my family had been proud Prussians in lower Silesia, serving the Kaiser as citizens of the german Empire equally proudly.

I don't know where you get your ideas...
They were Germans like everybody else!

Ah... Just a family stories. Good Junker looks down to the common German.

Good Junkers look down on anybody not-Junker! ;)
But most Prussians hadn't been Junkers....

Just take a look at a map...Prussia was more than the half of the german Empire...

I recall hearing something about this but I forget where... I'll dig around. I think there were also elements of Lithuanian nationalist activity in Germany during the interwar period.

Of course, it's important to consider that rather than the funding being German, it might have been coming from Germany (geographically) from Ukrainian sympathisers or nationalists.

The first paragraph of this page has some answers: encyclopediaofukraine.com/pages/O/R/OrganizationofUkrainianNationalists.htm


There's a contact for him on his website. has anyone written to ask?

That is a good idea I think I might do that, yes I kind of thought about doing that, now I think I will(:

After further investigation I guess that might not be an option , it seems that the email is that of his publisher):

I guess I just have to do some further research.

found something:


This is prior to 1918 though, so still got to keep at it.

Some publishers do pass emails on to authors, especially mail containing questions about historical facts. I had an interesting email exchange with Laurence Rees after a researcher from PBS misunderstood his work and attributed a quote to him which he had not made.