World War II Documents: Germany Invades Poland (Illustrated)

On September 1, 1939, the world was changed forever. Despite several attempts by the French and British to appease Hitler's Nazi regime to avoid war, most notably allowing Hitler to annex the Czech's Sudetenland, Germany invaded Poland on that day, officially starting the deadliest conflict in human history.

For the French and British, the Nazi invasion of Poland promised war, and by September 3 both countries declared war on Germany. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union, fresh off a nonaggression p...