The
bombing of Wieluń refers to the indiscriminate bombing of the Polish town of
WieluńWieluń is a city in central Poland with 24,347 inhabitants . Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship , it was previously in Sieradz Voivodeship .- History :...
by the
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
LuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1933 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956.Schweizer Luftwaffe is also the name of the Swiss Air...
on 1 September 1939, five minutes before the shelling of
WesterplatteWesterplatte is a peninsula in Gdańsk, Poland, located on the Baltic Sea coast mouth of the Dead Vistula , in the Gdańsk harbour channel...
, which has traditionally been considered the beginning of
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The bombing of Wielun is considered as one of the first
terror bombingTerror bombing is an emotive term used to describe aerial attacks made by a belligerent to demoralise an enemy.[For terrorist attacks that involve bombings see the articles terrorism and List of terrorist incidents] Use of the term to describe aerial attacks implies that the...
s in history and first in this war. German
carpet bombingCarpet bombing is the large scale bombing of large targets, usually by dropping many unguided gravity bombs. The tactic aims for complete destruction of a target region, either to destroy personnel and materiel, or as a means of demoralizing the enemy...
killed an estimated 1300 civilians, injured hundreds more and destroyed 75% per of the town centre.
The
bombing of Wieluń refers to the indiscriminate bombing of the Polish town of
WieluńWieluń is a city in central Poland with 24,347 inhabitants . Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship , it was previously in Sieradz Voivodeship .- History :...
by the
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
LuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1933 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956.Schweizer Luftwaffe is also the name of the Swiss Air...
on 1 September 1939, five minutes before the shelling of
WesterplatteWesterplatte is a peninsula in Gdańsk, Poland, located on the Baltic Sea coast mouth of the Dead Vistula , in the Gdańsk harbour channel...
, which has traditionally been considered the beginning of
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The bombing of Wielun is considered as one of the first
terror bombingTerror bombing is an emotive term used to describe aerial attacks made by a belligerent to demoralise an enemy.[For terrorist attacks that involve bombings see the articles terrorism and List of terrorist incidents] Use of the term to describe aerial attacks implies that the...
s in history and first in this war. German
carpet bombingCarpet bombing is the large scale bombing of large targets, usually by dropping many unguided gravity bombs. The tactic aims for complete destruction of a target region, either to destroy personnel and materiel, or as a means of demoralizing the enemy...
killed an estimated 1300 civilians, injured hundreds more and destroyed 75% per of the town centre. It is widely acknowledged that there were no targets of any importance in the area such as military installations or industrial facilities. The casualty rate was more than twice as high as
GuernicaThe bombing of Guernica was an aerial attack on the Basque town of Guernica, causing widespread destruction and civilian deaths during the Spanish Civil War. The raid by planes of the German Luftwaffe "Condor Legion" and the Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria was called Operation Rügen...
.
Events
The widely acknowledged by the majority of historians and official version of the events is that there were no military or industrial targets of note in the area, except for a small sugar factory in the outskirts of the town. German bombers destroyed 90% of the town center (including the historical
gothicGothic architecture is a style of architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
church) and killed approximately 1,200 civilians, about 8% of the town's population of 15,000. Approximately 75% of all the buildings in Wieluń were destroyed. Among the first targets bombed by the Germans was the hospital (despite a huge Red Cross sign painted on the roof). The undefended town of was captured by the German Army on day one.
Other version of the events
According to Poeppel, Hans and Prinz von Preußen, German reconnaissance reported a Polish cavalry brigade division near Wielun. The German bombing started at 04:40, 5 minutes before German shelling of
WesterplatteWesterplatte is a peninsula in Gdańsk, Poland, located on the Baltic Sea coast mouth of the Dead Vistula , in the Gdańsk harbour channel...
. At 06:00 the German forces reported that town of Wieluń is burning, but the German air raids on the town continued eight more hours. At 13:00 I./StG 2 led by Major
Oskar DinortOskar Dinort was a German World War II Luftwaffe Stuka pilot and first Stuka pilot to be awarded the coveted Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves-Biography:...
from
Nieder-EllguthLigota Dolna , German Nieder Ellguth is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Strzelce Opolskie, within Strzelce County, Opole Voivodeship, in south-western Poland...
, were directed against this unit, followed a few hours later by Schwarzkopff with sixty Stukas of
I./Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 Due to the low level fog both attacks in the morning and at noon missed the targets. Weather conditions were unfavourable during the day, with a visibility of only one kilometre and a practically closed layer of fog at 50 metres altitude. Fog, mist and poor visibility thwarted many of the Luftwaffe's sorties planned for the morning of the first day of the invasion. The dive bombers, facing intense anti aircraft fire, inflicted heavy losses on the Polish cavalry, and the advance was turned into a rout by 90 Stukas. On their return home, four of the German
Junkers Ju 87The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka was a two-seat German ground-attack aircraft....
bombers were shot down by the Polish 36 Academic Legion Infantry Regiment stationed nearby. Three waves of attacks were carried out during the day.
Deputy General Inspector of the
BundeswehrThe Bundeswehr comprises the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
,
Johannes PoeppelJohannes Poeppel was a German general of the Bundeswehr. He served as Inspekteur des Heeres 1979-81.- Biography :...
, who attended Nazi school and served in the
WehrmachtWehrmacht was the name of the unified armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe ....
during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as an artillery
captainThe army rank of Captain is an officer rank historically corresponding to command of a company of soldiers. The rank is also used by some air forces and marine forces. Today a captain is typically the commander, or second in command, of a company or squadron...
and British aviation historian Peter C. Smith, describe the bombing as
collateral damageCollateral damage is damage that is unintended or incidental to the intended outcome. The term originated in the United States military, but it has since expanded into broader use.-Etymology:...
from bombs that missed their targets during ground support of the
WehrmachtWehrmacht was the name of the unified armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe ....
operations.
Further reading
- Bekker, Cajus. (1994). The Luftwaffe War Diaries. pp. 31–3.
- Bojarska B., Zniszczenie miasta Wielunia w dniu 1 września 1939 r., „Przegląd Zachodni” 1962, nr 2.
- Kulesza W., Pierwszy był Wieluń, „Rzeczpospolita” 1999, nr 211, 9 IX 1999.
- Olejnik T., Wieluń – na pięć minut przed Westerplatte. Pierwsi zginęli cywile, „Tygodnik Powszechny” nr 35, 31 VIII 2003 r.
- Olejnik T., Wieluń. Zniszczenie miasta 1 IX 1939 r., Kępno 1979.
- Olejnik T., Wieluń – polska Guernica, das polnische Guernica, Wieluń 2004.
- Pięciak W., Wieluń 1 września 1939 r., „Tygodnik Powszechny” nr 2, 12 I 2003.
External links
Sylwia Słomińska,
September the 1st,(
mirror1,
mirror2)
Summary of a German TV report making the case for the bombing of Wielun as a war crime