upper silesia conflict

Acts of violation such as rape or mutilation were noticeably more common in Upper Silesia than in Ulster. Conflict and Violence in Ulster and Upper Silesia, 1918-1922 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010). The Lower Silesian offensive operation, taking place in February, had seen the northern wing of Konev's forces make further gains, closing up to the Neisse River. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Following the destruction of the synagogue, the number of Oppeln Jews declined drastically, with many choosing to emigrate from Germany. No particular event triggered the wars. [100] After the wars the state began using its network of military grain depots and the excise on grain to stabilise food prices and alleviate grain shortages. This was a task that required more transgressive violence. [52], Prussia built and expanded fortifications at strategic points in Silesia,[53] and the army began to reequip its artillery units with heavier guns. 02-676 Warsaw. [13] The Electors of Bavaria and Saxony also had claims against Austria and seemed likely to join in the attack. The exactly contemporaneous border plebiscite in Upper Silesia also generated insecurity, the emergence of a new state, moving boundaries, old animosities, and spiking ethnic hatred. [22] Armies were generally unable to sustain combat operations during winter and normally established winter quarters in the cold season, resuming their campaigns with the return of spring. The very ambiguity of identity in Upper Silesia helped determine the more extreme types of violence practised there. Peter was overthrown and assassinated within months, but by then the war had again shifted in Prussia's favour, and Russia did not resume hostilities. Designed to flank the Soviet main advance on Berlin, the two operations pushed the Wehrmacht out of Silesia . Despite the commitments made under the Treaty of Dresden, Maria Theresa still refused to give the Holy Roman Empire's recognition of Prussia's sovereignty in Silesia, and Frederick in turn still declined to recognise Maria Theresa's legitimacy as sovereign in the Bohemian lands under the Pragmatic Sanction. However, in making that claim, it was disregarding the treaty provisions for partitioning the area according to the wishes of the Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members. South-east of Oppeln, the 59th and 60th Armies also broke through, the former swinging westwards to link up with the 4th Tank Army. In the south, the 38th Army attacked German troops of the LIX Corps defending with their backs to the highlands of Moravia. The valley of the Upper Oder formed a natural military conduit between Brandenburg, the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Margraviate of Moravia, and whichever power held the territory could threaten its neighbours. [41] Austria renewed its offensive against Bavaria in March 1745, decisively defeating the Franco-Bavarian army at the 15 April Battle of Pfaffenhofen, and making peace with MaximilianIII of Bavaria (the son of the late Emperor Charles Albert) by the Treaty of Fssen on 22 April. Upper Silesia was on the border of Germany and Poland and both nationalities lived there, which caused conflict. [47] For its part in the Austrian alliance, Saxony was compelled to pay one million rixdollars in reparations to Prussia. Polish and German nationalist newspapers and other print media portrayed Jews in Upper Silesia as national outsiders who had no ties to where they lived and the land they resided on. The tensions were exacerbated by unstable border politics with both Germany and a newly reestablished Poland claiming its right to the land. [58] Field Marshal Leopold Joseph von Daun standardised the army's equipment and professionalised its training, drawing on the Prussian model. These movements were fueled by the unification of Germany in 1871 and the introduction of anti-Catholic policies. To learn more, view our However, waves of antisemitic incidents resulted in a large numbers of Jews emigrating out of Upper Silesia and Poland. The commander of Army Group Centre, Field-Marshal Ferdinand Schrner, began to build up Schulz's forces during February for a counter-attack against the 3rd Guards Tank Army's spearheads, which had reached and taken Lauban during the Lower Silesian offensive. Schrner made preparations for a further attack to the south-east at Striegau, which was commenced on 9 March. Most of the Jewish population supported the German cause, however some supported the region joining Poland. [102], The defeats of the Silesian Wars cost the Habsburg monarchy its wealthiest province,[91] and capitulating to a lesser German prince significantly dented the House of Habsburg's prestige. Prussia also established a rudimentary social welfare system for impoverished and disabled veterans of the Silesian Wars. [99] The repeated currency devaluations imposed to finance the conflicts led to rapid inflation and great economic disruption in Prussia (and in occupied Saxony). Frontiers of Violence: Conflict and Identity in Ulster and Upper Silesia, 1918-1922. The League was initially very popular and was often called upon to sort out disagreements between countries. The association was founded in January . [10] He argued that the Pragmatic Sanction did not apply to Silesia, which was held by the Habsburgs as a part of the imperial demesne rather than as a hereditary possession. [11] Austria was in financial distress, and its army had not been reinforced or reformed after an ignominious performance in the 17371739 Austro-Turkish War. Hitze, Guido: Oberschlesien als internationaler Streitfall. The fight for Polish borders in the years 1918-1921 "- Warsaw, 26 June 2019, The President of the IPN, Karol Nawrocki, Ph.D. opened the exhibition "The Year 1921 in Upper Silesia" in Katowice on 20 October 2021, Sign up for a fresh look at history: stay up to date with the latest events, get new texts by our researchers, follow the IPNs projects, Institute of National Remembrance Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation If your institution is not listed or you cannot sign in to your institutions website, please contact your librarian or administrator. The Prussians occupied Saxony in late 1756 and made large advances in Bohemia in early 1757, winning a series of battles while advancing to Prague. [66] Meanwhile, Russian and Swedish invasions from the east and north divided Prussia's forces. Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. As Jews were being brought into the German fabric, a wave of nationalist movements began to bud across Germany. This peace agreement was adopted with the Treaty of Breslau, which ended the First Silesian War on 11 June 1742, and was later formalised in the Treaty of Berlin. After 1945, the city of Oppeln (now Opole) became part of Poland. Virtually all traces of its former Jewish inhabitants were erased. Most of the pre-war German territory was still under control of the Third Reich at the end of 1944. [19] Strategic warfare in this period centred around control of key fortifications positioned so as to command the surrounding regions and roads, lengthy sieges being a common feature of armed conflict. The neutral zone agreement reached in June did calm things down on the ground, but a long-term political solution was still needed. ", Leo Baeck Institute [39] The French failed to harass and disrupt the Austrian redeployment,[40] so Austria's army was able to return to Bohemia quickly and at full strength. [59] In 1746 Maria Theresa entered a defensive pact with Empress Elizabeth of Russia that aligned their two realms against Prussia. 1945 military offensive by the USSR in the Eastern Front of WWII, Operation Gemse: the German counter-attacks at Lauban and Striegau, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Upper_Silesian_offensive&oldid=1131689253, Strategic operations of the Red Army in World War II, Military operations of World War II involving Germany, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from March 2017, All articles needing additional references, Germany articles missing geocoordinate data, Articles missing coordinates without coordinates on Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, This page was last edited on 5 January 2023, at 08:37. Leo Baeck Institute works to preserve and promote the history and culture of German-speaking Jews. For full access to this pdf, sign in to an existing account, or purchase an annual subscription. The predominant feature of the painting is the Oppeln Synagogue built in 18931897 by the renowned Breslau architect Felix Henry. Over all, a stark contrast is highlighted between the two case studies: that Polish nationalists in Upper Silesia practised acts of grotesque violence far more frequently than did their Irish nationalist counterparts in Ulster. New York, NY 10011, U.S.A. [110] Beginning with these steps, wide-ranging efforts to modernise the Habsburg monarchy over the next half century grew out of Austria's defeats, culminating in the Josephinism of the 1780s.[111]. As a result, Nehring decided on a more limited plan of encirclement. In: PAN 20/01. 21-01-2005 At the end of World War I the Polish and German communities in Upper Silesia - a region lying between the two countries - began fighting over their future status. After the end of the Soviet summer offensive of 1944 (Operation Bagration), the frontline of the Eastern Front had stabilised roughly in the middle of Poland, running from Riga on the Baltic coast over Warsaw via the Vistula to the Carpathian Mountains. Believing the vote to be rigged, Polish separatists fought German police and paramilitary forces. [5] Units tended to move between Corps depending on situation. During the Second World War, Nazi Germany invaded Polish parts of Upper Silesia. The conflict over Silesia foreshadowed a wider Austro-Prussian struggle for hegemony over the German-speaking peoples, which would later culminate in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. The optimistic mood among the Poles was boosted by the press, which wrote extensively about the upcoming annexation of Upper Silesia into the Polish state, constantly urging . Get access. By means of a limited tactical withdrawal on 10 March, Heinrici was able to minimise the damage inflicted by the preparatory bombardment, and the front in this sector remained firm. If you believe you should have access to that content, please contact your librarian. (Cygastwa niemieckie) Gos lskie, Nr. [56], After the Treaty of Dresden, Maria Theresa initiated a wave of so-called Theresian reforms of Austria's administration and military, as well as ordering a review of her government's diplomatic policy. Just as World War I was winding down, Upper Silesia, a Polish-German borderland, was set ablaze by ethnic violence that threatened to tear apart the population. New York, NY 10011, U.S.A. Select your institution from the list provided, which will take you to your institution's website to sign in. The largest and most widely read press titles participated in the main political games of the powers interested in a favourable outcome to the Upper Silesian conflict. "From this moment on, you are soldiers (from W. Korfantys Manifesto). The underlying conflict over Silesia was unresolved, and both sides spent the years of peace making preparations for renewed conflict. Other articles related to the Silesian Uprisings: Digital exhibition available for download: The Silesian Uprisings 1919-1921. 60). The Jewish community, faced with persecution, persevered through the division of Upper Silesia between Poland and Germany following the mixed results of the 1921 plebiscite, with Oppeln remaining under German rule. View the institutional accounts that are providing access. [73], In mid-1758 Prussia invaded Moravia, besieging Olmtz in late May. Smoothbore artillery provided fire support and played the leading role in siege warfare. Polish diversionary actions had a real influence on the course of military operations. [64] On 29 August 1756 he preemptively invaded neighbouring Saxony, beginning the Third Silesian War. They remained a target of nationalist hate with the rise of the Nazi party in Germany. In May Prussian forces drove back the Austrian defenders in the Battle of Prague, taking great losses, and then besieged the city. The Upper Silesian offensive was a strategically significant Soviet offensive on the Eastern Front of World War II in 1945. This page was last edited on 13 June 2023, at 18:12. The treaty was presented to the German delegation for signature on May 7, 1919, at the Palace of Versailles near Paris. Frontiers of Violence: Conflict and Identity in Ulster and Upper Silesia, 19181922, by T.K. [14], An opportunity arose for BrandenburgPrussia to press its claims when Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor CharlesVI died in October 1740 without a male heir. The Silesian mines were responsible for almost a quarter of Germany's annual output of coal, 81 percent of its zinc and 34 percent of its lead. The Upper Silesian Offensive succeeded in stabilising Konev's left flank in preparation for the advance on Berlin, and removed the threat of any German counter-attacks from Army Group Centre. [9], The LVI Panzer Corps positioned near Oppeln also started to pull back, but the 20th Grenadier (Estonian) Division of the SS and 168th Infantry Division found themselves trapped by the advance of the 4th Tank Army and 59th Army which linked up near Neustadt. [98], Though sometimes depicted as a key moment in Prussia's rise to greatness, the wars nonetheless left the kingdom's economy and population devastated, and much of the remainder of Frederick's reign was spent repairing the damage. Campbell, F. Gregory: The Struggle for Upper Silesia, 1919-1922. [31] In February Frederick organised a joint advance through Moravia toward Vienna with the Saxons and French, but Prussia's allies were reluctant and uncooperative, and the campaign was abandoned in April, after which the Prussians withdrew into Bohemia and Upper Silesia. Catholicism played a role here too, but the great majority on both sides of the Polish/German issue was Catholic. Upper Silesia is situated on the upper Oder River, north of the Eastern Sudetes mountain range and the Moravian Gate, which form the southern border with the historic Moravia region. As part of the post-war border shift in Europe, all of Upper Silesia became part of Poland in 1945. In: Die Politische Meinung 12/02. Due to the importance of the region to the Germans, considerable forces were provided to Army Group Centre for its defence and the Germans were only slowly pushed back to the Czech border. [1] Jzef Paldzik, ed., Wiadomoci z bliszych i dalszych stron: Katowice - Mysowice. [54] The crown established Prussia's first central bank, and the treasury gathered its surpluses into a growing war chest throughout the peace. What is more, a front line was formed during its actions. Lesniewski, Peter: Britain and Upper Silesia 1919-1922. However, the resolution of the Polish-German border conflict did not bring peace to the region's Jews. Many Jews fought and died for both sides in the border conflict. Ethnic Polish and Polish-Silesian insurrectionists, seeking to have the area transferred to the newly founded Polish Republic, fought German police and paramilitary forces which sought to keep the area part of the new German state founded . The House of Remembrance, a 1903 funeral home designed by Max Fleischer, now serves as a museum dedicated to the history of the regions Jews. However, in recent years local organizations in Upper Silesia have put in a great deal of effort to safeguard the legacy of German Jews, including the Upper Silesian Jews House of Remembrance in Gliwice. [15] During Emperor Charles's lifetime the Pragmatic Sanction was generally acknowledged by the imperial states, but when he died it was promptly contested by Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony. The League stepped in to assist those countries. On 12 january 1945, Soviet troops launched the simultaneous VistulaOder and Western Carpathian offensives. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. [78] After Kunersdorf Frederick had briefly believed the war totally lost, but the coalition's internal conflicts and hesitant leadership gave Prussia a second chance, an event that Frederick later termed the "Miracle of the House of Brandenburg". It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide, This PDF is available to Subscribers Only. By T. K. [45] The Prussians followed the retreating AustrianSaxon army into Bohemia, encamping along the Elbe while Frederick pursued a peace agreement. The synagogue was the center of religious life in the city. Global superpowers did not deny themselves the right to decide about the shape and fate of Upper Silesia. Leo Baeck Institute works to preserve and promote the history and culture of German-speaking Jews. Fighting for the region lasted from mid January right until the last day of the war in Europe on May 8, 1945. Hence atrocity was more widely practised in Upper Silesia because it was functionally useful in creating polarisation. [1], European warfare in the early modern period was characterised by the widespread adoption of firearms in combination with more traditional bladed weapons. [82] In late 1760 the Russians and Austrians briefly occupied Berlin,[83] and on 3November the main Prussian and Austrian armies fought the Battle of Torgau, a narrow Prussian victory that proved costly for both sides. The hostility culminated in the granting of de non tolerandis Judaeis status to many towns in the region.
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