The Rest Is History

The story of Wojtek - the bear who took on the Nazis - amidst the death and devastation of the Second World War, and more specifically Poland's heroic resistance, is a flicker of redemption amidst an otherwise deeply depressing period of history. His is a life that exemplifies not only Poland’s struggle in microcosm, but also the global nature of the war overall. Discovered by a young boy as a tiny cub, his mother dead, he was sold to Polish officers travelling to Palestine in the hills outside Tehran. The soldiers nursed and fed the young bear with milk from a vodka bottle, treating him like one of their own. Later, he was even purported to keep them warm at night, drink beer, delight in wrestling and showers, and both march and salute. When the Polish forces were finally deployed to Europe, ‘Wojtek’ as he had been named, went with them; a mascot and morale booster to the men. There he was given military rank, and actively participated in the Italian campaign, carrying ammunition and artillery crates. But with death and destruction on all sides, what would be his fate? Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss Wojtek, one of history’s most extraordinary animals, and his life in the army - an emblem of hope and resilience in the face of the horrors of the Second World War. _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett Editor: Jack Meek Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Nazi invasion of Poland is one of the most harrowing episodes of the Second World War, which saw terrible scenes of abuse take place. Though long threatened, Poland was in no way prepared to face Hitler’s war machine when it finally attacked. Replete with tanks and planes, his would be a new kind of warfare. So, on the 10th of September 1939, Warsaw became the first capital in Europe to face relentless bombing raids, with Hitler - delighted by war - a spectator to the whole thing. The breaking point came when Stalin, whose troops had been fighting in Japan, agreed to send in his Red Army into Poland to reinforce the Germans. Before long, and despite their heroic resistance, the Poles had been decimated by German machinery, and nine days later the Nazis entered Danzig in triumph. With Warsaw an apocalyptic wasteland, Nazi occupied Poland became a hell of random brutality, discrimination, and horrific violence, particularly for the Jewish members of the population. Join Dominic and Tom for the tragic conclusion of their journey into the dark depths of the fall of Poland, including the invasion of the German war machine, Russian participation, and Poland's inspiring defence. _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett Editor: Jack Meek Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

By the 11th of April 1939, Adolf Hitler and his Nazis were in the process of drawing up a plan of attack for Poland, the Poles having resisted Germany’s attempts to make them hand over Danzig and turn themselves into a satellite state. Now, with a new military alliance between France, Britain and Poland established, the time has come for Hitler to throw the dice and cast Europe into the long predicted war. Yet, at this most crucial and long awaited moment of his career, Hitler found himself in a state of emotional distress. Uncertain of whether France and Britain would join the war upon his invasion of Poland, and aware of Germany’s economic turmoil, the stakes had never been higher. He therefore decided to make a deal with his greatest ideological enemy - Joseph Stalin - forming an alliance with Russia, with the intention of dividing up Poland between them. Then, on the 1st of September, Hitler gave a landmark, excoriating address at the Reichstag, declaring war on Poland and tearing up his naval pact with Britain. War, it seemed, had become truly inevitable. Join Dominic and Tom as they discuss the build up to Hitler’s invasion of Poland, one of the darkest episodes of all time, and the moment that the Second World War truly began. Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ nordvpn.com/restishistory It's risk-free with Nord's 30 day money back guarantee ✅ _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett Editor: Jack Meek Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Following the Munich agreement of September 1938, Nazi troops marched into Czechoslovakia and ruthlessly claimed it as a German protectorate. Still, even following his annexation of Czechoslovakia, Hitler’s determination to make Germany the greatest power in Europe was far from sated. Thus, hungry for war and keenly conscious of Germany’s fast imploding economic situation, his mind had turned by the beginning of 1939 to his next unfortunate target: Poland. And it was not only defeat that he envisaged this time, but Polish liquidation. But, with both the Poles and British becoming increasingly wary of Germany's growing assertiveness and militarism, in March 1939 they and France forged a military alliance. Enraged by this, Hitler finalised his plans for the conquest of Poland. In an unexpected turn of events, he also went in search of an unlikely ally of his own to counter the new alliance from which he was smarting: Russia’s Joseph Stalin, the Nazis’ ideological antagonist… Join Tom and Dominic for the appalling story of the build up to Hitler’s genocidal war on Poland. Was it possible that even at this inflamed juncture, war could still have been prevented? _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett Editor: Jack Meek Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices