Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-lj6df Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-13T00:01:16.007Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

“Incurable Megalomania” and “Fantasies of Expansion”: The German Army Reimagines Empire in Occupied Poland, 1915–1918

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 December 2021

Mark T. Kettler Open the ORCID record for Mark T. Kettler [Opens in a new window]
Mark T. Kettler*
Affiliation:
University of Notre Dame, Email: mkettler@nd.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Plans for a Polish “border strip” are frequently cited to argue that the German army entered the First World War committed to pacifying conquered space through Germanization. This article contends that, in 1914, the German officer corps did not understand national homogeneity as essential for imperial security. Many influential officers insisted that Polish identity was compatible with German imperial loyalty. They supported a multinational imperial model, proposing to trade Poland its cultural and political autonomy for the acceptance of German suzerainty in foreign policy and military command. The army's preference for Germanizing space developed during the occupation of Russian Poland, as officers learned to conflate diversity with imperial fragility. Only a series of political crises after 1916 shifted military opinion against multinational imperialism. Increasingly convinced that Poland would betray the German Empire, some officers abandoned multinationalism. Others revised their plans to contain Poland and fortify Germany by annexing and Germanizing Polish space.

Type
Article
Information
Central European History , Volume 54 , Issue 4 , December 2021 , pp. 621 - 645
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Central European History Society of the American Historical Association

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Broszat, Martin, Zweihundert Jahre Deutsche Polenpolitik (Munich: Ehrenwirth, 1963), 134Google Scholar.

2 Rudin, Harry R., Germans in the Cameroons, 1884–1914: A Case Study in Modern Imperialism (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1938), 83Google Scholar.

3 Immanuel Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918. Ein Beitrag zur deutschen Kriegszielpolitik im Ersten Weltkrieg, Historische Studien 378 (Hamburg: Matthiesen Verlag, 1960), 5, 46, 71, 116, 136–37. Martin Broszat arrived at similar conclusions. Broszat, Zweihundert Jahre Deutsche Polenpolitik, 149–50.

4 Fischer, Fritz, Germany's Aims in the First World War (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1967), 241Google Scholar.

5 Liulevicius, Vejas, The German Myth of the East, 1800 to the Present (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), 10CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

6 Liulevicius, Vejas, “German Military Occupation and Culture on the Eastern Front in World War I,” in The Germans and the East, ed. Ingrao, Charles W. and Szabo, Franz A. J. (West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 2008), 201Google Scholar; Liulevicius, Vejas, “Der Osten als apokalyptischer Raum. Deutsche Frontwahrnehmungen im und nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg,” in Traumland Osten. Deutsche Bilder vom östlichen Europa im 20. Jahrhundert, ed. Thum, Gregor (Göttingen: Vanderhoeck & Rupprecht GmbH & Co., 2006), 55–57Google Scholar; Liulevicius, Vejas, War Land on the Eastern Front: Culture, National Identity and German Occupation in World War I (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001), 17, 22, 25–29, 70, 113Google Scholar.

7 Liulevicius, “German Military Occupation and Culture on the Eastern Front in World War I,” 206; Liulevicius, The German Myth of the East, 1800 to the Present, 139–42; Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 7–8, 71; Liulevicius, “Der Osten als apokalyptischer Raum,” 58–59.

8 Liulevicius, “German Military Occupation and Culture on the Eastern Front in World War I,” 206–7; Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 29–31, 126–27, 206.

9 Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 30, 45–46, 54, 58, 114; Liulevicius, “German Military Occupation and Culture on the Eastern Front in World War I,” 204.

10 Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 70–71, 89–96, 160, 165.

11 Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 8–9, 107, 249–52; Liulevicius, “German Military Occupation and Culture on the Eastern Front in World War I,” 207; Liulevicius, The German Myth of the East, 1800 to the Present, 149.

12 Liulevicius, The German Myth of the East, 1800 to the Present, 2, 5; Liulevicius, “German Military Occupation and Culture on the Eastern Front in World War I,” 201, 207.

13 Hull, Isabel V., Absolute Destruction: Military Culture and Practices of War in Imperial Germany (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2005), 201Google Scholar; Knox, MacGregor, “The First World War and Military Culture: Continuity and Change in Germany and Italy,” in Imperial Germany Revisited: Continuing Debates and New Perspectives, ed. Müller, Sven Oliver and Torp, Cornelius (New York: Berghahn Books, 2011), 214–15Google Scholar.

14 Steinmetz, George, The Devil's Handwriting: Precoloniality and the German Colonial State in Qindao, Samoa, and Southwest Africa (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2007), xiv, 45–50, 64, 165CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

15 Robert L. Nelson, “Utopias of Open Space: Forced Population Transfer Fantasies during the First World War,” in Legacies of Violence: Eastern Europe's First World War, ed. Jochen Böhler, Włodzimierz Borodziej, and Joachim von Puttkamer (Oldenbourg: Oldenbourg Verlag, 2014), 113, 119; Michael Schwartz, “Entleerte Räume. ‘Ethnische Säuberungen’ in Grenz- und Großregionen,” in Umkämpfte Räume. Raumbilder, Ordnungswille und Gewaltsmobilisierung, ed. Ulrike Jureit (Göttingen: Wallstein Verlag, 2016), 102.

16 Kramer, Alan, Dynamic of Destruction: Culture and Mass Killing in the First World War (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007), 2–4, 6–16, 32, 41, 331, 340–41CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Schwartz, “Entleerte Räume,” 92–95.

17 Kauffman, Jesse, Elusive Alliance: The German Occupation of Poland in World War I (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2015), 3–4Google Scholar.

18 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 65, 73–74; Broszat, Zweihundert Jahre Deutsche Polenpolitik, 145; Craig, Gordon A., The Politics of the Prussian Army, 1640–1945 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1955), 313–16Google Scholar; Showalter, Dennis and Astore, William J., Hindenburg: Icon of German Militarism (Washington DC: Potomac Books, 2005), 44Google Scholar.

19 Congress Poland refers to territories of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth organized as a kingdom in personal union with the tsar at the Congress of Vienna in 1815.

20 Friedrich von Bernhardi, Germany and the Next War, trans. Allen H. Powles (London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1912), 154.

21 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Ansprache des Generalgouverneurs Hans von Beseler in Warschau, 15 Dezember 1916,” December 15, 1916, 15, PH30-II/55, BArch.

22 Helmuth von Moltke, “Telegram, Chief of the General Staff of the Field Army, Helmuth von Moltke, to Imperial Chancellor, 20 August 1914,” August 20, 1914, R22240, PA AA.

23 Wandel, “Kriegsministerium Memorandum on the Polish Legion for Ober Ost,” n.d., 3–4, R1501/119831, BArch; Paul von Hindenburg, “Request to War Ministry for Opinion on Wandel Report, 8 December 1914,” December 8, 1914, 14, R1501/119831, BArch.

24 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Letter, Reichskanzler von Bethmann Hollweg to Chief of the General Staff, von Falkenhayn, 11 September 1915,” September 11, 1915, R22243, PA AA; Fischer, Germany's Aims in the First World War, 190, 198; Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 73. The army would exercise considerable and consistent influence on imperial policy in Congress Poland until the end of the war, far more so than, for instance, the Prussian Interior Ministry, which remained internally divided over objectives, conservative in its methods, and was increasingly marginalized from mid-1915 through 1916. Mark T. Kettler, “Losing Faith in Civilization: The German Occupation of Congress Poland and the Crisis of Multinational Imperialism,” eScholarship.org (University of California, Berkeley, 2018), 153–54, 164–65, 223–32.

25 Oberstleutnant Hans Zweiger, “Die polnische Frage beim Friedensschluss,” June 23, 1916, 353–55, 21577, PA AA.

26 Hans Wolfgang Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen. Ergebnisse der Pressebeobachtung und Schlussfolgerungen (abgeschlossen am 30. 9.15)” (Stellvertretender Generalstab, Zeitungstelle, September 30, 1915), 105, N30/34, BArch.

27 von Bernhardi, Germany and the Next War, 145–56.

28 Generalleutnant von Heuduck, “Memo by Etappen-Inspekteur,” May 9, 1915, 3–5, 87, R21574, PA AA.

29 Helmuth von Moltke, “Letter to Ministerialdirektor of the Imperial Office of the Interior, 25 January 1915,” January 25, 1915, 5, R1501/119790, BArch.

30 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 96–97, 105.

31 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” January 23, 1916, 56, N30/9, BArch; Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 92, 99.

32 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 57.

33 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 56.

34 Ehlers, “Neue Siedlungsgebiete,” October 1915, 321–22, R21574, PA AA.

35 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to Undersecretary Arthur Zimmermann, 27 August 1915,” August 27, 1915, 201, R21655, PA AA.

36 Hans von Seeckt, “Denkschrift ‘Die Teilung Polens,’” 1915, 5, N247/52, BArch.

37 von Seeckt, “Denkschrift ‘Die Teilung Polens,’” 2.

38 von Seeckt, “Denkschrift ‘Die Teilung Polens,’” 5.

39 Geiss has claimed that a July 13, 1915, assembly of the Prussian Staatsministerium adopted plans to seize a “border strip” of territory and purge its Polish population. Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 91–94. No record of the meeting exists. Geiss relies on the recollections of Interior Minister Friedrich Wilhelm von Loebell, who committed them to paper almost a year later, while trying to persuade the chancellery to adopt the program described. Friedrich Wilhelm von Loebell, “Letter to Chancellor von Bethmann Hollweg, 1 February 1916,” February 1, 1916, 113, R1501/119670, BArch. If Loebell's testimony is reliable, his references to encouraging Polish emigration “without appreciable coercion” do not quite sustain Geiss's interpretation of a policy of ethnic cleansing. If any participants of the 1915 meeting considered ethnic cleansing to be the policy of the German government, this program was quickly contested, revised, and scrapped by civilian policymakers. Wilhelm von Born-Fallois, “Letter to Chancellor von Bethmann Hollweg, 19 July 1915,” July 19, 1915, 4, R1501/119670, BArch; Wolfgang von Kries, “Denkschrift über den dauernden Erwerb der jetzt in deutscher Verwaltung stehenden russisch-polnischen Gebiete links der Weichsel für Deutschland-Preußen,” July 19, 1915, 6–20, R1501/119670, BArch.

40 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Telegram to Erich von Falkenhayn Regarding Plans for Poland,” August 4, 1915, 13, N30/19, BArch.

41 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” July 23, 1916, 124, N30/9, BArch; Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 74.

42 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to Undersecretary Arthur Zimmermann, 20 October 1915,” October 20, 1915, 346, R21655, PA AA.

43 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 124.

44 von Seeckt, “Denkschrift ‘Die Teilung Polens,’” 3–4.

45 Karl Georg von Treutler, “Letter to the Foreign Office, 31 August 1915,” August 31, 1915, 205, R21655, PA AA.

46 Erich von Falkenhayn, “Letter to Chancellor von Bethmann Hollweg, 8 September 1915,” September 8, 1915, 207, R21655, PA AA; Karl Georg von Treutler, “Report to the Foreign Office, 23 January 1916,” January 23, 1916, 55, R21656, PA AA; Karl Georg von Treutler, “Letter to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 12 April 1916,” April 12, 1916, 235, R21656, PA AA.

47 Jürgen Schmidt, “Against Russia: Department IIIb of the Deputy General Staff, Berlin, and Intelligence, Counterintelligence and Newspaper Research, 1914–1918,” trans. Anja Becker, Journal of Intelligence History 5, no. 2 (October 2012): 73–74, 78–79.

48 Schmidt, “Against Russia,” 79. In 1916, Herwarth von Bittenfeld would take over the military office of the foreign service.

49 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 87.

50 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 105–8.

51 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 106.

52 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 87–108.

53 Jesse Kauffman, “Sovereignty and the Search for Order in German-Occupied Poland, 1915–1918” (PhD diss., Stanford University, 2008), 40–41.

54 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 52.

55 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “‘Reinkonzept’ Sent to the Chancellor, 2 March 1916,” March 2, 1916, N30/12, BArch; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to the Chancellor, 22 April 1916,” April 22, 1916, 49, N30/12, BArch; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 124. Liulevicius and others have suggested that Beseler's attitudes toward Poland were largely shaped by the GGW's civilian administration, in contrast to OberOst's purely military administration. Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 7. Though Beseler indeed consulted frequently with civilian personnel and publications, the evidence does not suggest that civilian influence alone determined German imperial plans in Poland. Beseler's Chief of Civilian Administration, Wolfgang von Kries, had indeed stated significant reservations about Polish statehood in July 1915. See also von Kries, “Denkschrift über den dauernden Erwerb der jetzt in deutscher Verwaltung stehenden russisch-polnischen Gebiete links der Weichsel für Deutschland-Preußen,” 5.

56 Quoted in Asprey, Robert B., The German High Command at War: Hindenburg and Ludendorff Conduct World War I (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1991), 282Google Scholar.

57 Ludendorff, “Letter to Undersecretary Arthur Zimmermann, 20 October 1915,” 346.

58 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to Hans von Seeckt, 27 September 1916,” September 27, 1916, 4, N247/57, BArch.

59 Ludendorff, “Letter to Hans von Seeckt, 27 September 1916,” 4.

60 Kriegsministerium (Schleüch), “Letter to State Secretary Gottlieb von Jagow, 25 October 1915,” October 25, 1915, 320, R21574, PA AA; Kohnke, “Memorandum on War Aims in Russian Poland and the Baltic Provinces,” September 1915, 334, R21574, PA AA.

61 Prussian Staatsministerium, “Minutes of Staatsministerium Meeting Regarding the Polish Question, 8 October 1916,” October 8, 1916, 139, N30/13, BArch.

62 Paul von Hindenburg, “‘Hindenburg an Reichskanzler’ in ‘Polen:Zusammenstellung aus der Akten der Reichskanzlei,’” August 23, 1916, 29, NL Jagow 3, PA AA.

63 Paul von Hindenburg, “Letter to Conrad von Hötzendorff, 30 September 1916,” September 30, 1916, 53–55, N30/10, BArch.

64 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 21 February 1916,” February 21, 1916, 28, N30/12, BArch.

65 Gottlieb von Jagow, “Letter to Gerhard von Mutius, 26 April 1916,” April 26, 1916, 175, R1501/119782a, BArch; Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 107–9; Prussian Staatsministerium, “Staatsministerium Minutes, 8 October 1916,” 130–46.

66 von Falkenhayn, “Letter to Chancellor von Bethmann Hollweg, 8 September 1915,” 54–55.

67 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 106; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 127; Prussian Staatsministerium, “Staatsministerium Minutes, 8 October 1916,” 131; von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 54–55.

68 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 55–56.

69 Prussian Staatsministerium, “Staatsministerium Minutes, 8 October 1916,” 133.

70 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 55.

71 Showalter, Dennis, “Comrades, Enemies, Victims: The Prussian/German Army and the Ostvölker,” in The Germans and the East, ed. Ingrao, Charles W. and Szabo, Franz A. J. (West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 2008), 212–15Google Scholar.

72 Watson, Alexander, “Fighting for Another Fatherland: The Polish Minority in the German Army, 1914–1918,” English Historical Review CXXVI, no. 522 (2011): 1142–43Google Scholar.

73 Watson, “Fighting for Another Fatherland,” 1146–47.

74 Watson, “Fighting for Another Fatherland,” 1147.

75 Leo Wegener, “Die Ostgrenze,” August 18, 1914, 2, N30/34, BArch.

76 von Beseler, “Letter to the Chancellor, 22 April 1916,” 50.

77 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “‘Konzept’ on Polish Question Sent to Chancellor,” August 2, 1916, 84, N30/12, BArch.

78 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 54; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 123–25.

79 von Beseler, “‘Konzept’ on Polish Question Sent to Chancellor,” 84.

80 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 104.

81 Max Hoffmann, “Letter, Chief of Staff by Oberbefehlshaber Ost, Colonel Hoffmann, to General Ludendorff, 3 October 1916,” October 3, 1916, 355, R21660, PA AA.

82 Hoffmann, “Letter, Chief of Staff by Oberbefehlshaber Ost, Colonel Hoffmann, to General Ludendorff, 3 October 1916,” 356.

83 Weeks, Theodore, Nation and State in Late Imperial Russia: Nationalism and Russification on the Western Frontier, 1863–1914 (Dekalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 1996), 8, 45, 71, 77, 93, 98Google Scholar.

84 Daniel Graf, “The Reign of the Generals: Military Government in Western Russian, 1914–1915” (Phd diss., University of Nebraska, 1972), 141, 153.

85 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to Clara von Beseler, 13 December 1915,” December 13, 1915, 44, N30/53, BArch.

86 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 101.

87 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 55; Prussian Staatsministerium, “Staatsministerium Minutes, 8 October 1916,” 132–35.

88 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 96.

89 GGW, “Minutes of the Joint Meeting of Military Governors of the GGW, 22 August 1916,” August 22, 1916, 24, N30/20, BArch; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Die Entwicklung der Verwaltung des Generalgouvernements Warschau (Bericht des Generalgouverneurs Hans von Beseler),” October 23, 1915, 3, PH30-II/5, BArch; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to Clara von Beseler, 29 January 1916,” January 29, 1916, 8, N30/54, BArch.

90 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 53–55.

91 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 91, 99.

92 Generalgouvernement Warschau, “Das Parteiwesen in Kongresspolen,” n.d., 2–5, N30/17, BArch.

93 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to General von Kleist, 3 October 1915,” October 3, 1915, 23, N30/53, BArch.

94 von Beseler, von Beseler, “Die Entwicklung der Verwaltung des Generalgouvernements Warschau (Bericht des Generalgouverneurs Hans von Beseler),” 3.

95 Davies, Norman, God's Playground: A History of Poland, 1795 to the Present, vol. 2 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1982), 381Google Scholar.

96 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 28.

97 Broszat, Zweihundert Jahre Deutsche Polenpolitik, 138.

98 Captain Elitze, “Intelligence Report, ‘Die POW,’ 30 July 1916,” July 30, 1916, 91–92, N30/20, BArch; Leutnant Pokrziwnitzki, “Report from the Warsaw Polizeistelle on the POW, 17 April 1916,” April 17, 1916, 99, N30/20, BArch.

99 Leutnant Pokrziwnitzki, “Report from the Warsaw Polizeistelle on the POW, 17 April 1916,” 98; Feldpolizeikommissar Schulze, “Report from the Warsaw Polizeistelle on the POW, 29 April 1916,” April 29, 1916, 96–97, N30/20, BArch; Captain Elitze, “Intelligence Report, ‘Die POW,’ 30 July 1916,” 91–92.

100 Captain Elitze, “Intelligence Report, ‘Die POW,’ 30 July 1916,” 91.

101 Captain Elitze, “Intelligence Report, ‘Die POW,’ 30 July 1916,” 91–92; Leutnant Pokrziwnitzki, “Report from the Warsaw Polizeistelle on the POW, 17 April 1916,” 98.

102 Wolfgang von Kries, “Vierteljahresbericht bei dem General-Gouvernement Warschau, 31 March 1916,” March 31, 1916, 6, PH30-II/11, BArch.

103 von Beseler, von Beseler, “Die Entwicklung der Verwaltung des Generalgouvernements Warschau (Bericht des Generalgouverneurs Hans von Beseler),” 3.

104 Feldpolizeikommissar Schulze, “Report from the Warsaw Polizeistelle on the POW, 29 April 1916,” 96–97.

105 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Report to Falkenhayn and Bethmann Hollweg, 2 August 1916,” August 2, 1916, 13, N30/10, BArch.

106 GGW, “Minutes of the Joint Meeting of Military Governors of the GGW, 22 August 1916,” 24.

107 von Pokrziwnitzki, “Warsaw Police Station Report on Political Activity in Warsaw in July 1916,” August 7, 1916, 135, N30/20, BArch.

108 GGW, “Minutes of the Joint Meeting of Military Governors of the GGW, 22 August 1916,” 25–26.

109 GGW, “Minutes of the Joint Meeting of Military Governors of the GGW, 22 August 1916,” 25–27.

110 Felix von Beczkowicz, “Die polnische Frage vom Gesichtspunkte der deutschen Interessen im Zusammenhang mit der russischen Gefahr,” July 28, 1916, 109–14, N30/35, BArch.

111 Władysław Studnicki, “Letter of Introduction to Governor General von Beseler, 10 August 1915,” August 10, 1915, 23–24, N30/19, BArch.

112 von der Ropp, “Letter to Governor General von Beseler, 9 October 1916,” October 9, 1916, 9, N30/21, BArch.

113 Władysław Studnicki, “Open Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler and the German Imperial Government from Polish Representatives, 5 August 1916,” August 5, 1916, 120–21, N30/20, BArch.

114 Studnicki, Open Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler and the German Imperial Government from Polish Representatives, 5 August 1916,” 121.

115 GGW, “Report on Public Assembly of the ‘Klub Der Anhänger Des Polnischen Staatswesens,’” September 1916, 5, N30/13, BArch; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Report to the Chancellor, 5 September 1916,” September 5, 1916, 6, N30/13, BArch; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 123–25.

116 OHL Political Section, “Report: Intelligence Officer of the Obersten Heeresleitung, Political Section, Berlin, 18 April 1916,” April 18, 1916, 256, R21576, PA AA.

117 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 52–55.

118 von Pokrziwnitzki, “Warsaw Police Station Report on Political Activity in Warsaw in July 1916,” 134.

119 von Beseler, “Letter to Clara von Beseler, 29 January 1916,” 8.

120 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 52.

121 Generalgouvernement Warschau, “Das Parteiwesen in Kongresspolen,” 2; von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 53.

122 Generalgouvernement Warschau, “Das Parteiwesen in Kongresspolen,” 3; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 122.

123 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 92, 101.

124 Generalgouvernement Warschau, “Das Parteiwesen in Kongresspolen,” 3.

125 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 96.

126 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 53; von Beseler, “‘Konzept’ on Polish Question Sent to Chancellor,” 83.

127 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 96; von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 52, 56.

128 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 56; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 124.

129 von Hindenburg, “Hindenburg an Reichskanzler,” 29.

130 Ludendorff, “Letter to Undersecretary Arthur Zimmermann, 27 August 1915,” 201.

131 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 13 August 1916,” August 13, 1916, 119, N30/12, BArch.

132 Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 107–9.

133 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 106, 113.

134 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 107.

135 von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 54–55.

136 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 123–24.

137 Conze, Werner, “Nationalstaat oder Mitteleuropa. Die Deutschen des Reiches und die Nationalitätenfragen Ostmitteleuropas im ersten Weltkrieg,” in Deutschland und Europa. Historische Studien zur Völker- und Staatenordnung des Abendlandes (Düsseldorf: Droste Verlag, 1951), 219Google Scholar; Paul von Hindenburg, “Telegram to Chancellor von Bethmann Hollweg,” October 13, 1916, 75, N30/10, BArch.

138 von Bethmann Hollweg, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 13 August 1916,” 119.

139 Prussian Staatsministerium, “Staatsministerium Minutes, 8 October 1916,” 131.

140 von Treutler, “Report to the Foreign Office, 23 January 1916,” 54; Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 105–6; von Beseler, “Immediatbericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Januar 1916,” 52; von Seeckt, “Denkschrift ‘Die Teilung Polens,’” 2–4.

141 Herwarth von Bittenfeld, “Polen,” 105–06.

142 Ludendorff, “Letter to Undersecretary Arthur Zimmermann, 20 October 1915,” 346.

143 von Treutler, “Report to the Foreign Office, 23 January 1916,” 55.

144 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 23 Juli 1916,” 125.

145 Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 35; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to Erich von Falkenhayn, 23 August 1916,” August 23, 1916, 30, N30/10, BArch; Erich von Falkenhayn, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, August 1916,” August 1916, 24, N30/10, BArch.

146 Fischer, Germany's Aims in the First World War, 245.

147 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 82.

148 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 82–83.

149 Strantz, “Die Deutsche Politik gegenüber den Polen. Gutachten aus Lodz,” November 29, 1916, 135–36, R1501/119795, BArch; Deputy General Command of the V. Army Corps, “Report on the Polish-Speaking Population of Prussia, Relayed to the Chancellery by the War Ministry 20 February 1917,” February 2, 1917, 135, R1501/119790, BArch.

150 Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 38; Reichskanzlei, “Sitzung im Reichskanzler-Palais, Dienstag den 13. Febr. 17, 5 Uhr Nachmittag,” February 13, 1917, 91–93, N30/14, BArch.

151 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 April 1917,” April 13, 1917, 138–39, N30/9, BArch.)

152 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 20 Dezember 1916,” December 20, 1916, 19, R1501/119710, BArch.

153 von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 20 Dezember 1916,” 20–22.

154 von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 20 Dezember 1916,” 22.

155 Military Government of Łomża, “Report to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 21 November 1916,” November 21, 1916, 109–11, N30/21, BArch.

156 Kreischef of Łomża, “Report to the Civil Administration of the GGW, December 1916,” December 1916, 93, R1501/119718, BArch.

157 Kreischef of Łomża, “Report to the Civil Administration of the GGW, December 1916,” 93.

158 Strantz, “Die Deutsche Politik Gegenüber Den Polen,” 136.

159 von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau, 20 Dezember 1916,” 16–17.

160 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 April 1917,” 138.

161 von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau, 20 Dezember 1916,” 20–22.

162 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Report to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 5 January 1917,” January 5, 1917, 15, N30/14, BArch; von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau, 20 Dezember 1916,” 22–23.

163 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Telegram to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 17 November 1916,” November 17, 1916, 170, N30/13, BArch.

164 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 91.

165 von Beseler, “Report to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 5 January 1917,” 9–10.

166 von Beseler, “Ansprache des Generalgouverneurs Hans von Beseler in Warschau, 15 Dezember 1916,” 2–5, 10–16.

167 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 17 January 1917,” January 17, 1917, 23, N30/14, BArch.

168 Reichskanzlei, “Sitzung im Reichskanzler-Palais, Dienstag den 13. Febr. 17, 5 Uhr Nachmittag,” 86–91.

169 Reichskanzlei, “Sitzung im Reichskanzler-Palais, Dienstag den 13. Febr. 17, 5 Uhr Nachmittag,” 91.

170 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 9 May 1917,” May 9, 1917, 163, N30/14, BArch.

171 von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau, 20 Dezember 1916,” 21.

172 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 24 January 1917,” January 24, 1917, 37, N30/14, BArch.

173 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Note to Paul von Hindenburg, 6 June 1917,” June 6, 1917, 44, N30/11, BArch; von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 April 1917,” 140.

174 von Beseler, “Bericht des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau, 20 Dezember 1916,” 17–18, 22; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to Ober Ost Explaining the Political Situation in Poland, 24 November 1916,” November 24, 1916, 126, N30/10, BArch.

175 Reichskanzlei, “Sitzung im Reichskanzler-Palais, Dienstag den 13. Febr. 17, 5 Uhr Nachmittag,” 93.

176 von Beseler, “Letter to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 24 January 1917,” 38.

177 von Beseler, “Letter to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 24 January 1917,” 38.

178 von Beseler, “Letter to Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 24 January 1917,” 38.

179 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 91.

180 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 71, 99.

181 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 102.

182 Broszat, Zweihundert Jahre Deutsche Polenpolitik, 146; Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 103.

183 Press Department of the GGW, “Report on Underground Press Activity Following the July Mutiny,” July 17, 1917, 98, R1501/119831, BArch.

184 Kauffman, Elusive Alliance, 103.

185 Nethe, “Letter to Chancellor Hertling, 29 December 1917,” December 29, 1917, 214, R1501/119831, BArch.

186 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 October 1917,” October 13, 1917, 182, N30/9, BArch.

187 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 October 1917,” 183.

188 Erich Ludendorff, “Memorandum Regarding the Continued Formation of the Polish Army, 16 September 1917,” September 16, 1917, 165, R1501/119831, BArch.

189 Vermeiren, Jan, The First World War and German National Identity: The Dual Alliance at War (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2016), 253CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

190 Nethe, “Bericht an die Nachrichtenabteilung des Auswärtigen Amts,” August 4, 1917, 140, R1501/119831, BArch.

191 Nethe, “Letter to the Imperial Chancellor, 18 August 1917,” August 18, 1917, 139, R1501/119831, BArch.

192 Erich Ludendorff, “Report to Chancellor Michaelis, 21 August 1917,” August 21, 1917, 194, R1501/119791, BArch.

193 Quoted in Vermeiren, The First World War and German National Identity, 254.

194 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 October 1917,” 183.

195 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to the Chancellery, 5 August 1917,” August 5, 1917, 152, N30/23, BArch.

196 Ludendorff, “Memorandum Regarding the Continued Formation of the Polish Army, 16 September 1917,” 165.

197 Ludendorff, “Memorandum Regarding the Continued Formation of the Polish Army, 16 September 1917,” 166.

198 Ernst von Glasenapp, “Report on the Assembly of the KPP, 19 September 1917,” September 19, 1917, 247, R1501/119791, BArch.

199 von Beseler, “Letter to the Chancellery, 5 August 1917,” 153.

200 Hugo v.u.z. Lerchenfeld-Köfering, “Report on the Formation of the Regency Council, 22 September 1917,” September 22, 1917, 256, R1501/119712, BArch.

201 v.u.z. Lerchenfeld-Köfering, “Report on the Formation of the Regency Council, 22 September 1917,” 259.

202 v.u.z. Lerchenfeld-Köfering, “Report on the Formation of the Regency Council, 22 September 1917,” 260.

203 Wolfgang von Kries, “Minutes of Telephone Call with Theodor Lewald, 19 September 1917,” September 19, 1917, 210, R1501/119712, BArch.

204 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 October 1917,” 178–79.

205 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 October 1917,” 179.

206 Reichskanzlei, “Protokoll. Konferenz im Reichsamt des Innern vom 22 Januar 1918 über die Frage der Besiedlung eines Grenzstreifens von Polen,” January 22, 1918, 115–18, R43/5124, BArch.

207 Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference in Bellevue Palace, 13 March 1918,” March 13, 1918, 119, R43/2477, BArch; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Confidential Report to Chancellor Hertling, 25 March 1918,” March 25, 1918, 6–7, N30/16, BArch.

208 Chancellery, “Minutes of the Foreign Office Conference, 3 November 1917,” November 3, 1917, 35–36, N30/15, BArch.

209 Chancellery, “Minutes of the Foreign Office Conference, 3 November 1917,” 38.

210 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Minutes of the Crown Council Meeting in Bellevue Palace, 5 November 1917,” November 5, 1917, 81–82, N30/24, BArch; Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Further Minutes of the Crown Council Meeting in Bellevue Palace, 5 November 1917,” November 5, 1917, 84–85, N30/24, BArch.

211 Schulze, “Minutes of Conference at the Foreign Office, 4 November 1917,” November 4, 1917, 51, R43/2477, BArch.

212 Chancellery, “Minutes of the Foreign Office Conference, 3 November 1917,” 37.

213 von Beseler, “Minutes of the Crown Council Meeting in Bellevue Palace, 5 November 1917,” 81.

214 Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 119.

215 Chancellery, “Record of Cabinet Conference on War Aims, 23 April 1917,” April 23, 1917, 11, R43/2477, BArch.

216 Chancellery, “Record of Cabinet Conference on War Aims, 23 April 1917,” 11.

217 Reichskanzlei, “Record of the Results of the Discussion on the Polish Question, Held on 3 and 4 November 1917,” November 3, 1917, 40, R43/2477, BArch.

218 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to War Minister von Stein, 7 September 1917,” September 7, 1917, 120, R1501/119823, BArch.

219 Ludendorff, “Letter to War Minister von Stein, 7 September 1917,” 120.

220 Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference in the RAI, Regarding the Polish Border-Strip, 23 January 1918,” January 23, 1918, 120, R43/5124, BArch; Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 142.

221 Chancellery, “Minutes of the Foreign Office Conference, 3 November 1917,” 44–45.

222 Hermann von Stein, “Letter to Chancellor Michaelis, 1 October 1917,” October 1, 1917, 118, R1501/119823, BArch.

223 Fischer, Germany's Aims in the First World War, 317.

224 Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 119.

225 Fischer, Germany's Aims in the First World War, 347; Paul von Hindenburg, “Letter to Hans Hartwig von Beseler, 16 April 1917,” April 16, 1917, 22, N30/11, BArch.

226 von Beseler, “Immediatberichte des Generalgouverneurs in Warschau über die politische Lage in Polen, 13 April 1917,” 141; von Beseler, “Note to Paul von Hindenburg, 6 June 1917,” 42–43.

227 Chancellery, “Results of the Kreuznach Conference, 17–18 May 1917,” May 18, 1917, 9, R43/2477, BArch.

228 Hans Hartwig von Beseler, “Letter to the Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg, 23 June 1917,” June 23, 1917, 95, R1501/119672, BArch.

229 Reichskanzlei, “Protocol of Conference between the Imperial Chancellor and OHL, Kreuznach,” August 9, 1917, 25, R43/2477, BArch.

230 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to Chancellor Michaelis, 4 September 1917,” September 4, 1917, 292, R1501/119712, BArch.

231 Reichskanzlei, “Record of the Results of the Discussion on the Polish Question, Held on 3 and 4 November 1917,” 40.

232 Schulze, “Minutes of Conference at the Foreign Office, 4 November 1917,” 49.

233 Reichskanzlei Presseabteilung, “Verhandlungsbericht über die Beratung vom 13. März 1918 vorm. Über die polnische Frage,” March 1918, 121, R43/2477, BArch.

234 Reichskanzlei Presseabteilung, “Verhandlungsbericht über die Beratung vom 13. März 1918 vorm. Über die polnische Frage,” 121–23.

235 Reichskanzlei, “Record of the Results of the Discussion on the Polish Question, Held on 3 and 4 November 1917,” 40; Max Wallraf, “Letter to State Secretary Kühlmann, 14 December 1917,” December 14, 1917, 160–61, R1501/119823, BArch.

236 Chancellery, “Record of Cabinet Conference on War Aims, 23 April 1917,” 11.

237 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to Chancellor Michaelis, 15 August 1917,” August 15, 1917, 113, R1501/119823, BArch.

238 Erich Ludendorff, “Letter to Chancellor Hertling, 15 November 1917,” November 15, 1917, 122, R1501/119823, BArch; Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 128.

239 Ludendorff, “Letter to Chancellor Hertling, 15 November 1917,” 123.

240 Reichskanzlei, “Konferenz vom 22 Januar 1918 über die Frage der Besiedlung eines Grenzstreifens,” 115.

241 Reichskanzlei, “Konferenz vom 22 Januar 1918 über die Frage der Besiedlung eines Grenzstreifens,” 115.

242 Reichskanzlei, “Konferenz vom 22 Januar 1918 über die Frage der Besiedlung eines Grenzstreifens,” 118.

243 Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference in the RAI to Discuss the Border-Strip, 12 March 1918,” March 12, 1918, 128, R43/5124, BArch.

244 Paul von Hindenburg, “Denkschrift über den polnischen Grenzstreifen,” July 5, 1918, 100, R1501/119824, BArch.

245 Geiss, Der polnische Grenzstreifen, 1914–1918, 142.

246 von Hindenburg, “Denkschrift über den polnischen Grenzstreifen,” 102.

247 von Hindenburg, “Denkschrift über den polnischen Grenzstreifen,” 97–98.

248 von Hindenburg, “Denkschrift über den polnischen Grenzstreifen,” 98.

249 Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference on the Polish Question at Spa, 2–3 July 1918,” July 3, 1918, 195–96, R43/2477, BArch; RAI, “Zur Grenzstreifenfrage,” July 31, 1918, 114, R1501/119824, BArch.

250 Theodor Lewald, “Note on the 9 August Discussions over the Border-Strip,” August 1918, 158, R1501/119824, BArch; RAI, “Zur Grenzstreifenfrage,” 112–13; Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference on the Polish Question at Spa, 2–3 July 1918,” 196; Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference in the RAI to Discuss the Border-Strip, 12 March 1918,” 125–29.

251 Considerations of space permit only a cursory treatment of this question. For a more detailed consideration, please see Kettler, “Losing Faith in Civilization,” 240–41.

252 Robert von Keyserlingk, “Das Schicksal der Russischen Ostseeprovinzen im Interesse des Deutschen Reiches,” October 1914, 172, R43/2476, BArch.

253 Chancellery, “Minutes of Conference with Ober Ost on Baltic Policy, 10–11 March 1918,” March 11, 1918, 98, R43/2477, BArch.

254 Liulevicius, War Land on the Eastern Front, 145.

255 Kettler, “Losing Faith in Civilization,” 371–74.

256 Ludendorff, Erich, Ludendorff's Own Story: August 1914–November 1918, vol. 1 (New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1919), 475Google Scholar.

257 Ludendorff, Ludendorff's Own Story, 1:475.

258 Ludendorff, Ludendorff's Own Story, 1:474–75.

259 Ludendorff, Ludendorff's Own Story, 1:475.

260 Ludendorff, Erich, Ludendorff's Own Story: August 1914–November 1918, vol. 2 (New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1919), 139–40Google Scholar.

261 Stab des GGWs, “Kurzer historischer Überblick über das Generalgouvernement Warschau (mit Organisationsplan und Aktenverzeichnis) vom Dez. 1914 bis Nov. 1918,” 1923, 45, PH30-II/62, BArch.