While reading a book on the history of
Central Europe I was impressed by a passage on the details of what happened to
Czechoslovakia in 1938. The follow up of Hitler's success in chopping up Czechoslovakia and tossing out bits to win close allies and creating the
Slovak Republic a truly nasty client state, was that it closed off diplomatic ways of getting the Poles to cooperate.
Hitler wanted to crush France
before attacking the Soviet Union. For this, he needed friendly neutrality from the Poles. Given that the Poles both knew what he said about them and saw what he did to Czechoslovakia, they weren't interested. More damming, Hitler wanted the Poles as allies or out of the way to attack the USSR. Again, the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia showed the Poles why they wanted no alliance with Hitler. Thus Hitler started WWII early because he painted himself into a corner. Yes, I know that was not the only way Hitler forced his own hand, but it is an interesting one.
In this Q6 parallel, Hitler realizes that the Czechs can wait till later. Hitler decides in 1938 that getting the Poles to ally with Germany against the Soviets. As much as
Paderewski knew Hitler was a viper that would bite Poland, he knew Stalin was also a monster and the more immediate threat (Polish History is like that, multiple fatal choices). His rival and ally
Dmowski agreed that it was a bad choice they had to make and like his foe/ally Paderewski prayed for God's mercy knowing full well they would need it.
The local year is 1940, the German-Polish alliance has plunged deep into Russia. A less prepared and even more unstable Soviet Union faces the Nazis and their semi-willing allies the Poles with no allies.
Western Europe hopes the Poles survive and are happy that one or the other dictator is going down to disaster. Homeline wants to keep the Poles and the Jews from being slaughtered. Centrum wants Britain to stay out of the war and preserve the Empire. The Cabal wants more popcorn to watch the show. Homeline's Russia, Germany, and Poland want to break Hitler with minimum bloodshed.