The Szczucin massacre Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland in 1939 was incredibly brutal.
It is estimated that between 1st September and 25th October 1939, while German military administration on occupied Polish territory was in operation, the Wehrmacht, SS, Ordnungspolizei, Volksdeutscher Selbstschutz and other German formations carried out 714 executions, resulting in the deaths of approximately 16,000 civilians.
War crimes against Polish prisoners of war occurred in all operational areas. At least 3,000 captured Polish soldiers were executed away from combat zones, and there were multiple instances of Polish POWs being burned alive.
The German Luftwaffe repeatedly targeted civilian areas, including undefended towns, hospitals, churches and historic buildings, as well as evacuation trains and refugees on the roads. Tens of thousands of civilians lost their lives due to German air raids and artillery shelling.
Hundreds of towns and villages were looted and burned.
On 12th September 1939, a massacre took place in the town of Szczucin.
The Germans burned alive 40 Polish prisoners of war and 30 civilian refugees inside a school building, where they had been detained. Those who tried to escape from the burning building were shot. The Germans then rounded up 25 Jewish residents of the town and ordered them to dig graves for the dead, after which they were also killed….
