"World War II" as just another standard war

[Domen]

were not undertaken solely as a blind for preparations for war

Hard to believe considering the scale of German preparations, also the main objectives of the Fall Weiss plan which were formulated already in the Spring of 1939.

Also one of features of negotiations is that you try to find the compromise between your and the other side's demands. In those "negotiations" Germany was gradually demanding more and more from Poland, instead of making concessions to find a solution satisfying for both sides.

Quoting from memory (since I'm currently at the University) - the shortest possible objective of the Fall Weiss was described as follows:

"The keynote of the invasion of Poland is to destroy the Polish Armed Forces. This will be achieved through concentric strikes - from Silesa towards Warsaw and from Pomerania and East Prussia towards Warsaw - in order to destroy the main Polish forces which are expected to resist in the area west of the Vistula-San and to cut off their withdrawal to the south-east".

This was the objective of the invasion plan established already in the Spring of 1939 - there was nothing about Free City Danzig in that plan.

If Germans wanted Danzig they would prepare for the annexation of Danzig, instead of for the destruction of Poland. Annexation of Danzig and the Polish "Corridor" was only one of many objectives of the German 4. Army, which was part of Army Group "North" and one of 5 armies designated to carry out the invasion.

Objectives of the 4. Army were to cut off and destroy the Polish Army "Pomerania", occupy Danzig, then capture bridgeheads over the Vistula as fast as possible and advance on Warsaw along both banks of the Vistula in cooperation with western wing of the 3. Army.

The "Fall Weiss" campaign was planned as a lightning war, in which special role was since the very beginning of the planning process reserved for motorized-armoured forces and Luftwaffe - and it was aimed at the destruction of the Polish army as fast as possible. It was not planned as merely an occupation of Free City Danzig but "accidentally turned out into the most stunning military conquest in history up to that point" - as Nazi apologists say.

and the complete conquest of all of Poland was not necessarily at stake

The only thing which could prevent Nazi invasion of Poland aimed at its destruction - was an alliance of Poland with Germany. Behaving like a submissive, but still not friendly at all, neighbour-state openly siding with France and Britain, but trying to prevent getting invaded - would not help Poland at all.

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Moreover, if Poland did not get under Nazi Germany's control - then where would Hitler find Jews to kill ???

Poland had the largest Jewish community of all European countries.

 

[Agent327]

That assumes a great deal of planning and assumptions by Hitler that are impossible to substantiate. It's like saying the Nazis had the Holocaust planned out already at the Machtergreifung.

Not really. Hitler was intent on war from the Czech crisis onward (even considered invading Austria by force. but that proved entirely unnecessary). Any decent Hitlerbiography will tell you this.

Hitler was only interested in Danzig and the Polish corridor precisely because he was certain his terms would be rejected. (The same goes true for Munich: he commented that war was stolen from him, as he much would have preferred going to war over Czechoslovakia. For the rest see Domen's post; he's pretty accurate about the whole Poland operation.)

The Holocaust was never planned until after Nazi expansion gave them control over most of European Jewry. Planning wasn't Hitler's forte, he preferred to have people do that for him. (Knowing full well the extent of what was about to be committed, he made sure nothing in writing concerning the Holocaust could be tracked back to him.)

 

[Domen]

Quoting from memory

Now citing this (excerpt from original German guidelines for the invasion) from a book:

"The aim of the operation is to destroy the Polish Armed Forces. The plan of the High Command is to prevent regular mobilization and concentration of the Polish army through an unexpected invasion of Polish territory and destruction of main Polish forces, which are expected to resist in areas west of the line Vistula-Narew. This goal is to be achieved with use of concentric strikes - from Silesia from one side and from Pomerania and East Prussia from the other side."

Army Group "North"'s most generalized / simplified task was to:

"Strike as fast as possible in overall direction towards Warsaw, in order to destroy Polish forces north of the Vistula, and then, in cooperation with Army Group South, destroy Polish forces that will still be resisting in Eastern Poland."