Poles began a new stage of their lives on 1 September 1939. The war and five years of occupation changed the lives of everyone. At the beginning they did not know what to expect. However following the bombing, behaviour of the army and then the immediate appearance of the Gestapo, it was clear that the occupation was not going to be easy. The Polish population realised very quickly that the Germans wanted them to live in terror and to make their lives as difficult as possible.
There were draconian punishments for minor infractions such as concentration camps, prisons and frequent use of the death penalty. Terror was everywhere from round ups in the streets to public executions. Those arrested during round ups could be sent to a concentration camp and the best they could hope for was to be sent to forced labour in Germany.
Everyday life was hard. There were shortages of goods, the water and electricity supply did not work and heating fuel was unavailable. Almost everything was rationed. Life became a struggle to get by in the conditions imposed by the occupier.
Poles were not allowed to possess radios and in the lands annexed to the Third Reich, bicycles were also not permitted and there was a curfew. They were not allowed to use parks, cinemas, theatres, libraries and sports fields. Schools were closed. Street names were changed. Later children were allowed to have a basic education and trade schools were opened. Poles could not have any higher positions of authority, their role was to provide physical labour for the good of the German economy. In October 1939 men aged between 18 and sixty had to perform compulsory labour. The lower age limit was soon dropped to fourteen. In practice even younger children were forced to work. Later this applied to women and girls too. Earnings were limited and were disproportionately low in relation to the cost of living.
Poles did not knuckle under and become a frightened mass of physical labourers. People learned how to get by in these conditions and behave with dignity. They considered that the occupation was temporary and never gave in to the occupier. Nearly everyone was opposed to the new regime, many got involved in resistance work. There were secret schools were children continued their learning, there was a wide range of underground press. There was a whole underground state, the best organised in all of the Nazi occupied territories. This heroic effort gave people hope and helped them to get through the war.
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