Zambrow Massacre, 1939

From 13-14 September 1939, Polish POWs were murdered by the Wehrmacht in Zambrow.

From September 11-13, 1939, there had been heavy fighting near Zambrow between Polish and German troops. The Poles were ultimately pushed back. 4,000 to 5,000 prisoners were taken.

The Germans constructed a POW camp near Zambrow for these prisoners. The Germans kept horses near the camp. 

On the night of September 13, 1939, the Germans told all the Polish POWs that any attempt at escape would result in being shot.

Later in the night, horses from the camp came near the positions of the Polish prisoners, and the prisoners began to move to avoid getting trampled. At this point, the German guards began shooting the Polish prisoners with machine guns and other small arms. For about 10 minutes, Polish POWs were gunned down by the Wehrmacht, but the shooting stopped after friendly fire ensued.

About 250 Poles were killed by the Wehrmacht, and the massacre is considered to be one of the worst war crimes of the Wehrmacht during the Invasion of Poland.

SOURCES:

Tomasz Sudoł, ZBRODNIE WEHRMACHTU NA JEŃCACH POLSKICH WE WRZEŚNIU 1939 ROKU

"11 września – rocznica walki o Zambrów w 1939 r." zambrow.org. 2006-09-11. Retrieved 2019-09-13.

http://germanwarcrimes1939.blogspot.com/2018/02/zambrow-massacre.html