Why did Japan refuse Poland's declaration of war in WW2? (Short Animated Documentary)

When Poland declared war on Japan with the rest of the allies in World War 2, Japan refused the declaration. It didn't ignore it. It responded saying no, there was no war. And that Poland was wrong to think so. To find out why watch this short and simple animated history documentary.
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[@bighillraft]

Remember guys, if somebody declares war on you, just reject it. They cannot invade you without consent

[@CosmicCreeper99]

*This video is literally about Poland*

[@KarmaTheNarrator23]

Belgium cant say the same

[@Skribblingz]

I'll be sure to remember that when playing Civ

[@cumpanions8105]

Uhm ehm sorry but that is just stupid, invading country can still invade you even if you dont accept the decleration🤓🤓🤓🤓

[@andrewklang809]

Ah, it's vampire rules!

[@MasterBomer]

That obvious Polish and Japanese spy pointing out a Soviet officer as a spy and Stalin actually believing it got me laughing so hard

[@thatonejoey1847]

The japano-polak incident during the great purge, 1930s colorised

[@SMiki55]

@@thatonejoey1847 Japolish

[@Josep_Hernandez_Lujan]

Stalin infamously used such accusations as excuses do some purging

[@timesnewlogan2032]

Not just any officer: Mikhail Tukhachevsky!

[@ondank]

Lets be real, Stalins paranoia didn't exactly need an invitation to assume someone was a spy.

[@matthewbrandin6947]

I've always been fascinated by Japan and Poland's strange friendship. Fun note, Nitobe Inazo, dedicated his famous book "Bushido: the Soul of Japan," to the Polish people, whom he considered a "Samurai Nation."

[@Ironyx1]

Yup

[@baronbrummbar8691]

nothing stange about it ..... it is simmilar to the friendship between Germany and china back then .....

[@dariusz2303]

@@mordekaishekelbergiv.4211 oh, don't be effected by zionist propaganda... only polanish people and Poland gave you refuge i Europe... remember and be honest

[@dariusz2303]

@@mordekaishekelbergiv.4211 oh, don't be effected by zionist propaganda... only polanish people and Poland gave you refuge i Europe... remember and be honest

[@bruhbruh-us6gl]

It's funny how Imperial Japan cared more about Poland and the Polish people than the Allies did. Sort of in the same way Italy threatened war with Germany over the Anschluss of Austria, while the allies did nothing.

[@cyanide1931]

There was a single Polish pilot (Witold Urbanowicz) who volunteered to serve in China, and he actually did score some kills against the Japanese. This was pretty much the only case of Poles and Japanese fighting each other (excluding a number of Polish migrants in the US forces, of course)

[@zepter00]

Yes.. he served im Flying Tigers

[@InfernosReaper]

@@zepter00 The Flying Tiges, aka, America's unofficial war with Japan before the proper one started

[@cieslik7564]

My great grandfather was fighting in Russian Japanese war. He was drafted from Poland by Car Russia.

[@alexaugustynski3620]

My Polish great-grandfather with American citizenship was killed by a Japanese sniper. Never knew the context that Poland and Japan were such friendly nations. Tragic, especially given what America has become.

[@torinjones3221]

Yea but they're not really poles are they. They're Americans

[@matthewboyle2641]

Poland: We're at war Japan: No we're not Poland: Can...can he do that? US and allies: I don't know, this has never really happened before

[@phillee2814]

Free Polish fighter pilot in the eastern theatre of war: "Eat lead"

[@grek9117]

🤣

[@VeganSemihCyprus33]

One of the most important videos on the internet: The Connections (2021) [short documentary] 🔥

[@WaterShowsProd]

It did happen another time, and in the same war. Field Marshal Phibul Songkram, dictatorial Prime Minister of Thailand, declared war on The United States, but instead co-revolutionary/constitution-drafter Pridi Bhanomyong coordinated with The U.S. to back the Serithai ("Free Thai") underground, in order to disrupt Japanese operations, and prepare for a major push against The Imperial Japanese Army from their base in Sri Lanka, which became moot when The United States secretly developed a single bomb that could level an entire industrial city.

[@phillee2814]

@@WaterShowsProd So not a refusal to accept the declaration, but a less direct and very efficient approach to answering it.

[@1Arrowkill1]

I can't believe how close Poland and Japan were. I would have thought I would have read about this somewhere before now.

[@bestGaming132]

The time I discovered Japan was allied with Germany I was confunsed because of this

[@Admiral45-10]

Yes, and it actually has longer history than this. For example, Japan sold weapons to Polish workers in 1905 revolution and supported independence movement. Interestingly, even Italy was really close to Poland and admired its people. It's really sad the gang couldn't get together...😔

[@nasis18]

Ikr.

[@marcinkrz3140]

Apparently Poland was one of the countries that helped Japan during disasters in 1995 and 2011 And one of the big wigs in Polish solidarity movement (guys who opposed communist government) was from Japan (Yoshiho Umeda)

[@LMB222]

Now I understand the unusual interest in Japan by some prewar Polish scientists. One actually went there and described some remote minorities in Japan. Privately he was the brother of prewar President.

[@Negitorodondesu]

I am Japanese, but I did not know that Japan and Poland had such a close relationship. Thank you for the good video!

[@memensziom2846]

Read about Bronisław Piłsudski. He was a brother of polish leader and he was making a historical records of Japan local nations, like Ainu. Very interesting fun fact for either Polish and Japanese. :)

[@Poegim]

Well bro, its funny due to war beetwen Poland and Japan over in 1957 :D and there was 0 war losess for all the time.

[@LastDrakkar82]

Cheers, from PL😊

[@gibkijasiu]

I love Japan ❤ Greetings from Poland

[@thegovtdoesntcareaboutyou]

Nihon ga suki desu

[@JanKowalski-nn2fk]

It's worth mentioning that the Poles were allowed to settle Manchuria by Japan, while there was no Poland on the maps and the city of Harbin which has a population of almost 5 million was created by a Pole in 1898 (Adam Szydłowski) who was the city's first president.

[@tedmccarron]

The "city's" first mayor.

[@timothymclean]

@lati long Nationality and citizenship are often considered to be the same thing, but former citizens of a conquered nation are unlikely to agree. Most will identify with the conquered country over the conquerors. Also: Ethnicity is a thing.

[@vulthurmir2478]

@@timothymclean as a Pole, it doesn't matter how many times they'll shell our buildings, how many Polish flags they burn, how much land they'll mud, how many of my kinsmen they'll murder, how many of our books and records they'll burn, I'll always have a silver eagle on a white-red crest in my heart.

[@Litwinus]

Nie wiem na ile to prawda,ale mój pra pra dziadek Trzaskowski służył w mandzuri jako tłumacz,fajnie by było mieć dojścia do jego historii.

[@JanKowalski-nn2fk]

@@Litwinus na kanale Irytujący Historyk masz materiał o Polakach z Mandżurii.

[@singami465]

Also worth noting that before Poland gained independence after WW1, Polish revolutionaries were seeking to create a Polish army in Japan, in exchange for intelligence related to Russia. However two different parties (Nationalists and Socialists) appeared in Japan at the same time, both trying to persuade the government to NOT support the other one, so nothing came out of it. They did exchange intelligence though, which was how the spying alliance between both countries begun.

[@yarpen26]

Many fail to appreciate just how fierce the rivalry between nationalists and, let's call 'em "social democrats", was in Poland in the early 20th century. And contrary to the popular myth, it persisted all throughout WWII and even long afterwards, when their squabbles in exile concerned nobody. It was similar to what's happening today, even though the past resentment was more based on personal ambitions rather than a wider front of a culture war that we're seeing now.

[@kingace6186]

Very informative. Thank you.

[@vibovitold]

@@yarpen26 You must be aware that those "social democrats" (surely meaning Piłsudski's camp - who else) shut democracy down in 1926, installing a military dictatorship? I can't quite put my finger on it, but I can't help feeling there's something about this that doesn't exactly fit with what "democrats" are supposed to be (social or otherwise).

[@yarpen26]

@@vibovitold Hence the inverted commas. Besides, they only ever referred to themselves as "Pilsudskists" or, later, "sanationers", and they were really a big tent populist movement, leaning towards fascism in the latter 1930s. I just didn't want to make stuff more confusing than it needs to be. At any rate, however, most of them did start out as part of the revolutionary left (curiously enough, it used to be the left that was most oriented towards armed struggle for independence, whereas the right, at least in the Russian partition, was mostly resigned to collaboration with the Tzar, until the bolshevist revolution, that is).

[@piotrb4240]

REgain independence, REgain. Poland existed as a state since at least 966 (first recorded proof of effectively applying regulations to the entire country by the prince) until 1795.

[@fenderski1234]

As for the spying - when Wehrmacht took Warsaw, and wanted to intercept Poland’s Military Intelligence documents, Japanese diplomats from the Embassy were first on the spot and took them, later on returning them to the Polish Government in exile. Poland’s history is crazy!

[@dallarian8687]

It's even more hilarious if you look at it through prism of German-Japan alliance, as in recently published video by Grzegorz Bobek "Why Alliance of Germany and Japan DIDNT MAKE SENSE" Made me laugh hard.

[@bruhbruh-us6gl]

It's funny how Imperial Japan cared more about Poland and the Polish people than the Allies did. Sort of in the same way Italy threatened war with Germany over the Anschluss of Austria, while the allies did nothing.

[@thepny_chasseur_de_tricera5361]

@@bruhbruh-us6gl there is a difference between some minor action and litteraly host and give gun tank and plane to the government in exile

[@bruhbruh-us6gl]

@@thepny_chasseur_de_tricera5361 Mussolini mobilized the bulk of the Italian army and set them on the Austrian Border, ready to move in and defend against the German army, while also reaching out to Britain and France to create a formal alliance for the specific purpose of defending Austria and stopping German expansion. However, Britain and France refused this offer, and Mussolini, knowing his troops couldn’t defeat the German army, had no choice but to simply accept the Anschluss of Austria.

[@chlorhydrate2317]

@@bruhbruh-us6gl do you have a link ? Seems interesting

[@txs3627]

Poland declared war because of the alliance treaties and the response of Japenese prime minister was “We do not accept Poland’s challenge. The Poles, fighting for their freedom, only declared war on us under pressure from the United Kingdom.” which was true and on paper state of war that existed 16 years since 1957

[@theprofessional155]

Japan supported Polish uprisings against the Russian empire in 1905 during the Russo Japanese war . Many Poles celebrated the Russian defeat because eastern Poland was under Russian control. The Japanese also took in hundreds of Polish kids that were imprisoned in Siberia during the Siberian intervention in the 1920s. These were Polish families that were deported to Siberia by the Russian empire and stranded there during the civil war . The Japanese described Poland as an honorable nation . However though it’s important to note even though the Japanese empire was kind to Poles they were very cruel to other peoples . The Japanese committed horrible atrocities against many nations in east Asia and POWs. I think the relationship between Poland and Japan wasn’t necessarily that they liked each other but that they both had hostile relations with the Russian Empire and Soviet Union like you said.

[@valkku5213]

You sure explained that like your name

[@XZ1.]

"What's up, guys, how is everyone doing? It's professional here. Today I'll show you guys how to destabilize your neighboring countries in GTA Online"

[@travelleryu]

As if other empires are benevolent

[@anon_148]

The Japanese Empire was...LE BAD to their enemies!!!! Wow crazy who would've thought

[@littlekuribohimposte]

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend"

[@AmethystTheFoxx]

I didn't even know Poland and Japan were friends, there's so much to learn in such short videos!

[@Longshanks1690]

I wouldn’t say “friends” as much as that guy who appears on your timeline every now and then but he says some stuff you agree with and you think he’s cool but neither of you pay each other much attention otherwise.

[@quigonjinn3567]

cuz we have the "same" flag only different format, or in other words "I am confusion!"

[@vattghern257]

in 1901 in Warsaw, known polish collector and art critic organized japanese art exhibition. His name waas Feliks Jasieński and one of his nicknames is "Manggha" you can quickly assume what this means. While Americans become weebos after ww2, we were long before in 1900's

[@VeganSemihCyprus33]

One of the most important videos on the internet: The Connections (2021) [short documentary] 🔥

[@II__argo__II]

Go read the wiki article about Japan-Poland relations and the Polish govnerment-in-exile for some more really interesting info about this!

[@Swat_Dennis]

I never knew that you could say "no" to a declaration of war

[@bestGaming132]

"Hey Austria I declare war on you" "No, go away, Prussia!"

[@scotandiamapping4549]

You cant, Japan doing that changed nothing, but then again the declaration itself was mostly a formality in the first place

[@gilbert8162]

@@scotandiamapping4549 cue whooshing sound.

[@Gettles]

You can say no to anything. It just becomes inadvisable when the country declaring war on you have a military that can invade you.

[@ecurewitz]

Learn a new thing everyday

[@Gingerbreadley]

When Japan fought Russia in 1905 the poles in Russia offered to rebel to distract Russia. Japan turned them down but gave them a bunch of guns.

[@randomasshole4249]

why does that sound so funny.. JP: here kid, have this cool gun

[@antuha-cs4ie]

Love to Japan from Poland 🇯🇵❤🇵🇱

[@pancytryna9378]

UwU

[@ShadowkeeperTei]

Nice try, Todd. I'm not buying another copy of Sky- *Downloading - 47%* Damn it.

[@MarScbl]

love form Poland to Japan

[@patrickohooliganpl]

🇵🇱❤🇯🇵 together forever!!!

[@jacobwong2230]

兄弟から姉妹へ bracia siostrom From an American

[@CosmicCreeper99]

Wow! I feel like literally nobody knows the facts that Japan and Poland of all countries had good relations and Germany’s invasion of Poland could’ve really soured relations with Japan!

[@Dourkan]

The enemy of my enemy is my friend

[@uwu_senpai]

Yeah and China and Germany had good relationship until Japan invaded in 1937. Hitler informally supported the chinese until 1941. During the battle of Shanghai the chinese elite troops were equiped with german weapons.

[@VeganSemihCyprus33]

One of the most important videos on the internet: The Connections (2021) [short documentary] 🔥

[@InfernosReaper]

It's almost as if Japan shouldn't have even bothered allying with Germany in the first place.

[@dondajulah4168]

​@@astolfofansunny4047 Japan had opportunities in the Pacific and South Asia if GB and France were tied down fighting Germany. They also both were opposed to the USSR until Germany signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and then Japan got spanked by the Red Army in Mongolia while Germany was planning to invade. As the video stated as well, acknowledging the DOW would have meant implicit recognition that a Free Polish government existed which would not have gone over well with Germany. Regardless of their prior friendly relations, the rejection of the DOW probably had more to do with maintaining good relations with Germany than with the Poles.

[@jordengg3629]

I can only imagine how it happened “Hey we declare war on you” “Nah we’re good” “Oh…. Umm, ok then”

[@anthonyfarrell7720]

Dad: "Son, what did you learn today?" Son: "Japan declared peace on Poland in 1957." Dad: "I think that's enough internet for today son."

[@antonimichera4750]

Interesting fact: Bronisław Piłsudski was a renown anthropologist who studied Ainu people in Japan and he was also a brother of Józef Piłsudski - a Polish independence leader and dictator in the years 1926-1935.

[@dachu7505]

He is a hero bro

[@gtw1200]

Fun fact: The japanese goverment even put a memorial of Bronislaw Pilsduski in Japan because he was the first person to translate the language spoken by the Ainu tribe and also by preserving their culture.

[@Student-w-Podrozy-TRAVEL]

Dictator sounds really bad. He was Marshall of Nation. Poles wanted him to lead the country. Hitler was waiting for death of Piłsudski to attack Poland.

[@tomaszniemy6066]

Also, Bronislaw's wife was Ainu.

[@berlineczka]

Bronisław was also close friends with Bronisław Malinowski, the founding father of modern anthropology. They exchanged hundreds of letters, which were published a few years back. A fascinating read.

[@aminadabbrulle8252]

"W nadziei na trwały dobrobyt i przyjaźń obu krajów."

[@anonimowamalarka]

Kocham ❤❤❤

[@Jeff_Reyx]

Wróg mojego wroga jest moim przyjacielem

[@BartlomiejDmowski]

Amen

[@Nietabs]

Kocham

[@Losowy]

Pa pa

[@galatheumbreon6862]

I found it charming that Japan still cared a lot about Poland, and even protested when Germany conquered it

[@3st3st77]

They protested Germany supporting the Soviets. I don't think the Japanese cared too much about Poland.

[@Soleks100000]

Meanwhile, Hungary, also a German ally, in september 1939 declared that they would not take part in the invasion because Poland and Hungary were friends(and they still are).

[@jirachi-wishmaker9242]

Literally, Nazis with China Imperial Japan with Poland

[@yarpen26]

All this talk about friendships between states fails to get the basic point that it's very easy to be buddies as long as you don't share a border. The only reason why Poland opted for Japan instead of, say, China, was because China was perceived as too weak against Russia and the alliance was forged _solely_ in common defiance of the USSR. Nothing more. From the very onset of post-WWI Polish independence, everybody knew that sooner or later Germany would ally with the USSR against Poland (it was actually Hitler's rise to power that blinded the Polish elites to this threat due to his rabid anti-communism so they thought the Weimar-era danger to be over) so the only sound course of action was for Poland to get Russia an Eastern foe on its own, someone to distract it with. Hell, in the '80s, there were some half-hearted attempts to get cozy with China on the very same basis: Eastern deterrent for Russia. However, Poland's endeavors to place a friendly army on the other side of Russia failed once again. That's why Poland is so militant about its NATO membership: the US is quite simply the only alternative left.

[@anderskorsback4104]

Well, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact really caused a rift between Germany and Japan. Before it, Japan was very much up for invading the Soviet Union together.

[@Xoruam]

Another thing is that Poland has been training Japanese radiooperators and cryptologists. If you look into Jan Kowalewski, he was the person responsible for breaking Soviet cyphers back during the Polish-Bolshevik war of 1919-1920. Japan found some cyphered messages in the USSR, which they couldn't break, and though initially they were _vehemently_ against it - believing that their grand empire wasn't about to rely on a country that was "created" a few years prior - eventually they gave into the proposition made by Japanese ambassador in Warsaw, who was friends with Kowalewski. Polish cryptologists dealt with the cypher in like a week or so, which spurred Japan to invite Kowalewski to Tokyo, and later Poland started sending their officers to teach Japanese cryptologists how to deal with Russian cyphers.

[@dtikvxcdgjbv7975]

Xoruam, that means that Poles are the authors of Japanese scientific miracle in 2nd part of 20th century!

[@FuneFox]

This channel should really make a video on the Polish-Bolshevik war.

[@xFurashux]

As a Pole my respect for Japan increased for not recognising our communist government for years.

[@wederMaxim]

But you're all right now! Isn't that right? Everything is so cool that the government does not even blame the past and Russia for the problems... wait....

[@mif4731]

​@@wederMaximof course we blame Russia for the past...

[@Tmb1112]

@@wederMaxim it's always been Russia's fault, so why wouldn't they blame Russia? And Russia still hasn't changed, so...

[@mehornyasfk]

Poland: I declare war on you, Japan! Japan: No. Poland: Understandable, have a nice day. And thus, they lived happily ever after, giving birth to Greenland in the process.

[@FirstnameLastname-kn5sw]

Vexological

[@aayushagarwal4138]

Wait wha-

[@typicalperson6389]

HuH?

[@michaelj.caboose3187]

Hol' up

[@sebsebski2829]

w u t???????

[@waltski4375]

Child: "I learned a really quirky thing about WW2 today." Parent: "It involved Poland, right?" Child: "How did you know?" Parent: "When I hear quirky and WW2, more often than not, it involves Poland."

[@ComissarYarrick]

Well, I personaly would use word "tragic", but the rest checks out

[@WysokieSwiatlaFlupy]

​@@ComissarYarrick "Dad, today I've learned about corporal Wojciech the freaking bear, who drunk beer, smoked cigarettes and wrestled with soldiers. They can make drunkard out of anything, truly tragic..."

[@drill_don684]

@@WysokieSwiatlaFlupy "Yeah murdering of literal milions of civilians was pretty bad and all but have you heard about the bear in polish army? WW2 was so funny"

[@moscuadelendaest]

@@drill_don684 seriously?

[@DaviHorner]

@@WysokieSwiatlaFlupy The best part is that apparently, that is the 3rd time this happened, I still couldn't find any information about the 3rd one outside a comment on youtube, the 1st is from WW1 and there's a memorial to the bear in a zoo on Scotland.

[@cooldownboi3890]

Germany: Declare war on Poland! Hungary: No 🗿 Romania: No 🗿 Japan: No 🗿

[@adamantolski4065]

Here's a story I once heard from one of my elder relatives: During the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, you could go to a cinema in Poland to see a Russian Film Chronicle informing the population of the Russian Empire how the war is going on. This is becouse Poland was part of the Empira back then. Polish people would go the cinema wearing japanese headbands and shout "banzai" in their seats whenever they heard about Russian losses.

[@may-ky6jl]

😂😂 Sorry , Just that you made me chuckle at scenery of the movie.

[@PJH-vd7ve]

It's worth noting that by openly rejecting Poland's delcration of war, Japan recognized our continued existence despite full occupation by Germany. Japan and Poland were always allies because of Russia. WWII was literally the only low point and I'm glad that Japan rejected our delaration.

[@ondank]

"The only low point" Yeah, but as far as low points go, it was about as low as the Mariana trench.

[@sebsebski2829]

@@ondank Well.... come on.... yes

[@DoctorDeath147]

@@ondank not even low at all. As the video stated, the Polish and Japanese didn't fight and continued to spy on the Soviets

[@Luboman411]

Wasn't there also a Japanese diplomat in Poland and the Baltic nations that gave out Japanese visas willy-nilly? The bravery of this one Japanese diplomat rescued tens of thousands of Poles, Latvians and Jews who were headed straight to the concentration and death camps. I bet the Japanese government tolerated this only because he helped Poles for the most part.

[@bubbledoubletrouble]

@@Luboman411 Chiune Sugihara was posted in Lithuania, and if by “tolerated” you mean “asked him to resign”-ostensibly because of layoffs-sure. Pretty odd for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to apologize to his family in 2000 simply for laying him off, though.

[@yuvalharel3537]

The writing on Poland gravestone ' again Really ' killed me

[@JakieToJestPojebane]

There are cultural similarities between Poland and Japan. Both countries adopted the culture of their warrior class as their national identity, the samurai in case of Japan and the nobility (szlachta) in case of Poland. That might explain why the Japanese referred to Poland as "an honorable nation" or "samurai nation."

[@RiczardGW]

Z tym, że szlachta nie miała krzty honoru.

[@cetus4449]

@@RiczardGW Przestań pluć na Polaków, postsowiecie.

[@cetus4449]

To prawda. Dopiero lektura książki "Katana i Karabela" W. Winklera mi to intrygujące zjawisko uświadomiła. Na pewno znasz tę książkę.

[@denkigama5331]

@@cetus4449 przecież nie pluje na Polaków. Szlachta doprowadziła do rozbiorów.

[@vibovitold]

@@denkigama5331 bardziej magnateria niż szlachta. czyli mówiąc współczesnym językiem - oligarchowie. którzy byli zwykłemu szlachcicowi równi wyłącznie w teorii (podobnie jak dziś miliarderowie są tylko teoretycznie równi - w świetle prawa - drobnym przedsiębiorcom). zresztą feudalny i raczej przestarzały ustrój Japonii też okazał się dla niej niezbyt korzystny, dostali przyspieszoną i brutalną lekcję modernizacji.

[@Luboman411]

Wasn't there also a Japanese diplomat in Poland and the Baltic nations that gave out Japanese visas willy-nilly? I forget his name, but Israel has made this guy one of their "Righteous Among The Nations." The bravery of this one Japanese diplomat rescued tens of thousands of Poles, Latvians and Jews from certain death in the Nazi concentration and death camps. I bet the Japanese government tolerated this wayward diplomat for so long only because he helped Poles for the most part.

[@aleksandarvil5718]

Chiune Sugihara, Japanese Empire's Vice-Consul in Kaunas, then-capital of Lithuania [INTERWAR PERIOD]

[@lusciouslocks8790]

The Japanese government did not “tolerate” him. He himself said afterwards he thinks they probably didn’t even really know what he was doing. He was given explicit orders to NOT forge visas when he asked and he said “fuck it, I’m doing it anyways”.

[@Luboman411]

@@lusciouslocks8790 The Japanese government did tolerate it because the visas Sugihara issued were meant for travel to Japan (through the USSR). The Japanese allowed these refugees into port cities like Kobe and Fukuoka by their thousands for transit to third nations despite their "faulty" visas. If they didn't tolerate this, they would've completely closed off Japan to all these refugees, citing invalid visas signed by Sugihara. They didn't. So clearly this was allowed because of Japanese goodwill toward Poland and Polish neighbors like Lithuania. As for Sugihara, he was punished because there's nothing more shameful in Japanese culture than to rebel against your bosses. Sugihara had to pay a steep, painful price for that.

[@8ig0r86]

Japan: *rejects a war declaration* Any other country that's ever been invaded: "My goodness, what an idea. Why didn't I think of that?"

[@malachiomeletoe4320]

Best comment so far

[@Royale-Thalia]

Nah we try,didn’t work for Belgium

[@susangoaway]

Another fun fact is that the Piłsudski family name lives on in Japan, due to Józef Piłsudski's brother emigrating to Hokkaido

[@cetus4449]

Bronisław Piłsudski was an ethnographer. He conducted research on the Ainu culture on the island of Hokkaido. One of the effects of his work are unique sound recordings recorded on 100 wax rollers. He settled in an Ainu village, fell in love with an Ainu woman, Chufsanma, officially married her and had a son and daughter. He was friends with the Japanese writer and poet Shimei Futabatei Futabatei recalled that Bronisław Piłsudski was an eccentric with a good heart who excitedly emphasized at every step that he had to do something to help Ainu.

[@agatasobczak802]

Był zeslancem-więźniem politycznym

[@rogerkeleshian2215]

They once referred to Poland as a "Samurai state".

[@fernbedek6302]

Poland: “This means war.” Japan: “Have you had a snickers?”

[@maddrone7814]

Poland: I’m at war with Japan Japan: *Ive never met this man in my life*

[@jalawami]

Suggestion for future topic: How did North Macedonia gain independence from Yugoslavia without any bloodshed while there was a war in every other part of Yugoslavia?

[@matthewboyle2641]

Slovenia also broke free peacefully I'm pretty sure. Also Montenegro but that happened a lot later

[@jalawami]

@@matthewboyle2641 sorry, but no. There was 10 day war, but Yugoslavian government didn't really commit to it and gave up pretty soon. Montenegro on the other hand stayed in the Yugoslavia until Yugoslavia transformed into FR of Serbia and Montenegro, so it can't be really be considered as gaining independence from Yugoslavia

[@Toonrick12]

Didn't Slovenia break away without a war? As for why, I assume that North Macedonia wasn't considered to be "Yugoslavian" or in other words "Serbian" enough to be worth fighting over for. Compare that to Bosnia and Croatia which WHERE part of core Yugoslavia. Lastly, Bulgaria might of pressured Belgrade to let the Macedonians go or else it would of joined the dog pile of countries that were supporting the new independent states.

[@VeganSemihCyprus33]

One of the most important videos on the internet: The Connections (2021) [short documentary] 🔥

[@bluemoondiadochi]

@@Toonrick12 yea, well, it was easy for Slovenia to do since it had Croatia as a buffer state. Serbian-led yugoslav authorities projected power from Serb-majority regions within Yugoslavia, and you had a lot of those bordering (and also inside) Croatia. but what bordered Slovenia was just Croat-populated areas which were hostile to the central government, so there was no feasable way to project power into Slovenia without pacifying Croatia first.

[@captainjames8799]

Poland and Japan being Allies is like those sitcoms where a new character is introduced yet we are supposed to act like he’s always been there

[@DualChart]

That’s 70s show

[@yibithehispanic]

Poland can make allies and friends in the most unimaginable places of the world

[@ahnafusaid8028]

This is exactly the problem for Poland. While had allies in the weirdest places their immediate neighbour were their 1 enemy

[@carltonleboss]

Never knew Japan and Poland had such a close relationship between the wars

[@brucenorman8904]

Turkey had an even longer friendly relationship with Poland even though their armies fought each other on several occasions. When Russian, Prussia and Austro-Hungary partitioned Poland in 1795, turkey sealed the Polish embassy but never closed it and never recognized the dissolution of the Polish State.

[@jnow7112]

They were saparated by only 1 country tho.

[@Micha-ge3ws]

@@jnow7112 go to school

[@cybernetic-ransomware1485]

And still has.

[@ksr7765]

@@Micha-ge3ws 🤡

[@KoRbA2310]

If someone is interested how Poland was viewed by Japanese government you can read a book called Bushido: The Soul of Japan written by Nitobe Inazo

[@run2fire]

Dziękuję. Will check out

[@fatalmokrane]

It was just a circumstantial ally agaist the USSR empire, nothing more. Stop with the bullshit. If poland was in place of Korea, japan would've invaded it.

[@TheKaczmarr]

@@Mk84903 from other comments I assume it's about the "Samurai Nation" part of the book

[@yk32b0]

It's a bit more complicated. You'd be hard pressed to find any mention of Poland in Bishodo: The Soul of Japan when reading it in English. It was first published in 1900 in the US and relies entirely on comparisons between Japanese and western culture/history/philosophy. You could interpret it as a propaganda piece for the west, aiming to present a more familiar, westernized face of Imperial Japan and declaring its superiority to other nations in Asia (wonder where could this be going). What did happen is, the book was translated to Polish and published in 1904 in Lwów and this edition starts with a special preface by Nitobe for Polish readers. In it the author mentions his voyages to Poland, admires Poles as a 'chivalrous nation', also draws out other interesting comparisons, emphasizing similarities between the Polish and the Japanese. As far as I know this preface was never translated to English but keeps getting referenced, because of the 'samurai/chivalrous nation' part. I wouldn't go as far as interpreting Nitobe's piece as the view of the Japanese or their government on Poland, which didn't even exist as an independent state at the time it was written. It was, in all likelyhood published this way in order to destabilize the Russian Empire, an enemy in the Russo-Japanese War started in 1904. The book is still interesting with or without this context, I definitely recommend it.

[@Xtrems]

@@yk32b0 I've spent the last hour searching for that preface and finally found it. I'll put a part of it through google translate for others here "In the moment of having the privilege of speaking to such a brave and chivalrous nation as the Poles, I feel a pleasure akin to that of a visit of a friend coming from distant lands. I was lucky to twice come into contact with the land of the old state of the Bolesławs, Batorys and Sobieskis, and each time, for the second time moreso than the first, the impressions I had previously received while reading the patriotic story of Kościuszko and Dąbrowski and the no less patriotic songs of Niemcewicz and Mickiewicz grew even more intense. A nation so strongly attached to its past, that surrounds it's fatherland with such a passionate love, and endowed with such masculine virtues, with such a rich history, has to find many points of contact with us. And yes, even our words, which at first glance you would think could come from some barbarian jargon, will find, after clarifying their meaning, the equivalents in your dictionary and parallels in your history. Words such as «d a i m i o» and «s a m u r a i» may reveal to the Polish ears their proper content and importance, when we compare them to the Polish «c a s t e l l a n s» and «s t a r o s t s». Similarly, the story of the «F o r t y - s e v e n r ō n i n" will acquire the proper meaning and poetry only when you tell Polish readers that it is as dear to our hearts, as the fates of the «B a r C o n f e d e r a t e s» are to theirs. The true meaning of the word "Y a m a t o" will strike your ears with a pleasant sound, if you at the same time remember the name "S a r m a t i a" that is dear to you. I am well aware of all these and far greater difficulties which the translator has to overcome."

[@VoxPopuli666]

Call me a dummy, but I had no idea Poland shares such a strong relationship with Japan. Now I totally understand why so many Japenese are eager to learn Polish. May our friendship last until the end of time!

[@joeyjojojrshabadoo7462]

As diplomatic tactics go, saying the declaration of war was made under duress and therefore invalid is a good one. Gives both nations a decent 'out' to just ignore it.

[@julianbrelsford]

Not sure they needed an excuse... Could have said "I'll for sure plan come fight you at a place to be determined and a date to be determined after I get some army units available AND the logistical capacity to transport & support them for a war that is 24000km away by the most efficient shipping route.

[@davidconstantin4012]

Here's a fun fact! During the Nazi occupation of Poland, a Japanese Diplomat tried to save some Polish people from persecution.

[@bartomiejzakrzewski7220]

it is not fu fact, it is honorable fact

[@wirezd4279]

The Germans does the same for Chinese civilians a year ago in 1938

[@Hand-in-Shot_Productions]

I do not remember the diplomat's name, but I have heard of him! Maybe later, I will do some research and edit the comment to include some more information. For now, thanks for the comment!

[@graceneilitz7661]

A German diplomat did the same with the Chinese. Showing that Germany and Japan were not really ideological allies.

[@davidconstantin4012]

@@graceneilitz7661 Germany was a Nationalist-Socialist state, who opposed monarchism. While Japan was a state ruled by the military, while there being a rivalry between the navy and the army. But in general, Japan was pretty much a Monarchy. Only thing that made them allies was their enemies and the militarism

[@kaanyasin3733]

"We declare war" "No" *Gigachad music*

[@Remington510]

The twisted relation of Poland USSR Japan gets even weirder if you get to know that Joseph Piłsudski's older brother, Bronislav got sentenced for partisan activity under Russian Empire's occupied Poland and a plot to assasinate the Tzar, Lenin's brother was part of the plot (Aleksandr Ulyanov). Bronislav got exiled to Sakhalin and later moved to Hokkaido, where he studied and documented Ainu people, natives of Hokkaido and created many language dictionaries. When the Russian-Japanese war broke out in 1906 he befriended a japanese writer and created an association for Japanese-Polish friendship which [in the end] led to the first cultural exchanges between Poland and Japan :D Yea, a bit late, but keep in mind that Japan was an isolationist country for centuries, and when they opened up, Poland was already off the maps until 1918 - so only the following year Poland and Japan were finally able to establish diplomatic relations in official capacity.

[@sambmortimer]

"We hereby declare war on Japan" "No" "Understandable, have a nice day"

[@drew413]

Can you imagine Poland, having been ground zero for WW2, with all their suffering and death, only for no one to recognize their government any more once the war ended?

[@paulusillyriusiudathaddaio2530]

Yeah, we have been pretty much sold to stalin despite actively fighting for the allies through the entire war and on every front in europe

[@spacemanspud7073]

It's worse the more you read about it. Like, the new government started executing polish resistance members for one.

[@dwarow2508]

@@spacemanspud7073 Ah you mean like the old one executing Ukrainian civilians and banning their language?

[@felipea1399]

@@paulusillyriusiudathaddaio2530 tbh its better than starting another massive conflict after WW2 ended. A lot of the world thought that the allies and soviets would go to war during Stalin's last years

[@melvinencinascabrera4897]

The same hapenes in korea, there was a goverment in exige in china but both the US and USSR ignored it because influence

[@pilifhunter4864]

Fun fact: fighter ace Witold Urbanowicz was the only polish soldier who fought against Japan. He volounteered the Flying Tigers in 1943.

[@ComissarYarrick]

Well, he and also few thousands of Poles enlisted in many US armed forcces :P .

[@zepter00]

@@ComissarYarrick rather few dozens thousends were citiznes of USA and mostly had not Polish citizenship.

[@gottjager760]

More significantly, some 273 Free Poles served with the Royal West African Frontier Force (Gold Coast Regiment, Nigeria Regiment, Sierra Leone Regiment and Gambia Regiment), who intern served in Burma with the 81st and 82nd West African Divisions.

[@dachu7505]

Mf that's the generic name for a ace pilot in HOI4

[@SaberTI]

Poland has a very interesting history. Is one of those few nations nobody can really be mad about or can find anything really bad in their history to mention.

[@bartswitalski]

Just one of many things: enslavement in all but name of vast masses of Poles, Lithuaninas, Ukrainians, Byelorussians, etc ... via serfdom There are no saints in this world

[@Vatras888]

Hmm... If you realy want to you will find. We treated badly Ukrainians almost for all our history. We were antisemitic (as whole Europe) but still... What else... In 20' we wanted to have colonies. We wanted to buy Madagaskar from France. We partitioned Czechoslovakia with Hitler in 38 and... Yes that would be all. I think.

[@dariuszblack7956]

@@Vatras888 about Ukraine and cossacs. Did you know how taxes were lowered for then? How many were treated as legal nobles? Only thing done was magnats works to get rich at expense of Ukrainian people. Even forced turning to catholic faith was done by Ukrainian Noble convert.

[@Vatras888]

@@dariuszblack7956 They were mostly treated as sub humans. Otherwise they would not rebel

[@dariuszblack7956]

@@Vatras888 Rebels. Did you know most famous uprising were created because wife of Chmielnicki cheated him with Polish Noble and he lost also much money? Second uprising was about tax raising to level of others provinces? Only legal reason for discontent was political decision to minimize number of sossacks nobles because they got titles for military services. Rest was instigated by Russia and Tatars.

[@ZWIREKiMUCHOMOREK]

Cieszę się, że powiedziałeś iż Niemcy i Rosja wspólnie najechały Polskę! Brawo za szerzenie prawdy historycznej.

[@pangranacik7011]

I'll be honest, this was the weirdest piece of historical information I've seen about my country. Never heard any of these in the past, I thought my country wouldn't have anything to do with a random island on the pacific ocean, but it's certainly one of the coolest things I've heard in a while. Like out of nowhere Japan protested in our favour and sold us guns in the past, supporting our cause.

[@tropicalfruit4571]

It's sad how limited our history lessons were and focused on remembering names and dates rather than actual history. But hey, at least we have updated the events of the past now to teach them on history lessons :')

[@FreddyFazbears0_0]

@@tropicalfruit4571 Yeah. I also hate that our history is mostly centerned about ourselfs. I would love to learn some Asian history, but nahh, polska gloria or some shit.

[@koraptd6085]

Japan = random island in the Pacific lol Wydaje mi się, że oni znaczą o wiele więcej niż my i to tak od czasów reformacji Meiji xd

[@pangranacik7011]

Przeczytaj ten komentarz jeszcze raz, zwróć uwagę na moje zadowolenie tą informacją i pozytywnym przesłaniem komentarza. Nie chce wszczynać wojny w komentarzach, bo to fakt że Japonia była jest i prawdopodobnie będzie o wiele większa od Polski na scenie międzynarodowej. Było to tylko moje przypuszczenie perspektywy przeciętnego polaka wczesnego dwudziestego wieku na temat Japonii

[@maras3naraz]

@@pangranacik7011 całkiem niedawno Kaczor albo Pinokio o tym gadał. Oczywiście wybiórcza i jej środowiska to wyśmiały. Taki mamy klimat.

[@alder2460]

Even more to it, during war, Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara in Kowno was issuing visas to Jewish refugees to help them escape occupations through Japan, saving thousands of lifes. Many of those stayed in Japan, and even when Germany demanded to give them up, Japan refuses.

[@timmccarthy872]

Yeah but that was in Lithuania dog

[@vibovitold]

There's this cute anecdote I once read in a foreword to the Polish edition of Philip K. Dick's "The Man in the High Castle". I believe it was in the translator's foreword (Jęczmyk's, if I'm not mistaken). According to it, the Japanese authorities ask the rabbi - who was naturally a community leader among the refugees trying to get asylum - a simple question: "why do the Germans hate you so much?" And the rabbi comes up with just the right answer on the spot: "Germans hate us because we're Asians" :) The asylum was granted.

[@MJ-uk6lu]

It's not Kowno, it's Kaunas

[@typhoon353]

@@MJ-uk6lu It is Kowno and Wilna will be Polish also

[@MJ-uk6lu]

@@typhoon353 Poles didn't occupy Kaunas so fuck calling it Kowno.

[@davidodonovan1699]

Wow. My mind is sort of blown. I presume around 90% of us that watched this also had no idea Polish - Japanese relations was a thing at all back then. Like that spy network makes perfect sense, but still wow.

[@drsolfernus8699]

Our nations still maintain friendly relations; maybe not in a political sense, but rather in the social and cultural spheres. Sophisticated Japanese tradition and fascinating history are very popular in Poland, besides ... Japanese never showed us disregard nor contempt, as the anglo-saxons do on every opportunity.

[@richardsantosgarcia8972]

This sounds like the plot of one of those friendship beats all odds kind of anime XD *I know it's not your fault Poland, you're still my friend!* -Japan, probably.

[@jeanvonestling7408]

"Again, Really?" - made me lol like many other such small things in those videos. And kudos for presenting Polish military uniform.

[@emperornapoleon6204]

I love tidbits like this - your channel at its finest!

[@HiekerMJ]

I just love the newspapers you create; shown for less than a second but I always pause and at least one giggle out of what I read.

[@MuNu_XiPi]

Poland: *We declare war on you* Japan: _No_ Poland: *Understandable. Have a great day.*

[@maxkennedy8075]

Imagine if Stalin just said “no” to Hitler All the Germans would just stop and go home

[@kindlingking]

@@uglarthenosmart4573 germans should've said "no, go away" to Hitler and prevented the whole thing

[@yarpen26]

Hitler only ever issued a declaration of war once, against the US. Stalin did so twice, against Bulgaria and Japan. Both men remain largely uncredited for laying the foundations for a war that is not really a war, just an "intervention" or "special military operation".

[@gamerdrache6076]

isn´t like germany had allies

[@vibovitold]

Meaning Stalin would get to invade first, and the Soviet Union would have probably reached the Atlantic shore, the entirety of Germany, Italy, France etc. becoming Soviet republics. Such larger, more resourceful USSR might have persisted to this very day instead of collapsing in the early 1990s.

[@kingace6186]

You better believe I search that quote up SO damn fast. (1:33) I honestly wouldn't be surprised if that was something that Theodore would state with a straight face.

[@kugelblitz5812]

Ironic also that the Germans had a close relationship with China; the Reichswehr and Wehrmacht supplied and trained Chinese nationalist forces in the 30's before the Tripartite Pact with Italy and Japan was signed. Many in the Wehrmacht and German foreign ministry still considered China an ally even after the Japanese alliance was signed.

[@dtikvxcdgjbv7975]

And then they abandoned China... No wonder that they lost the war.

[@deadby15]

Seemingly alot of Chinese men still like the Geman military. Also, Germany, along with France and Russia pressured Japan to return the Shan Dong Peninsla to China.

[@ericthegreat7805]

I like your profile picture.

[@KostitosConQueso]

- Poland: "1-2-3-4, I declare a formal war." - Japan: "No."

[@mikicerise6250]

Japan: "1-2-3-4, you don't have a naval corps."

[@stefanschleps8758]

Love this channel. Funny, informative, and concise. Keep up the good work.

[@highmarx2404]

Your videos are cool, learning history from you is incredibly enjoyable

[@Betha783]

At 2:43 I noticed that pre-1939 Poland looks just like a vertically flipped version of Hokkaido in northern Japan.

[@MoonlightBelladonna]

I know quite a bit about the second world war but I never knew about this. Great video, I love learning more about this era of history.

[@frutson]

Bronisław Piłsudski, interwar Poland's leader's brother was involved in the plot to assassinate the Russian Tsar. He was exiled to Sakhalin, he started studying the Ainu people there and in Hokkaido, finally settled there, married an Ainu woman and had children with her. To this day his descendants live in Japan. PS Golden Kamuy is a great manga and anime.

[@dtikvxcdgjbv7975]

Wow! Bolek and Lolek anime!

[@sw-reload9232]

Now I want a vid about why the allies abondaned the polish goverment in exile. I never thought about it but it just seems sad for those brave soldiers who thought they were liberating their homeland

[@BelgianProblem]

Because the USSR occupied Poland and planned to install a puppet government either way.

[@countsudoku6305]

its simple: they just didn't cared, l they cared about was to not anger russia at the moment, so they sold poland

[@tedbed1389]

That's 'real politik' for you my friend. This very conundrum is a basis for modern polish martyrology - when one likes to emmerce himself in it, from time to time.

[@cool2martini]

Poles were abandoned because of stalin-cccp. Operation Unthinkable was last hope for Poles, but it was left only on paper.

[@kingt0295]

@@countsudoku6305 do you really think Poland was worth nuclear war

[@sheepproductions7943]

I love how in his videos History Matters presents topics that are difficult to dive into in his simple format, presenting it in this way makes it really easy to understand and take that information and remember it. So History Matters=S tier channel

[@Theology.101]

“Nah.” - japan

[@noob7721]

lol

[@brendonganga7499]

You didn’t finish the video before commenting

[@Theology.101]

@@brendonganga7499 i didnt, i commented the second i saw the title because i thought it was funny

[@LittleGibler]

"Fight me!" "no"

[@peterj5083]

Japan has the Samurai and Poland has the Winged Hussars !!! Part of the reason why the Japanese have an affinity towards Poland is because of Chopin, a son of Poland. They love his music.

[@vladschannel6302]

Keep up with the good work!!

[@INecr0]

Poland: We're at war. Japan: No. Poland: Understandable, have a great day.

[@_Adie]

Well, I'm Polish, and nobody ever taught me that in any of my history classes. I'd never fail that test, man. Poland and Japan were homies? That's so cool.

[@arcie3716]

I didn’t even know that Japan and Poland were close. Love how they bonded over hating the same enemy 😭

[@SkaerKrow]

These are the videos that absolutely fascinate me. Such small wrinkles in history that are so interesting and under documented.

[@zlosliwa_menda]

Ah, there's no truer friendship than the one built upon espionage against a mutual enemy.

[@MaxBurnHeart]

It's a very interesting topic. I'm from Poland, and in school, there's not much talking about it. No real mention of Polish and Japanese relations, it's only mentioned that we have very good relations with Hungary. In fact, Japan is often presented in a negative way. As in, they are remembered as the ones who allied with Germany during WW2 and provoked the poor USA into WW2. You would think that if we had such good relations, it would be reflected a bit. Then again, Turkey is also presented in not a good way, which is... just wrong. They were genuinely good for us after Poland lost their independence for 123 years. I'm a big fan of history, so I knew about their true relationship, but it's confusing why schools try to hide that. I know that schools aren't the best source of valid information (which is quite ironic), but giving false information to force us into thinking it's the truth is idiotic.

[@drill_don684]

You got a bad teacher I have never heard that unprovoked Japan attacked innocent USA , or that Turkey was bad whatever you mean. But I don't think you should be proud of those friendships, Imperial Japan was just asian nazis with all the murdering and stuff they did in China and the Ottoman Empire was just weak shadow of the once great nation

[@Litwinus]

It was enough to be interested in history to know it. As for the Japanese, the fact that they were close to us does not change the fact that they were more brutal than the Germans.

[@Jaime_Protein_Cannister]

Japan is usually presented very neutrally , MOSTLY as the agressor against US... But In fact the focus is more on the twin Nuclear bomb attack and Personally when learning about Japan's role in the ww2 the Nukes are most memorable. I remamber questioning as a kid , why is such a Nation (that nukes the innocent) still considered as "good side"? Lol

[@TotalWar01]

James Bissonette, constantly bringing me answers to questions I haven't thought of yet :)

[@oenrn]

Every invaded country in history: "Wait, that was an option?"

[@ar0naimstar]

"Dear Poland, *NO* your dear friend, Japan"

[@Pinefenario]

This is why we watch this channel! Well done! 😃👍

[@Chief4Army117]

2:08- This is why I love this channel so much!

[@andrewruddy962]

Thank you, I have learned something that I never could have imagined about the Japanese Polish relationship during WW2.

[@nmf0]

This is insane, I'm Polish and I never knew any of this.

[@mattatack2the25]

This is now one of my favorite episodes! The jokes landed great and I love the fact that Poland and Japan were friends and sought their best to keep their relationship admits a world war.

[@Vincent.Morreale]

I did not know that, very good video once again!

[@ihavetowait90daystochangem67]

They were probably just confused with the flag as the Indonesian one looks similar and they’re currently invading them

[@madensmith7014]

Indonesia had the Dutch flag at the time but lmao they could only handle one white and red flag at a time

[@alh6255]

Indonesia used a different flag at the time. In turn, the current flag of Poland is white and red, but the arrangement of colors is opposite to that on the Polish flag.

[@darreljones8645]

The Japanese guy "spying" with a fake nose at 1:06 is one of the funniest images History Matters has ever done, especially since his characters usually don't have visible noses.

[@kittyn5222]

"I HATE YOU" "no you don't polen-kun"

[@Eggnog18]

The newspaper articles in these videos are always funny, but this video's was doubly hilarious. Great job!

[@HeadsFullOfEyeballs]

Japan just wasn't in the right headspace to take on the emotional labour of going to war with Poland at that time. Understandable.

[@STCloud-xg6zc]

*USA sends nukes at Iran* Iran: "No." *nukes do a u-turn*

[@The_Otto_Von_Bismarck]

How is the US or Iran related to this video?

[@oliversherman2414]

I love your channel keep up the great stuff!

[@HarvestStore]

Great video.

[@itself227]

Probably the greatest WW2 story I never knew