Posted on 03/02/2018 8:33:49 PM PST by NorseViking
WARSAW, Poland — A Polish official said Friday that Germany could owe his country $850 billion (690 billion euros) for the damage it inflicted during World War II.
Arkadiusz Mularczyk is leading a team in the parliament that is assessing potential reparations to Poland. Germany killed 6 million Polish citizens and caused great material losses during its nearly six-year occupation of Poland.
“We are talking about very large, but justified amounts of compensation for war crimes, for destroyed cities, villages and the lost demographic potential of our country,” Mularczyk said on Polsat News, a private broadcaster.
Last year, Poland’s ruling conservative nationalist Law and Justice party said the nation deserves compensation for its losses and set up a team of lawmakers under Mularczyk’s leadership to estimate how much is due.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
/thank you for those examples. I didn’t know the first one
I don't think that was that thought process. 1870 was an opportunity by Bismarck to create the German Empire under Prussian rule by tossing off France (Austria had been defeated earler)
Technically speaking France was the best placed to create a Europe-wide hegemon. It was the richest, most populated country and it was the land of Charlemagne, of Clovis and was an integral part of the Roman landscape -- especially since spain was under Muslim rule.
England and France due to their antagonisms with each created launched themselves as the first modern states.
In fact, if Richard the Lionheart had survived and conquered his supposed suzereign the King of France and replaced him, we could have seen no England, no English (since Old English was until then losing to Norman-Gallo "French"), no "French" (as French is the language of Paris.
we might have seen a Angevine state including Great Britain, France and conceivably intermarried with the Spanish houses.
I’m reading a fascinating series “Mariusz’ mules” that is based on Caesar’s Gallic wars. It shows the other side of the wars. Fictional of course, but well researched. I recommend it!
Not quite trivia — well researched. Thank you!
I read a book on Franco-German relations prior to WWI and came to the same conclusion I came to on reading the history of the English-Irish “Troubles.” That conclusion was, “A pox on both their houses.”
Germany and France deserved each other.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.