OCTOBER 1 - DAILY CHRONICLES OF HISTORY

OCTOBER 1

1938

At 11:45 am on October 1st, the Czechoslovak foreign ministry called the Polish ambassador in Prague and agreed to Polish demands. The Polish Army, under the command of General Władysław Bortnowski, annexed an area of 801.5 km² with a population of 227,399 people. Poland occupied some northern parts of Slovakia and received  Zaolzie, as well as territories around Suchá Hora and Hladovka, Javorina, Lesnica, Skalité, and other very small border regions.  Meanwhile, Nazi Germany annexed Czechoslovakia into the Third Reich.  In an effort to spread the blame, the Nazi German propaganda machine accused Poland of being accomplices. (Editors note:  However, despite the appearance of collusion, Poland never collaborated with Nazi Germany.  Poland was the fourth largest ally in the war effort against the Nazis,  and the Polish armed forces had fought relentlessly against the Nazi Germans throughout the war.)

1939

The Battle of Wytyczno was fought between the forces of the Polish Border Defence Corps under the command of Gen. Wilhelm Orlik-Rückemann and the Soviet Red Army during the invasion of Poland.  Following the Battle of Szack on September 28, the Polish forces had crossed the River Bug.  On October 1 at 1:00 am a tank unit of the Soviet 45th Rifle Division attacked the Polish troops.  The Poles counterattacked with Bofors 37 mm guns firing at close range. The Soviets withdrew, having lost four of their T-26 tanks. But by daybreak, the Soviets returned with the majority of their units, and launched a frontal assault on the village of Wytyczno. But despite Soviet reinforcements, the Polish tabors placed artillery posts in the forest behind the village, by which they could hold onto their positions.   The battle resulted in Soviet casualties of 80 killed and 102 wounded, and Polish casualties of 200 killed and 467 wounded. At  9:00 am Polish artillery had no more than 60 shells remaining, and the howitzers had not more than 10 per barrel.  The situation was every more bleak as the Polish soldiers were weak and exhausted and unable to launch yet another attack.  Col. Nikoderm Sulik,  Commander of the Sarny Regiment, reported that the owing to the state of Polish defences, that the battle would end in a Polish defeat.  At 10.30 the Polish war council decided that the only option for his men to survive was to withdraw, divide the unit into smaller detachments and try to break through to the units of Independent Operational Group Polesie fighting nearby. At noon the Polish units were able to withdraw to the forests. Most of them joined the other Polish units.

1979

Pope John Paul II First Visit to the United States:  Pope John Paul II arrived in the U.S. launching a seven day pilgrimage that was unprecedented in history.  JP2 was the second Pope to visit the United States and met with President Carter. (The first Pope to visit the U.S. was Pope Paul VI, in October 1965 who met with President Johnson.)   The Pope's arrival was met with the kind of fanfare expected of a travelling rock star.  In fact, Time Magazine marked the occasion with a special issue of his visit, the cover which read, "John Paul Superstar".  Pope John Paul II visited six cities (Boston, New York, (and spoke at the United Nations),Philadelphia, Chicago, Des Moines, Washington)  and attracted throngs of Americans everywhere he went. In fact when he spoke at Madison Square Gardens, it was packed to overflowing. President Jimmy Carter welcomed him and spoke to him in the Polish language.