09/04/2026
This striking photograph captures a German propaganda reenactment at the Polish–Free City of Danzig border in 1939, showing German uniformed men pushing aside a Polish border barrier. The scene was intended to create a powerful visual message about the opening of Germany’s invasion of Poland and the dismantling of the Polish border.
However, there is an important historical detail behind this famous image: the photograph does not show the real events of September 1, 1939. It was a staged propaganda photograph made on September 14, 1939, after the German invasion had already begun. The carefully arranged scene was designed to present the German takeover of the border in a dramatic and symbolic way.
The image has since become a reminder that photographs from wartime propaganda must be examined carefully. What appears to be a spontaneous moment of history can sometimes be a deliberately recreated scene created to influence public opinion.