# What was the purpose of the 'General Government' in Poland during WWII? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 13, 2010, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-purpose-of-the-general-government-in-poland-during-wwii/539260 "2010-05-13T02:42:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![GregH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@GregH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GregH)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-purpose-of-the-general-government-in-poland-during-wwii/539260/1 "2010-05-13T02:42:01Z")
Being a WWII novice, I’m trying to understand why Poland was partitioned the way it was in Sept/Oct 1939. Due to the secret clauses of the Mol/Rib Pact, Russia got a large chunk of Eastern Poland. Germany’s share was partly annexed by The Reich while from the rest was formed the General Government, headed by Frank. Why did Hitler decide to structure Poland this way? What were the ostensible reasons and what were the real reasons (if the two vary)? Why didn’t he annex his entire share of the country? Thanks for your help, Greg ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-purpose-of-the-general-government-in-poland-during-wwii/539260/2 "2010-05-13T02:58:09Z")
To generally govern Poland. The thing is, most of Poland was filled with Poles, and Hitler didn’t want Poles polluting his Germany. So, he annexed the “German” parts, like West Prussia, Silesia and Posnan/Wartheland, and kicked the Poles out. The “Polish” parts of Poland were turned into the General Government, where the Poles, under the kind and magnanimous rule of Governor Frank, could fufil their natural destinies of serving the German state in factories and farms until they did the decent thing and died out as a people. At which point, sometime in the future, German settlers would occupy the land and it would become a full part of Germany and take its rightful part as a home of the Aryan people. ---
**Author:** ![GregH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@GregH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GregH)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-purpose-of-the-general-government-in-poland-during-wwii/539260/3 "2010-05-13T03:15:43Z")
A wonderfully concise and informative answer… thanks! -Greg ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-purpose-of-the-general-government-in-poland-during-wwii/539260/4 "2010-05-13T03:17:28Z")
What Captain Amazing said. The General Government was basically a colonial administration.