Editing Franz Halder (section)

=== Invasions of Poland and Western Europe ===

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27722, Franz Halder und Walther v. Brauchitsch.jpg|thumb|left|upright|alt=Photograph of Franz Halder looking at Walther von Brauchitsch who is standing to Halder's left as they study a map | Halder with [[Walther von Brauchitsch]] during the invasion of Poland in 1939]]
Halder participated in the strategic planning for the [[Invasion of Poland]]. His plans authorised the [[SS]] to carry out security tasks on behalf of the army that included the imprisonment or execution of Polish citizens, whether Jewish or [[gentile]].{{sfn|Megargee|2006|p=13}}{{efn|Many Polish troops and armed civilians were certain to wind up behind the German front lines...The Germans' approach to solving this problem, to which the idea of total war lent a kind of intellectual justification, was to counter any resistance with the utmost brutality, in the belief that they could cow the population into passivity and even, perhaps, collaboration. In line with that approach, on July 24, 1939, General Wagner, now the army's quartermaster general, issued a set of special regulations that authorized German troops to take and execute hostages in the event of attacks by snipers or irregulars. In some regions German forces were also to detain all Polish males – Jewish and gentile – between the ages of seventeen and forty-five as prisoners of war, whether found armed or not. And because front-line combat troops were in high demand, the army's leaders quickly decided to use SS and police units to augment their own forces for security tasks. Halder informed his subordinates on the general staff of such plans as early as April 1939, and the SS began putting together its preparations in early May.{{sfn|Megargee|2006|p=13}} }} On 1 September 1939, the German offensive began, resulting in declarations of war by France and the [[British Empire in World War II|British Empire]]. On 19 September, Halder noted in his diary that he had received information from [[Reinhard Heydrich]]. The SS were beginning their campaign to "clean house" in Poland of Jews, intelligentsia, Catholic clergy, and the aristocracy. Halder was aware of [[The Holocaust]] but did not object to the murders.{{sfn|Rossino|2003|pp=22,116,176}} He dismissed the crimes as aberrations and refused one general's request to pursue the SS and police perpetrators.{{sfn|Smelser| Davies|2008|p=58}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1971-070-61, Hitler mit Generälen bei Lagebesprechung.jpg|thumb|alt=Photograph of Halder standing on Adolf Hitler's left side looking at a map with four other officers | Halder (far right) alongside Hitler, 1940]]
At the end of 1939, Halder oversaw the development of the invasion plans of France, the [[Low Countries]] and the [[Balkans]]. During a meeting with Hitler on 5 November [[Walther von Brauchitsch]], the Army commander-in-chief, attempted to talk Hitler into putting off the invasion of France. Hitler refused and berated Brauchitsch for incompetence.{{sfn|Wheeler-Bennett|1967|p=471}} As a consequence, Halder and Brauchitsch discussed overthrowing Hitler because they feared the invasion was doomed.{{sfn|Wheeler-Bennett|1967|pp=470–472}} They decided against the idea.{{sfn|Wheeler-Bennett|1967|pp=471–472}} On 23 November 1939 [[Carl Friedrich Goerdeler]] met with Halder to ask him to reconsider his decision.{{sfn|Wheeler-Bennett|1967|p=474}} He refused, saying that Hitler was a great leader, and "one does not rebel when face to face with the enemy".{{sfn|Wheeler-Bennett|1967|p=474}} Halder's contemplation of resistance to Hitler owed more to political turf battles than it did to disagreement over the regime's racism and antisemitism.{{sfn|Smelser| Davies|2008|p=58}}

General [[Erich von Manstein]]'s bold plan for invading France through the [[Ardennes|Ardennes Forest]] proved successful, and ultimately led to the [[fall of France]]. On 19 July 1940, Halder was promoted to ''[[generaloberst]]'' (colonel-general) and began to receive [[Bribery of senior Wehrmacht officers|undisclosed monthly extralegal payments]] from Hitler that effectively doubled his already large wage. The payments helped ensure his loyalty to Hitler and reduced his qualms over sending millions of men to their deaths.{{sfn|Smelser|Davies|2008|p=62}}