Talk:AB-Aktion
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
AB-Aktion is currently a World history good article nominee. Nominated by Daniel Case (talk) at 22:21, 24 September 2025 (UTC) An editor has indicated a willingness to review the article in accordance with the good article criteria and will decide whether or not to list it as a good article. Comments are welcome from any editor who has not nominated or contributed significantly to this article. This review will be closed by the first reviewer. To add comments to this review, click discuss review and then edit the page. Short description: 1940 imprisonment and murder of civilians |
| AB-Aktion (final version) received a peer review by Wikipedia editors, which was archived on 19 September 2025. It may contain ideas you can use to improve this article. |
| This article is rated Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale. It is of interest to the following WikiProjects: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German AB Action operation in Poland
I have moved the article Außerordentliche Befriedungsaktion to German AB Action operation in Poland because English language translation of the corresponding German phrase better reflects the growing list of articles devoted to similar subjects, i.e.:
- Expulsion of Poles by Germany
- Pacification operations in German-occupied Poland
- World War II atrocities in Poland
- Nazi crimes against ethnic Poles
- Operation Tannenberg
- Expulsion of Germans from Poland after World War II (etc.)
If you have any questions regarding the above name change please don’t hesitate to ask. --Poeticbent talk 03:33, 6 May 2007 (UTC)
- I believe the original German phrase within the English title will serve the article better, similar to Operation Tannenberg, Operation Sonderaktion Krakau, etc. --Poeticbent talk 19:04, 5 July 2007 (UTC)
Name
Wouldn't just AB-Aktion be sufficient? -- Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus | talk 18:18, 27 November 2007 (UTC)
- Please elaborate. "AB-Aktion" is not an English phrase. However, if you'd like to recommend that the title be shortened somehow, perhaps Operation AB-Aktion would suffice, though it wouldn't be as descriptive. --Poeticbent talk 22:42, 27 November 2007 (UTC)
- Eighteen years later, this has been done. Daniel Case (talk) 18:51, 5 December 2025 (UTC)
WikiProject Military history/Assessment/Tag & Assess 2008
Article is accurate but needs better referencing
I've tagged it for more in-line citations.HammerFilmFan (talk) 09:50, 6 August 2014 (UTC)
"[...] often contested by other European historians who dismiss a similarity with the Katyn massacres." At least a source is needed; maybe also a few names of those European historians, and maybe also why there are no similarities with the Katyn massacre? Creuzbourg (talk) 17:00, 29 November 2014 (UTC)
Wehrmacht ?
Aktion
Reference to wrong Firlej
The reference to massacres in Firlej links to https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firlej, a village in Lublin voivodeship instead of https://pl.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firlej_(Radom), a Radom suburb in the Masovian voivodeship which does not have a corresponding article in English. 2A02:A311:4046:480:BC78:15A2:E1E4:911D (talk) 20:22, 13 April 2023 (UTC)
Peer review
German AB-Aktion in Poland
| This peer review discussion is closed. |
| This peer review discussion is closed. |
I've listed this article for peer review because earlier this year I translated the Polish article (an FA there) and expanded it per the tag that had been on it for years (actually, it's more like I used the Polish article as raw material ... it wouldn't be acceptable here as a word-for-word translation). Since so much of the Polish article relies on Polish sources that do not seem themselves to have been translated into English yet, this article is the first time, I think, that the details of this grim event have been published in English.
So, I am thinking about a GA nomination down the line with this.
Thanks, Daniel Case (talk) 21:40, 14 July 2025 (UTC)
- Hi! In my first read the article's all well. I just worked on some WP:Oxford comma and copyediting. Wanted if ask if you use an article before Standgerichten? I was a bit confused in the sentence living for a time as a monk... - is this Hudal or Wachter? RFNirmala (talk) 06:42, 22 August 2025 (UTC)
- @Daniel Case pinging just in case RFNirmala (talk) 23:20, 22 August 2025 (UTC)
- Yes, I’m still in Kenya (for one more day, per the note at the top of my talk page), but I saw this.
- It seems like the standard practice with using German words in English is not to use the article. I’ll take a look at that sentence and change it as needed. Daniel Case (talk) 07:34, 23 August 2025 (UTC)
- OK. I recast the sentence, making it a compound predicate so it's clearer that Wachter is meant. Daniel Case (talk) 18:32, 28 August 2025 (UTC)
Nominator: Daniel Case (talk · contribs) 22:21, 24 September 2025 (UTC)
GA review
- This review is transcluded from Talk:AB-Aktion/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.
Reviewer: Borsoka (talk · contribs) 12:32, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
GA review – see WP:WIAGA for criteria
- Is it well written?
- A. The prose is clear and concise, and the spelling and grammar are correct:
- B. It complies with the manual of style guidelines for lead sections, layout, words to watch, fiction, and list incorporation:
- A. The prose is clear and concise, and the spelling and grammar are correct:
- Is it verifiable with no original research, as shown by a source spot-check?
- A. It contains a list of all references (sources of information), presented in accordance with the layout style guideline:
- B. Reliable sources are cited inline. All content that could reasonably be challenged, except for plot summaries and that which summarizes cited content elsewhere in the article, must be cited no later than the end of the paragraph (or line if the content is not in prose):
- C. It contains no original research:
- D. It contains no copyright violations nor plagiarism:
- A. It contains a list of all references (sources of information), presented in accordance with the layout style guideline:
- Is it broad in its coverage?
- A. It addresses the main aspects of the topic:
- B. It stays focused on the topic without going into unnecessary detail (see summary style):
- A. It addresses the main aspects of the topic:
- Is it neutral?
- It represents viewpoints fairly and without editorial bias, giving due weight to each:
- It represents viewpoints fairly and without editorial bias, giving due weight to each:
- Is it stable?
- It does not change significantly from day to day because of an ongoing edit war or content dispute:
- It does not change significantly from day to day because of an ongoing edit war or content dispute:
- Is it illustrated, if possible, by images?
- A. Images are tagged with their copyright status, and valid non-free use rationales are provided for non-free content:
- B. Images are relevant to the topic, and have suitable captions:
- A. Images are tagged with their copyright status, and valid non-free use rationales are provided for non-free content:
- Overall:
- Pass or Fail:
- Pass or Fail:
Image review
File:Polish hostages preparing by Nazi Germans for mass execution 1940.jpg: could the cited source be identified more specifically (by adding at least the publisher and the page) at Commons?
- OK, there's File:Polish Hostages preparing in Palmiry by Nazi-Germans for mass execution 2.jpg|another version of it which is a bit grainier but bigger. Since it has more extensive information on two books where it was published, including the page number ("s. 200") for one, and publishers ("Książka i Wiedza", i.e., "Books and Views"), I hope that will suffice.
File:Krüger, Himmler, Frank, Bühler.jpg: could the source be more specific (for instance, by adding an identifier or a link) at Commons?
- Hmm ... I had nothing to do with uploading it; I assume maybe the Polish National Archive might have something. I'll check.
- Yup ... found the link here and added it at the image page on Commons.
- Hmm ... I had nothing to do with uploading it; I assume maybe the Polish National Archive might have something. I'll check.
File:Bruno Streckenbach.jpg: source is missing and a copyright problem is indicated at Commons.Borsoka (talk) 12:47, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
- Looks the result of some volunteer scan-and-upload effort. I will see if I can find the original online. Daniel Case (talk) 06:59, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
- OK, I found the link to the Bundesarchiv page and updated everything. Daniel Case (talk) 07:25, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
- Looks the result of some volunteer scan-and-upload effort. I will see if I can find the original online. Daniel Case (talk) 06:59, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
Source review
Bartoszewski: could you add an identifier (SBN, oclc or ISBN)?Biernacki: could you add an identifier (ISBN or oclc)?Mańkowski: could you add an identifier (ISBN or oclc)?Pietrzykowski: could you add an identifier (ISBN or oclc)?Radziwończyk: could you add an identifier (oclc)?Borsoka (talk) 12:47, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
Done This turned out to be easy to do. Another new thing I've learned! Daniel Case (talk) 06:40, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
Comments
- Trimm the lead section to address the issue the tag indicates. Borsoka (talk) 12:47, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
- Thank you for opening this review. Just to note: the sources and the images are pretty much imported from the Polish article, which of course doesn't excuse them from being held to our standards. So I will have to do a little work on them ... I hope I am able to address your concerns. Daniel Case (talk) 06:14, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
- When do you think you can address the issue indicated by the tag? Borsoka (talk) 08:05, 20 February 2026 (UTC)
- I am hoping to get that done this weekend. It's the most involved of the things you have asked me to do, so it would be easier to do it last (I am also working on another GAR, but that one will be taking longer. I believe I can finish this one first. Daniel Case (talk) 05:34, 21 February 2026 (UTC)
- When do you think you can address the issue indicated by the tag? Borsoka (talk) 08:05, 20 February 2026 (UTC)
- Thank you for opening this review. Just to note: the sources and the images are pretty much imported from the Polish article, which of course doesn't excuse them from being held to our standards. So I will have to do a little work on them ... I hope I am able to address your concerns. Daniel Case (talk) 06:14, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
I would introduce "History" section with one-two-three sentences about the Nazi occupation of Poland and Poland's position within the Reich in the period.
Done I decided it needed a little bit more than just "Nazi Germany invaded Poland in September 1939" ... a reader might want to know why, so I added some more stuff about how both Weimar and Nazi Germany had resented that the Second Polish Republic was ever even created and recognized. The writing was the easy part ... adding the sources took a lot more time.But now I can focus on trimming down the intro, finally. Daniel Case (talk) 07:57, 23 February 2026 (UTC)
- OK ... cutting the intro down more went easier than I thought it would. Do you think we can remove the tag now? Daniel Case (talk) 07:26, 24 February 2026 (UTC)
Their ideology... Whose?Borsoka (talk) 08:23, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
Fixed Daniel Case (talk) 05:22, 20 February 2026 (UTC)
@Borsoka: OK ... I have addressed all these issues if you can come back and take a look at it again. Daniel Case (talk) 02:29, 11 March 2026 (UTC)
Thank you for pinging me. Please find my comments below.
Since the end of World War I, influential Germans in the military and civilian leadership of the Weimar Republic had regarded the establishment of the Second Polish Republic out of the eastern territory of the former German Empire to be one of the chief wrongs perpetrated against the defeated Germans by the Treaty of Versailles. Rephrase for improved flow.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 05:28, 15 March 2026 (UTC)
Their views were shared by Vladimir Lenin... Quite dubious. Did Lenin regard the transfer of German territories to Poland as one of the principal injustices of the Treaty of Versailles?
- Took that first part out ... Daniel Case (talk) 05:28, 15 March 2026 (UTC)
A link to Free City of Danzig would be more helpful than a link to Danzig.
- Added. Didn't know we had that, given how contentious that question has been here. Daniel Case (talk) 05:28, 15 March 2026 (UTC)
- ...some assistance from the Soviets... Be more specific and add a link to Soviet invasion of Poland.
- Added (I had intended to do this ... I'm surprised I didn't!) Daniel Case (talk) 03:40, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- ...present and former military officers... I would delete the adjectives "present and former".
Done Daniel Case (talk) 03:40, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- ...for this sort of effort I would delete the text.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 03:41, 17 March 2026 (UTC)
- This was the Intelligenzaktion, a plan to eliminate Poland's intelligentsia and leadership in the western and central part of the present Polish state, territory annexed by Germany after the invasion, realized by Einsatzgruppen and Volksdeutscher Selbstschutz, a militia raised from the ethnic Germans in Poland. Trimm the text for improved flow.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 05:17, 20 March 2026 (UTC)
- ...(save those whose skills were temporarily needed for civil administrative purposes)... I would split this text into a separate sentence.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 05:21, 20 March 2026 (UTC)
- In general those actions were less intense and less lethal, sparing most of the Catholic clergy and larger landowners. Rephrase for improved flow.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 05:21, 20 March 2026 (UTC)
- With international attention diverted from Poland by the German invasion of France, Nazi German authorities thus decided the time was ideal for another anti-intellectual purge, this time to focus on the areas within the General Government. Rephrase for improved flow.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 05:04, 22 March 2026 (UTC)
- The Intelligenzaktion was continued by the German AB-Aktion Operation in occupied territories of central Poland. Repetition of info mentioned in the previous section.
- Removed. Daniel Case (talk) 05:07, 22 March 2026 (UTC)
- Both murder operations were conducted in part according to an "enemies of the Reich list" prepared before the war by members of the German minority in Poland and printed ahead of time by the German Intelligence as Sonderfahndungsbuch Polen (Special Prosecution Book-Poland). The info is also in the context of the previous section.
- So I should move it back into that section? Daniel Case (talk) 05:08, 22 March 2026 (UTC)
- ...its name from the words for "extraordinary pacification" in German Rephrase for improved flow.
Done Daniel Case (talk) 02:43, 23 March 2026 (UTC)
- AB-Aktion or Aktion AB? Italicised or not?
- ..., which he described as a duty participants owed to the Reich Delete.
- Through AB the Germans sought particularly to intimidate the whole population as they further eliminated those they believed could lead the resistance. Rephrase for improved flow. Borsoka (talk) 05:58, 11 March 2026 (UTC)
- OK. I will be working on these in the next couple of days. Daniel Case (talk) 06:40, 12 March 2026 (UTC)




