GCSE History B Unit 1International Relations: Conflict and Peace in the 20th Century

Hitler’s foreign policy and the origins of the Second World

WarCourse Booklet

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Exam Board: Scheme of Work

Key issue: How did Hitler challenge and exploit the Treaty of Versailles 1933–March 1938?

Page number:

Topic:

Page 2 Hitler’s rise to power – February 1933-August 1934

Page 3 Hitler’s aims in foreign policyPages 4 - 5 The beginning of rearmament in Germany:

withdrawal from the Disarmament Conference 1933; non-aggression Pact with Poland 1934; reintroduction of conscription from 1935; Anglo-German Naval Agreement 1935

Pages 6 - 7 The return of the Saar, 1935Pages 8 - 10 The remilitarisation of the Rhineland 1936Pages 11 - 14 The Anschluss with Austria 1938

Key issue: Why did Chamberlain’s policy of appeasement fail to prevent the outbreak of war in 1939?

Page number:

Topic:

Pages 15 - 16 Reasons for and against appeasementPages 17 - 20 The Sudeten Crisis and Munich Agreement, 1938

Pages 21 - 22 The collapse of Czechoslovakia March, 1939, and the end of appeasement

Pages 23 - 24 The role of the USSR 1938–1939: the Nazi-Soviet PactPage 25 Poland and the outbreak of war

Hitler’s rise to power – February 1933-August 19341

27 Feb 1933 Reichstag Fire - the Reichstag building is set on fire. A Dutch Communist, van der Lubbe, is caught red-handed in the burning building.

5 Mar 1933 General Election – the Nazis win 288 seats in the Reichstag.

23 Mar 1933 Enabling Act - the SA (A military group the Nazi party formed in 1921) bully and force the other party’s in the government to vote for Hitler. The Reichstag votes to give Hitler the right to make his own laws.

26 April 1933

Local government is changed - the country is divided into 42 areas, which are each run by a Head Nazi. Hitler sets up the Gestapo to help him spy on the different areas.

2 May 1933 Trade unions are abolished and their leaders are arrested.

14 July 1933 Political parties are banned - only the Nazi party is allowed to exist. Hitler makes an agreement with the Pope who sees him as someone who can destroy communism. This agreement allows Hitler to take over political power in Germany as long as he leaves the Catholic Church alone.

24 April 1934

People's Courts - Hitler sets up the Nazi people's courts where judges have to swear an oath of loyalty to the Nazis.

19 Aug 1934 When Hindenburg dies, Hitler declares that he is jointly president, chancellor and head of the army – he is the Führer of Germany.

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Key issue: How did Hitler challenge and exploit the Treaty of Versailles 1933–March 1938?

Hitler’s aims in foreign policyMany of Hitler’s Foreign Policy aims had been set out in his book ‘Mein Kampf’ (My Struggle). Written while he was in prison in 1924, it set out Hitler’s political beliefs and aims in great detail.

His aims/beliefs included:

• Gain ‘Lebensraum’ for Germany: Hitler wanted to gain ‘Lebensraum or “Living space” for Germany. Hitler argued that Germany was overpopulated and had the ‘right’ to claim and conquer more land in Eastern Europe. This land would be taken from Slavic nations like Poland and Russia. Hitler believed that Slavs were ‘untermensch’ or ‘sub-human’, suitable only for enslavement by the racially ‘superior’ Germans.

• Destroy Communism : Hitler despised Communism and saw Communist Russia (the USSR) as a huge threat to Germany. He called for the destruction of Communism within Germany, but also made clear that the only way to defeat Communism was to defeat the USSR.

• Overturn the Treaty of Versailles: Hitler hated the Treaty of Versailles, which he believed had humiliated and weakened Germany. He described those who had signed the armistice with the allies in November 1918 as ‘November Criminals’ who had ‘stabbed Germany in the back’. He wanted to overturn the Treaty by re-arming and reclaiming the territory that had been lost.

• Claim or Re-claim ‘German’ Territory: Hitler though that all German speaking peoples (including those living in countries around Germany) should be part of a German Empire called the ‘Reich’. To achieve this, Germany would need to control all territory inhabited by German speaking people. This included land in France, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Austria and the Baltic states.

• Race: Hitler also set out his racial beliefs in great detail. He believed that Germans were ‘Aryans’ – a ‘master race’ who deserved to dominate weaker races. According to the anti-Semitic Hitler, the main enemies of the German people were Jews, who he said were conspiring to enslave and weaken the Aryan race.

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Hitler’s early successes and failures

The beginning of rearmament in Germany: withdrawal from the Disarmament Conference 1933, reintroduction of conscription

from 1935

In February 1932 the League of Nations Disarmament Conference began at Geneva. Sixty countries took part, including the USA and the Soviet Union. The League wanted all countries to give up aggression.

After Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in January 1933, he refused to accept any reductions in armed forces and claimed that since Germany was already disarmed, the other countries should follow its lead.

Hitler withdrew from the Disarmament Conference and also from the League of Nations in October 1933.

Eighteen months later, in March 1935, Hitler announced that he was going to ignore the restrictions on the German armed forces that had been imposed at Versailles, and re-introduced conscription. The League condemned Hitler’s action, but did nothing about it.

Reactions to German re-armament

BRITAIN - Many people in Britain, including politicians, believed that the Treaty of Versailles was unfair and that Germany had a right to defend itself. Britain therefore takes no action against Germany

FRANCE – The French felt threatened by German re-armament, and would have liked to see the Treaty of Versailles strengthened, and Germany punished. However, French leaders felt they could not act without British support.

RUSSIA/USSR - Communist Russia felt threatened by German re-armament, and joined the League of Nations as a result.

Non-aggression Pact with Poland 1934In January 1934, Hitler signed a 10 year Non-Aggression Pact with Poland, in which both countries agreed not to attack one another.

Hitler had two main reasons for signing the pact. Firstly, it made German foreign policy seem peaceful and reasonable, re-assuring the world that his re-armament

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programme was for defensive, not offensive reasons. Secondly, it weakened the alliance between France and Poland that had existed since 1921.

Hitler broke the pact when Germany invaded Poland in 1939.

Failed Anschluss with Austria, 1934Hitler wanted all German-speaking nations in Europe to be a part of Germany. To this end, he had designs on re-uniting Germany with his native homeland, Austria. Under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, however, Germany and Austria were forbidden to be unified. In an attempt to realise his goals, Hitler was determined to destabilise Austria and undermine its independence. His ultimate goal was Anschluss (union) with Austria.

The Austrian Chancellor, Dollfuss, tried to crack down the Austrian Nazi party, who he (rightly) suspected of plotting to help Hitler take control of Austria. Dollfuss banned the Nazi party.

In 1934, Hitler ordered the Austrian Nazis to create havoc in Austria. This turned into an attempt to overthrow the government. Chancellor Dollfuss was murdered but the attempted coup failed because the Austrian military intervened to back up the government.In 1934, Italy had an agreement with Austria that it would protect Austria from outside aggression. The Italian dictator, Mussolini, honoured the agreement and moved Italian troops to the Austrian border to deter Hitler from invading. Hitler was forced to back down – his first attempt at Anschluss had failed.

Anglo-German Naval Agreement 1935June 1935 the Anglo-German Naval Agreement was signed by Britain and Germany. This allowed Germany to build his Navy up to 35% of the British Navy, and have an equal number of submarines. This agreement replaced the restriction on Germany’s Navy that had been in the Treaty of Versailles.

There was also a feeling in some quarters in Britain that the Treaty of Versailles had been too harsh on Germany and that the time was right to loosen the terms as time had moved on and Europe had to live together. It was felt that this approach would satisfy Hitler and that Europe would benefit as Nazi Germany would have no reason to be angered or feel cornered by the old terms of Versailles.

However, although not stated in the agreement, Hitler rightly assumed that because he had agreed to limit his Navy, the British would now be willing to ignore his expansion of the German army and air-force.

As long as the British had naval supremacy, they did not see Hitler’s re-armament programme as a threat.

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The return of the Saar, 1935

From 1935, Hitler began to claw back the territory Germany had lost at Versailles.The Saar had a mixture of French and German citizens. Since 1919 it had been controlled by the League of Nations and the industry there had been run by France.In 1935 there was a plebiscite (a vote) to decide whether the Saar should be German or French.

The vote was by no means a certainty. Many anti-Nazis had fled to the Saar after 1933. Seeing what Hitler was doing in Germany. Communists and Social Democrats formed a 'united front' campaign to try to retain League of Nations status.

On the other hand, Saar Nazis were equally determined that the Saar should return to Germany. They formed a 'German Front' with the Catholics. Helped by the Saar police and the German Gestapo, they boycotted and beat up their opponents. The League knew what was going on, but it was afraid to stop the plebiscite for fear of causing Nazi riots.

 

In the end, 90% of the population of the Saar voted to rejoin Germany.

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How did the return of the Saar strengthen Hitler?

1. The result was, says one historian, 'the greatest triumph of the Nazis in a free election'. It demonstrated that Germans who lived outside Germany had shown the world that they hated the Treaty of Versailles and loved Germany more than they feared Hitler's regime.  It made it very hard for Hitler’s opponents to argue that the German people were not wholly behind him.

2. The result gave a massive boost to Hitler's prestige, and provided him with the moral authority and confidence to advance his demands for unity with Austrian and the Sudeten Germans.

3.  It showed the League was scared to confront Nazi violence. It confirmed Hitler’s belief that the League was weak, and would do little to oppose him.

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The remilitarisation of the Rhineland 1936

The Rhineland is the area of Germany between France and the river Rhine.

If Germany were to attack France, they would most likely move their forces through the Rhineland.

After the First World War, the Rhineland was made a demilitarised zone. This meant that no German troops were allowed to set foot there. This was part of the Treaty of Versailles, and it was also confirmed by the Locarno Treaty of 1925. This was to protect France from future German attacks.

While the League of Nations was busy dealing with the Abyssinian Crisis in March 1936, Hitler ordered German troops to re-occupy the Rhineland. Over

32,000 soldiers and armed policemen crossed into the Rhineland

He claimed that this was in response to the ‘Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance’ – a new Treaty between France and Russia designed to protect them from Germany.

This was a clear breach of the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Locarno. Britain and France would have been legally justified in imposing sanctions or taking military action against Germany.

The International Response

League of Nations : Condemned the action on the 14th of March – 1 week after event.

France : condemned the reoccupation and looked for Britain to back them in military action.

Britain: Issued a formal protest to Germany. Anthony Eden flew to Paris for talks to try and bring France round to Britain’s way of thinking i.e. avoid military action.

Why didn’t the British want to take action?

There was a strong pacifist movement in the1930’s, many thought “war was wasteful, costly and should be opposed” (Frank McDonough - Historian)

“The British Public didn’t care two hoots about German troops occupying their own territory” (Duff Cooper – British Secretary for War in 1935)

“Germany was only putting troops into her own backyard” (Lord Lothian – Conservative politician)

Many in British Public also believed Germany had “genuine grievances”. 8

There were some voices within British politics that were beginning to question Hitler’s actions and Britain’s response to them.

• Churchill was a ‘voice in the wilderness’ who suggested Hitler’s actions were ‘sinister’.

• Duff Cooper claimed “the Rhineland occupation had destroyed the basis of peace in Europe in one morning”

How did the re-militarisation of the Rhineland Strengthen Hitler?

1. It showed that France and Britain would not confront Hitler. Despite this blatant violation of the Treaty of Versailles, and despite the fact that German troops were not stationed on the border with France for the first time since 1918, Britain and France still took no action to stop Hitler. Hitler was becoming more and more convinced that no matter how aggressive his foreign policy, France and Britain would not stand up to him.

2. It led to an alliance between Germany and Italy. In 1936, the ‘Rome-BerlIn Axis’ established as alliance between the two dictators. In 1937, Italy joined the ‘Anti-Comintern Pact’, alongside Germany and Japan. The weakness of Britain, France and the League had led Mussolini to conclude that Germany was the best choice of ally for Italy.

3. It further weakened the League of Nations. What little credibility and prestige the League had left after the Abyssinian crisis was further damaged by its failure to act over the Rhineland. Part of the League’s covenant was to uphold the Treaty of Versailles, and yet the only consequence faced by Hitler was mild condemnation.

4. It gave Hitler the confidence to keep trying to meet his aims. The Rhineland was a massive gamble for Hitler. Had the French army intervened, the German army would have had to retreat and Hitler would have been humiliated. Instead, the gamble had paid off. This encouraged Hitler to take bugger risks in the future.

5. It boosted Hitler’s popularity and prestige in Germany. Most Germans were delighted that the Rhineland had been reclaimed without a shot being fired. Hitler seemed to be keeping his promises of breaking the Treaty of Versailles and reclaiming German territory.

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The Anschluss with Austria, 1938

Background

Hitler wanted to unify Austria and Germany (this is known as ANSCHLUSS, meaning union).

In 1934 Hitler was thwarted by Italian objections – they feared an enlarged Germany on their border.

Following the Rome-Berlin Axis of 1936, Italy and Nazi Germany became allies, so this obstacle was removed.

By 1938, Hitler was ready to launch his second attempt to achieve Anschluss.

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Events in Austria

The new Austrian Chancellor, Schuschnigg tried to preserve the country from German invasion by trying not to give Hitler an excuse for aggression. He tried to co-operate with Hitler as much as possible.Schuschnigg signed the German-Austrian Agreement of 1936. This pact recognised the independence of Austria but the price was that Austria's foreign policy had to be consistent with Germany's. The agreement also allowed Nazis to hold official posts in Austria. Schuschnigg hoped this would appease Hitler. He was wrong.In 1938 Schuschnigg visited Hitler. Hitler demanded that Nazis be given key government posts in Austria. Schuschnigg compromised and the Nazi party member, Seyss-Inquart, was made Minister of the Interior.Hitler ordered Austrian Nazis to create as much trouble and destruction as possible in order to put pressure on Schuschnigg. If Hitler could claim that Austrian law and order had broken down he could justify marching German troops into Vienna to restore peace - despite the fact that he was responsible for the chaos in the first place.

The Anschluss

Wednesday 9th March 1938

On the 9 March 1938, in a desperate act, Schuschnigg announced a referendum whereby the Austrian people would decide for themselves if they wanted to be a part of Hitler's Germany. Hitler was furious. If the Austrians voted against joining Germany his excuse for invasion would be ruined.

Thursday 10th March 1938

Hitler told his generals to prepare for the invasion of Austria. He ordered Schuschnigg to call off the referendum. Knowing he would receive no help from Italy, and that France and Britain would not interfere in Hitler's plans, Schuschnigg conceded. He called off the referendum and resigned.

The Nazi Austrian Interior Minister, Seyss-Inquart, was ordered by Hitler to ask for German help in restoring order in Austria.

Saturday 12th March 1938

German troops marched into Austria unopposed. Hitler now had control of Austria.

The International Response

France - French politics were in turmoil in March 1938. In fact, two days before Germany invaded Austria the entire French government had resigned. France was not in a position to oppose the invasion.

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A month later, Hitler held a

rigged referendum. The results showed

that the Austrian people approved

of German control of their country – 99.75 % voted to

unite with Germany. Austria

Britain - The new British PM, Neville Chamberlain, had a new approach to dealing with Hitler – ‘appeasement’. As such, with Chamberlain determined to appease Hitler, there was no political will to oppose Germany.

Furthermore, the British population were against the idea of another European war. The Anschluss was not seen as a threat to Britain and, as both nations were German-speaking, there was a sense that there was no good reason why Austria and Germany shouldn't unify.

Anti-appeasers, such as Winston Churchill, were alarmed by Germany's annexation of Austria. They believed that if Hitler had a true claim to Austria, he should have used negotiation and diplomacy rather than force.

How did the Anschluss with Austria strengthen Hitler?

1. It made Germany stronger. The Anschluss added seven million people and an army of 100,000 to the German Reich. Germany gained useful resources such as steel, iron ore and Austria's industries.

2. It overturned another section of the Treaty of Versailles, which had forbidden union between Austria and Germany.

3. It once again convinced Hitler that France and Britain were weak and would not interfere with his plans. They had taken no real steps to prevent the Anschluss. Hitler had gambled again, and won again.

4. Once again, Hitler’s popularity and prestige within Germany were boosted. Hitler’s promise to bring all German speaking people into the ‘Reich’ was being met, and the Anschluss had been achieved peacefully.

5. It demonstrated that the new alliance between Germany and Italy was working. In 1934, Mussolini had taken steps to prevent the Anschluss. In 1938, he had allowed Hitler a free hand in Austria

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A month later, Hitler held a

rigged referendum. The results showed

that the Austrian people approved

of German control of their country – 99.75 % voted to

unite with Germany. Austria

Key issue: Why did Chamberlain’s policy of appeasement fail to prevent the outbreak of war in 1939?

Reasons for and against appeasement

What is ‘appeasement’?To appease: "to try to conciliate or bribe (a potential aggressor) by making concessions, frequently with implication of sacrifice of principles"

In simple terms, to appease means to give in or allow someone to do something in order to satisfy them.

The policy of appeasement is closely associated with Neville Chamberlain who was Prime Minister of Britain 1937–40.

His policies towards Hitler’s actions in Europe are often seen as an important cause of the Second World War.

Background

By 1938, Hitler was already set on a path of expansion and re-armament.

He had broken the term of the Treaty of Versailles in 1936 when German troops reoccupied the Rhineland. Unification with Austria was achieved in 1938, also breaking the Treaty.

The British and the French had no acted against Hitler for various reasons (distracted by the Abyssinian Crisis, French political and military weakness, British public opinion).

However, under Neville Chamberlain, giving Hitler what he wanted became an official policy – that of ‘appeasement’.

Why appease Hitler?

Chamberlains logic was that Hitler had limited aims and that once these aims were met, Hitler would be satisfied and Germany would no longer be a threat to Europe.

Many of Hitler’s aims seemed reasonable to Chamberlain, as long as they could be achieved peacefully.

There were a number of strong arguments for appeasing Hitler, rather than risking a war with Germany:

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Neville Chamberlain Prime Minister of

]

However, with benefit of hindsight, it is clear that many of these arguments were flawed.

Hindsight means that because we know what happened next (i.e WW2), we are better able to judge and analyse historical events. It is important to remember, though that Chamberlain and other appeasers did not have this advantage, and were simply doing what they thought best at the time.

With hindsight, we now know that appeasement was a mistake (i.e. arguments against appeasing Hitler) such as:

The Sudeten Crisis and Munich Agreement, 1938

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Background

After the feeble British and French response to the Anschluss, Hitler decided that it was safe to press on with his expansionist foreign policy.

There were 3.5 million German-speakers living in the Sudetenland – the area of Czechoslovakia bordering Germany and Austria. Hitler now intended to add the Sudetenland to his German Reich.

However, there were a number of major obstacles preventing Hitler from achieving his goal.

Czechoslovakia was a strong Democracy under the leadership of Edvard Benes. Benes, and the majority of Czech people had no intention of handing the Sudetenland to Germany.

Czechoslovakia had a well trained, modern army. The Sudetenland contained a number of strong border forts. Czechoslovakia also contained a strong armaments industry. Many of the factories manufacturing weapons were in the Sudetenland.

Czechoslovakia also had international support. France had signed an agreement offering to help the Czechs if they were attacked. The Soviet Union (Russia) had also promised to help protect Czechoslovakia.

HOWEVER- In September 1938, the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain reached an agreement with Hitler that gave him everything he wanted.

The Munich Agreement handed over the Sudetenland to Germany, and the Czechs could do nothing about it.

Once again, Hitler had got what he wanted without a shot being fired.

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David Low, 8th July, 1938

The Sudeten Crisis – Timeline of EventsMarch 1938

In response to British fears about German intentions following the Anschluss, Hitler reassures by promising: ‘I give my word of honour that Czechoslovakia has nothing to

fear from the Reich’.

May 1938

Sudeten Nazis clash with Czech police and army. The Czech government claims that the Nazis are killing and kidnapping Czech citizens. Sudeten Nazi leaders accuse the

Czechs of repression and killing of German civilians.

May 1938

Hitler declares his support for the Sudeten Germans and pledges to protect them. He states that he is willing to go to war if necessary to end their mistreatment. In Britain,

some people begin digging air-raid shelters and buy gas-masks.

September 1938

As fears of war grow, Chamberlain addresses Britain over the radio:

‘How horrible, fantastic, incredible it is that we should be digging trenches and trying on gas masks here because of a quarrel in a far away country between people of whom we know nothing. I am myself a man of peace to the depths of my soul’.

15th September 1938

Chamberlain meets with Hitler in Berlin. Hitler states that he is only interested in parts of the Sudetenland, and then only if the Sudeten Germans vote to join Germany.

Chamberlain tells Hitler that he believes his demands are reasonable and that he will help to persuade the Czechs to accept them.

22nd September 1938

Chamberlain meets Hitler again. Hitler increases his demands, now saying he wants all of the Sudetenland. He claims that the Czech government is mistreating Sudeten

Germans and vows to ‘rescue them’ by October 1st. The British Navy mobilises as war seems imminent.

September 1938

Hitler makes a speech in Berlin:

‘The Sudetenland is the last problem that must be solved and it will be solved. It is the last territorial claim which I have to make in Europe. The aims of our foreign policy are

not unlimited’.

The Munich Agreement

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In a last ditch attempt to prevent war, Chamberlain flew to meet Hitler in Munich. Representatives from Germany, Britain, France and Italy met to hold a conference on the crisis. The USSR was not invited to attend, and the Czech representatives were not allowed to take part in the discussions.

At the meeting, Hitler repeated his demands.  Mussolini said that he had written down a ‘practical solution to the problem’.  In fact, the ‘practical solution’ had been drafted for him the night before by the German Foreign Office in Berlin.            Chamberlain and Daladier (the French Premier) accepted the Mussolini ‘compromise’. They gave Hitler everything he wanted.  

Although it was not actually signed until 1 am on 30th Sept, the Munich Agreement was dated 29th Sept.  It promised that the Czech army would pull back from the ‘German’ areas of Czechoslovakia by 10th October. The Agreement guaranteed the boundaries of the new Czechoslovakia, and Britain and France promised to support Czechoslovakia against future attack.              Two Czech representatives were allowed to sit in the room next door – this was the most Chamberlain could get Hitler to agree to.  The two men sat alone until 10 pm, when Chamberlain’s adviser Horace Wilson gave them the bad news. One of the Czechs asked whether Czechoslovakia could be heard – he was told: ‘if you do not accept, you will have to settle affairs with the Germans absolutely alone’.Hitler and Chamberlain issued a joint declaration that said: ‘We regard the agreement signed last night...as symbolic of the desire of our two peoples never to go to war with one another again....and we are determined to continue our efforts to assure the peace of Europe.”

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From left to right: Chamberlain, Daladier, Hitler, Mussolini, and Ciano pictured before signing the Munich Agreement, which gave the Sudetenland to Germany

Reaction to the Munich Agreement

Chamberlain returned to London with what he described as ‘a piece of paper’. Wild crowds cheered Chamberlain – ‘the man who gave me back my son’ one woman called him (meaning her son did not now have to go off to fight a war). Chamberlain said ‘…for the second time in our history, a British prime minister has returned from Germany bringing peace with honour. I believe it is peace for our time’, Winston Churchill called the agreement: ‘a total, unmitigated defeat’ and stated ‘you were given the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour and you will have war’.

The next day, the Czech Foreign Minister Dr Krofta met the British, French and Italian Foreign Ministers.  He said: ‘Today it is our turn, tomorrow it will be the turn of others’ and told them to get out.

How did the Munich Agreement lead to the outbreak of WW2?

1. Hitler had gambled again, and won again. His confidence was now sky-high, and he had the support and admiration of the majority of the German people. This encouraged him to take even further risks.

2. Hitler was now utterly convinced of the weakness of the Western democracies. After Chamberlain and Daladier had caved into his demands at Munich, he was convinced that Britain and France would continue to appease him rather than fight.

3. An important ally of Britain and France had been lost. The Czechs had been betrayed and were unable to defend themselves against further German aggression.

4. Germany was strengthened. Three million more Germans were brought into the Reich. The Czech fortifications and armaments industries also fell into German hands.

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The collapse of Czechoslovakia March, 1939The German Invasion of Czechoslovakia

Hitler threatened the Czechs with military action on several occasions after Munich. Finally he summoned the elderly Czech President Dr. Emil Hacha to Berlin. One account reports that Hitler reminded Hacha of the beauties of Prague, and told him what a shame it would be if the Luftwaffe had to flatten the ancient Czech capital. Hacha fainted, perhaps a minor heart attack, and had to be revived. Hitler demanded that the Czech lands be incorporated into the Nazi Reich as a "Protectorate". A broken Hacha telephoned Prague, ordering that there should be no resistance.

At 6am on 15 March 1939, German troops poured into Czechoslovakia. There was no resistance from the Czech army or people.

The British Reaction

Chamberlain announced the events to the House of Commons on 15 March 1939. Speaking in Parliament Chamberlain refused to call Hitler’s action ‘a breach of faith’, saying only that is was not in ‘the spirit of Munich’, and emphasising his determination to continue to negotiate with Hitler.In the rest of Britain, however, there was a violent reaction against Germany. In Parliament, the MPs reached ‘a pitch of anger rarely seen’. Many were horrified with the weak statements made by Chamberlain. Every newspaper except the Daily Mail condemned Germany. The British people seemed to have finally realised that Hitler could not be trusted.Facing public outrage and condemnation from even his own MPs, Chamberlain had no option but to abandon the policy of appeasement.

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The End of Appeasement - timeline

29 March The Territorial Army is doubled in numbers. 30 March Britain and France promised to give the Polish government 'all support in their power' if Poland was attacked. 25 April Parliament votes to spend £1,322 million on defence. 28 April Germany renounces the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934 and the London Naval Agreement of 1935.1 May The Military Training Act introduces conscription in Britain. 19 May Stalin suggests an alliance of France, Britain and Russia against Hitler. 11 August British politicians go to Moscow to make the alliance with Russia.

   

The role of the USSR 1938–1939: the Nazi-Soviet Pact

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Background

The USSR (sometimes called the Soviet Union, sometimes Russia), was a Communist dictatorship led by Joseph Stalin. Hitler had always been opposed to Communism, and before 1939, relations between Germany and the USSR were extremely hostile.

Prior to 1939, the leaders of Western Democracies such as Britain and France also had mixed feeling about Stalin and the USSR. Many British and French Conservatives believed that Communism was a much greater threat than Nazism, and some even believed that a strong Germany would help protect Europe from a Communist revolution or a Soviet invasion.

However, others believed that by working with Stalin, German aggression could be contained. In 1935, the USSR and France signed the Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance’, and the USSR was finally admitted into the League of Nations.

Negotiations between Britain and the USSR

After the German invasion of Czechoslovakia in March 1939, Neville Chamberlain realised that an alliance with the USSR might be the only way to halt Hitler’s aggressive foreign policy. In particular, such an alliance might deter Hitler from attacking Poland, which was likely to be his next target. Between March and August 1939, the British and the Soviets held talks to discuss creating such an alliance. However, by August 1939, the negotiations had failed.

Why did the negotiations fail?

•  Chamberlain did not trust Stalin, who was a Communist and a dictator. 

• The Soviets thought Britain wanted to trick them into war against Germany.

• Britain could not send troops to fight in Poland, so if Stalin supported Britain, he would end up fighting a war in Poland on Britain’s behalf.

• After Munich, Stalin was convinced that Britain would break its promise to Poland. He was convinced that Britain would leave Russia fighting Hitler alone.

The Nazi Soviet Pact (August 23 rd , 1939) In August 1939, Hitler sent Ribbentrop, a senior Nazi, to Russia. He offered a Nazi-Soviet alliance – Russia and Germany would not go to war, but would divide Poland

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Joseph Stalin

between them. Germany would allow Russia to annex Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

Stalin knew Hitler still believed that Hitler was planning to attack the USSR eventually, but believed that by signing pact, he would but himself time to prepare for war. Hitler had no intention of honouring the pact, but wanted to make sure that he did not end up fighting the Soviets when he invaded Poland.

Stalin had two choices: if he made an alliance with Britain, he would end up fighting a war with Hitler

over Poland. if he made an alliance with Germany, he would get half of Poland, and time to

prepare for the coming war with Germany.

Stalin chose the latter. On 23 August 1939, he signed the Pact with

Hitler.

Reaction to the pact

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David Low, 9th September, 1939

The British government had known about the Nazi-Soviet negotiations since the beginning of August but the Pact came as a complete surprise to the British public, who found it hard to believe that communist, Hitler-hating Russia had made an alliance with Nazi, Communist-hating Germany. Many people were shocked and frightened that the two most powerful dictatorships in Europe were now working together, (rightly) suspecting that it meant a war was imminent. Britain signed an official alliance with Poland on the 26th August 1939.

The day after he signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact, Joseph Stalin explained to Lavrenti Beria why he had reached an agreement with Hitler. ‘Of course, it's all a game to see who can fool whom. I know what Hitler's up to. He thinks he's outsmarted me, but actually it's I who have tricked him’.

How did the Nazi-Soviet pact lead to the outbreak of WW2?

1. It freed up Hitler to invade Poland. He now knew that he would not have to fight the USSR if he invaded.

2. It ended Britain's hopes of an alliance with Russia to stop Hitler. People in Britain realised that nothing would stop Hitler now but war. The British Government speeded up its preparations for war

3. It gave Hitler increasing confidence that he would be able to invade Poland without any action from Britain and France. He already considered the British and French to be weak because of the policy of appeasement – now they would be unable to do anything practical to help Poland if he attacked.

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Poland and the outbreak of war

After, the signing of the Nazi-Soviet pact, Hitler immediately put his plans for the invasion of Poland into action.

Invasion of Poland - timeline

At 6 am on 1st September Warsaw was struck by the first of a succession of bombing raids, while two major German army groups invaded Poland from Prussia in the north and Slovakia in the south. Air supremacy was achieved on the first day, after most of Poland's air-force was caught on the ground. German tanks smashed holes in the Polish lines and permitted the slower moving German infantry to pour through.

On September 2nd 1939 Chamberlain sent Germany an ultimatum – withdraw from Poland immediately, or war will be declared. The Germans did not respond to the ultimatum.

At 11 am on September 3rd Britain declared war on Germany, followed by France's declaration at 5.00pm. WW2 had begun.

September 17th 1939 – Soviet Troops invade Eastern Poland

27th September 1939 – Poland Surrenders

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