Final Acts of Appeasement
Anchluss 1938
Appeasers' Reaction
Sudentenland
Neville Chamberlain and Munich Agreement
- Annexing Austria
- Versailles forbade a unification of Germany and Austria
- 1934 Dolfuss affair (Nazis assassinate Austrian Chancellor)
- 1938 Hitler called on new Chancellor Schuschnigg to resign
- Leader of Austria Nazi party Seyss-Inquart becomes new Chancellor
- March 1938 German troops roll into Austria
- "Plebiscite" is held - 99.75% vote in favour of unification
Appeasers' Reaction
- British do nothing and warn Schuschnigg not to cause trouble
- French won't do anything w/o the British
- Italy was the only objection, but Mussolini gave his approval
- Hitler to Mussolini "Never, never, forget this, no matter what happened."
Sudentenland
- Ethnic German area of Czechoslovakia where 3.5 mil Germans lived
- Brit PM Neville Chamberlain wants Czech leader, Benes to give up Sudentenland
- Hopes to prevent war
- Hitler threatens to occupy
Neville Chamberlain and Munich Agreement
- Mussolini steps in with a four power conference in Munich
- Benes resigns in favor of Emil Hacha who agrees to the annexation
- Neville Chamberlain proclaims "Peace in our Time"
- Hitler still recognized Slovak state - moved in German troops to "protect" it
- Hacha visits Hitler in March 1939 - gives up Czech independence
"This is the second time that there has come back from Germany to Downing Street peace with honour. I believe this is peace for our time." - British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain
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"I have no more territorial claims to make in Europe." - Adolf Hitler
Summary
As Hitler began to take further advantage of the League that was falling apart , he was able to expand his empire largely without firing a single shot.
