THE SUDETENLAND AND CZECHOSLOVAKIA 1938-39

What were Hitler's reasons for wanting to take control of Czechoslovakia

1. Free and hostile Czechoslovakia= impossible for Germany to fight a war in the west, as Hitler would then face a war on two fronts which he wanted to avoid 2. The USSR could invade Germany through Czechoslovakia 3. Hitler wanted the wealth and resources of Czechoslovakia Specially the enormous Skoda munitions factory

Results of the Munich Agreement

1. Saved Europe from war 2. Gave Britain and France time to rebuild her army but also did the same to Germany 3. Czechoslovakia now had no chances against German aggression because she had lost vital resources and part of her defense system 4. Hitler = even more popular in Germany confidence boosted certain Britain and France would never fight him 5. Stalin furious, no chance of an alliance with Britain and France against Hitler, very vulnerable as recently purged his army, no position to fight a major war, considered alliance with Hitler even though he knew Hitler planned a war against the USSR but he needed time to rebuild his army

On what day did Neville Chamberlain meet Hitler and where

15 September 1938 Berchtesgaden

When did the German army march into the Sudetenland

1st of October 1938

What happened when the new state of Czechoslovakia was created in 1920

3 million German speaking people lived in the Sudetenland now found themselves living in Czechoslovakia

The day after the conference,Chamberlain held private talks with Hitler. What did they agree on and what were the terms?

Anglo- German Declaration Terms= 1. Britain and Germany would promise never to go to war again 2. They would settle all disputes by holding talks

What had Germany gained

Armaments( Skoda tanks) Resources (coal)

Why was Czechoslovakia no longer able to defend herself against further aggressions

Because Germany had taken the Sudetenland which contains nearly all of Czechoslovakia's mountain fortifications and defenses she had against Germany

What did Czechoslovakia's head of state say to this decision and what essentially did Britain and France do

Benes, Czechoslovakia's head of state, protested this decision Chamberlain told him that Britain would be unwilling to go to war over the issue of the Sudetenland Essentially Britain and France had abandoned Czechoslovakia

What had Hitler broken as a result

Broken the Munich agreement

Why was this a diplomatic victory for Hitler

Chamberlain flew to Germany to meet him

What did some politicians have to say about this though

Churchill and Eden attacked the agreement pointing out that not only had the British government behaved dishonorably but it had lost the support of the Czech army which is one of the best in Europe

What did the Sudeten crisis and Munich agreement show

Czechoslovakia = betrayed + weakened, government humiliated Hitler had gained the Sudetenland without fighting Czechoslovakia = defenseless(Sudetenland contained all of its defenses) Britain and France showed their weakness Atlas saw that Britain and France would never stop him Led to Nazi Soviet pact

Who was not invited to the meeting

Czechoslovakia and the USSR

Why did Hitler's generals war Hitler it was a bad idea too march into Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia had a strong Army Good mountain defenses Therefore a difficult country to overcome If Britain France or the Soviet Union joined on the side of Czechoslovakia Germany would probably be badly defeated

What did Hitler argue that was not true

Czechoslovakia had never been German so Hitler's argument that he was taking land that was historically German was not true

No?

Czechoslovakia was far away and hard to support logistically The destruction in guernica by luftwaffe could easily happen to Britain and France as well If Hitler got what he wanted now maybe he would stop There were 3 million Germans in Czechoslovakia

Who did Chamberlain discuss this issue with

Daladier(France) and Benes(Czechoslovakia)

What did Hitler promise in return

Do not make any further territorial demands in Europe

How did Czechoslovakia feel towards Britain

Felt betrayed and weakened The Czech Government had been humiliated

Should Britain and France have fought over Sudetenland (yes)

France had an alliance of Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia army = strong and modern, with help of Britain and France could have easily stood up to Germany Czechoslovakia created in Paris peace treaty, to change this would be violating the treaty Hitler could demand more territory after Sudetenland if he thought west was weak

What demands did Hitler make now

Germany to occupy all of Sudetenland by 28 September If this was not done Germany would invade Czechoslovakia on 1 October

Where and when did Chamberlain meet Hitler second time

Gobesburg, 22nd September 1938

What did Chamberlain do in response

He accepted that those areas were more than half the population were German speaking would be handed over to Germany and he persuaded both the French and Czechs to accept this as well

When Chamberlain returned home to Britain what did he declare

He said they had achieved " Peace in our time" and came home a hero

Who led the Nazi party in Sudetenland

Henlein

What did Chamberlain tell Hitler in response

His demands were unacceptable

What had changed and now realize and what came to an end

Hitler could not be trusted Chamberlains appeasement policy came to an end

How did Chamberlain feel at Hitler breaking the Munich agreement

Hitler could not keep a promise and Chamberlain was furious

What did Mussolini suggest to Hitler on how to solve this issue

Hitler should hold a full power conference including Germany Britain France Italy This would exclude both Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union Therefore increasing the possibility of reaching an agreement and undermine the solidarity that was developing against Germany

Why did Britain decide to intervene

Hitler's demands of the Sudetenland had made the BRITs nervous

Where did this 4 power meeting take place and when

In Munich on 29 September 1938

Why was the Munich agreement popular with the British people

It appeared to have prevented a war with Germany

What happened in 1939 and which month (concerning Czechoslovakia )

March 1939 German army seized the rest of Czechoslovakia

What did one group of senior generals make plans to do and why

Plan to overthrow Hitler if he ignored their advice and declared war on Czechoslovakia

What did Hitler promised not to do in this meeting

Promise that he did not want the rest of Czechoslovakia

So in summary, who signed the Munich agreement and what did it state( and when was it signed)

Signed between the 29th to 30th September 1938 Hitler——(Germany) Chamberlain——(Britain) Daladier——(France) Mussolini ——(Italy) The Munich agreement transferred the Sudetenland to Germany

What did Hitler order Henlein to do

Stir up trouble in the Sudetenland and demand self government and union with Germany, and then Hitler would threaten to invade Czechoslovakia unless his demands were met

What caused the resentment of Czech control

The great depression hit Czechoslovakia

What had Britain and France once again shown

The weaknesses by giving way to Germany

What did Chamberlain and Daladier agree on and why

They agreed Germany could have the Sudetenland Because they were: anxious to avoid an alliance with Stalin and the Soviet union desperate to avoid war

Hitler was in a difficult situation but what did he know about Britain and France

They were unwilling to go to war Unlikely they would join up with the Soviet union ,whose communist system they hated even more than Hitler's fascist dictatorship

Why would Hitler threaten to invade Czechoslovakia unless Britain did sonething

Unless Britain supported Germany's plans to take over the Sudetenland Hitler threatened to invade Czechoslovakia