Hitler’s aims, the steps to war, Appeasement, the Sudeten Crisis, the Nazi-Soviet pact
THE ROAD TO WAR
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topi Y GCSE
c: W
THE W2
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WA R O A D T
: WW O
2
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I M P E RY
ORT
ANT
It is important that
!
we understand what
Hitler’s aims were
What were Hitler’s Aims? because they are so
central in
HITLER’S MAIN AIMS LAY understanding why
OUTSIDE OF GERMANY WW2 broke out.
ABOLISH THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES
The Germans hated it, especially: Germany’s
tiny armed forces, the demilitarized zone in
Rhineland, the fact that Anschluss (union)
with Austria was forbidden and the idea that
Germans were forced to live in
Czechoslovakia (the Sudetenland) and
Poland. The Treaty was a constant reminder
to the Germans of their humiliation in World
War I. Hitler did not accept that the German
army had lost the war, and he was determined
to make Germany great again. The Palace of Versailles where the treaty was signed in 1919.
EXPAND GERMAN TERRITORY
The German population was growing. Hitler
said that the German nation needed more
Lebensraum (‘living space’). He was
determined to get Lebensraum by conquering
land in eastern Europe. This was connected
with his belief that the Aryan race was
genetically superior and destined to rule over
others. Hitler believed he had the right to Adolf Hitler The flag of communist Russia
invade eastern Europe and make the Slav
peoples Germany's slaves.
DESTROY COMMUNISM
The Nazis were Fascists: the exact opposite
of the Communists who ruled Russia. Hitler
blamed the Communists for Germany's defeat
in World War One, and he feared that the
Communists were trying to take over
Germany. He was determined to destroy
Communism, and this meant a war with Russia.
5
A modern day map of Eastern Europe

THE STEPS TO WAR
The Road to
War is a paper
1 t o p i c. I t
mainly appears
in the exam
with specific
reference to
‘appeasement’.
The Treaty of Versailles had put the Saar under the control of the League of Nations 1935: THE SAAR
for 15 years. In 1935 the inhabitants of the Saar voted to return to Germany. The
Saar plebiscite is cited by many historians as the first step to war. PLEBISCITE
Hitler began to build up his armed forces. In 1935 he introduced conscription 1935: REARMAMENT OF
(calling up men to the army). This broke the Treaty of Versailles, but Britain and
France let him get away with it. GERMAN ARMY
Hitler invaded the Rhineland on 7 March 1936. This broke the Treaty of Versailles.
It was a bluff – the German army had only 22,000 soldiers and had orders to retreat if
1936: RHINELAND
they met any resistance. But once again, Britain and France did nothing. OCCUPIED
In 1938, Hitler took over Austria. First, Hitler encouraged the Austrian Nazis to 1938: ANCHLUSS
demand union with Germany. Then Hitler invaded Austria (11 March 1938). This
broke the Treaty of Versailles, but Britain and France did nothing. WITH AUSTRIA
In 1938, Hitler tried to take over the Sudetenland. First, Hitler encouraged the 1938: THE
Sudeten Nazis to demand union with Germany. Then, Hitler made plans to invade
Czechoslovakia. Neville Chamberlain appeased Hitler. At Munich, on 29 September SUDETENLAND
1938, Hitler got permission from Britain and France to occupy the Sudetenland.
On 15 March 1939, Hitler’s troops marched into the rest of Czechoslovakia. This, for 1939: HITLER TAKES
most British people, was the time when they realised that the only thing that would
stop Hitler was a war. Chamberlain promised the Poles that Britain would support OVER CZECHOSLOVAKIA
them if Germany attacked Poland.
In summer 1939, Hitler began to unfold his plan to take over Poland. He made a secret 1939: GERMANY
pact with the USSR (known as the Nazi-Soviet Pact) which promised not to attack one
another. At the same time, they promised to attack Poland and split the country into 2. INVADES POLAND:
The invasion took place and war was declared on the 3rd September 1939. WAR DECLARED

APPEASEMENT
THE STEPS TO WAR
Giving in to a bully in order to stop something bad from happening
'Appeasement' means 'giving in to a In the 1930s, there were some
bully'. Nowadays, many people people – most notably Winston
criticize Chamberlain for appeasing Churchill – who opposed his policy.
Hitler. There were many reasons He believed that Appeasement
why Britain 'appeased' Hitler in the allowed Hitler to think that he could
1930s: some British people approved get away with anything and that
of Hitler's policies, some hoped that failing top stop Hitler re-arming Prime Minister Neville
Chamberlain thought that
a strong Germany would stop the allowed Germany to grow stronger. appeasing Hitler was the
growth of Communist Russia, some Chamberlain faced some criticism at only way to prevent war.
felt that events in Europe were not the time but it should be
Britain's business, nearly all of British remembered that many people
people wanted peace and avoid the praised him. It was appeasement
horrors of WW1, and many agreed that allowed Hitler to make so many
with Hitler that the Treaty of gains during the 1930s.
Versailles was unfair.
Give thanks to your God. Your children
are safe. Peace is a victory for all
mankind. If we must have a victor, let us
choose Mr Chamberlain.
SOURCE A: The Daily Express Sept 1938
Winston Churchill
SOURCE B: A British cartoon of 1938 shows Germany crushing Austria. Next in line is
Czechoslovakia. At the back, Britain says to France, who is next-to-last: ‘Why should we take a
stand about someone pushing someone else when it’s all so far away?’

IN ACTION
APPEASEMENT
SMACK HIM!
This part of
appeasement is
very important,
its almost
certain to come
up in the exam.
CHAMBERLAIN
RETURNS FROM THE
MUNICH CONFERENCE &
HOLDS ALOFT A PIECE OF
PAPER AND SAYS: “PEACE
FOR OUR TIME”
The Sudeten Crisis of 1938 is the October and threatened to invade.
key example of appeasement in Britain prepared for war as all
action. It should be remembered seemed lost. At the last moment
that Hitler had already been Britain, France, Italy and Germany
allowed to occupy the Rhineland, met at the Munich conference.
rearm the Germany army and
unite with Austria (all against theHitler assured Chamberlain that
Treaty of Versailles). In 1938, this was the last issue that needed
Hitler wanted to united Germans solving and consequently Britain The map shows Germany & the Sudetenland
living in the border areas of and France ‘gave’ the Sudetenland
Czechoslovakia (the Sudetenland). to Hitler (without even consulting
the Czech President) Chamberlain
Hitler demanded that returned to England as a hero, he
Czechoslovakia should hand the waved a piece of paper in the air
Sudetenland over to Germany. and said that he had “peace for
When the Czechs refused tensions our time”. The note had a promise
in Europe ran incredibly high with from the so called ‘Munich
even Chamberlain hinting that Agreement’. Six months later -
‘other’ countries could become Hitler went against his promise
involved. On the 22nd September and invaded Poland: two days
Chamberlain held talks with Hitler later Chamberlain declared war on
where he would later persuade the Hitler and WW2 began.
Czech President to hand over the
Sudetenland to Hitler. War seemed
to have been avoided.
“I remember it well. We were all given gas masks and sand bags
However, Hitler then demanded were piled high all across London. We thought war was inevitable until
that he should have the good old Mr Chamberlain came back from that Munich Conference.”
Sudetenland before the 1st [4]
SOURCE A: Arthur Brownhill commenting on the Sudeten Crisis 2005

The Nazi-Soviet Pact The Road
to WW2
On 23 August, 1939, the world was shocked when, suddenly, Russia and Germany
signed a Non-aggression Pact. People would have been even more shocked if they
had known at the time that, in addition, the two countries had a secret agreement to
invade and divide Poland between them. Stalin knew that Hitler’s ultimate aim was to
attack Russia. In 1939, he
invited Lord Halifax, the
British Foreign Secretary to
go to Russia to discuss an
alliance against Germany.
Britain refused. The British
feared Russian Communism,
and they believed that the
Russian army was too weak
to be of any use against
Germany.
Stalin - Leader of the USSR
Many historians believe that this helped to bring war
closer because Hitler didn’t think that Britain and
France would fight Germany knowing that they had
an alliance with Russia. It also led to an official pact
between Britain and Poland so when the invasion
SOURCE A: \"Rendezvous\" by David Low - Hitler came Chamberlain had no choice but to declare war.
says: \"The scum of the Earth I believe.\" Stalin says:
\"The bloody assassin of the workers I presume?\"
The world was amazed by this alliance
of opposites, but, at the time Stalin
needed time to re-arm for when Hitler
did invade Russia. It was a marriage of
convenience, until Hitler broke his
promise and invaded Russia in 1940.
Michael Smith - British historian 2006
SOURCE B: Another cartoon about the Nazi-Soviet
pact by David Low.
[5]

SMACK the EXAMINER in the face!
Give yourself a head start and recognise the questions that have appeared in previous exams based on the
topic that you have been learning about. We will practice them in class, you should also do this at home
during revision. Your parents could help you.
REMEMBER:
Paper 1: The Road to war 1933-1939 SK + ET =
SUCCESS
A selection from the 2004, 2005, 2006 exam papers
*Remember: the exam paper does not look like this!
a) What does Source A tell us about Hitler’s aims in Source A Hitler’s aims in foreign policy
foreign policy? (3 marks)
‘Hitler aimed to make Germany into a great power
again by destroying the hated Treaty of Versailles,
b) How accurate is the view given in Source B of building up the army, recovering lost territory and
the aims of Britain and France at Munich ? Use bringing all Germans within the Reich. This last aim
Source D and your knowledge to explain your would involve the annexation of Austria and the taking
answer. (6 marks) of territory from Czechoslovakia and Poland.’
YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT:
• WWW - Who, When, Why?
• What was going on at the time? Source B: A Soviet view of the Munich Agreement
• Who was the audience? 1938 (From ‘Anti-Soviet Conspiracy’ by A.O.
• Why was it produced What was the purpose? Chubaryan, a Soviet historian, published in 1969.)
• Does it match up with the event, is this what happened?
• Is it accurate based on WWW and what you know about
the event? ‘Why did Britain and France allow Hitler to achieve his
aims at Munich? There is only one answer possible: the
governments of Great Britain and France wanted to
c) How accurate is the view in Source C of Hitler’s divert German aggression towards the east, to satisfy
aims in foreign policy in the 1930s? Hitler’s aims at the expense of the east European
YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT: countries. Britain and France feared the increase of
• WWW - Who, When, Why? Germany’s strength in Europe. Both hoped to appease
• What was going on at the time? Hitler by giving him some Czech territory. They wanted
• Who was the audience? to make Germany and the Soviet Union weaker by
• Why was it produced What was the purpose? involving them in conflict.’
• Does it match up with the event, is this what happened?
• Is it accurate based on WWW and what you know about
Source C Hitler’s aims in foreign policy (From a
the event?
speech by Adolf Hitler in Berlin in 1941)
d) How accurate is the view in Source D of the ‘My programme was to abolish the Treaty of Versailles.
importance of the decisions made at Munich in No human being has declared or recorded what he
September 1938? (6 marks) wanted to do more often than I. Again and again I wrote
YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT: these words – the abolition of the Treaty of Versailles.’
• WWW - Who, When, Why?
• What was going on at the time? Source D The Munich Agreement - Neville
• Who was the audience? Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, speaking to
• Why was it produced What was the purpose?
the crowd in Downing Street after his return from
• Does it match up with the event, is this what happened?
• Is it accurate based on WWW and what you know about Munich in October 1938.
the event?
‘My good friends: we have come back from Germany
bringing peace with honour, I believe that it is peace for
[6] time.’
our

SMACK the EXAMINER in the face!
continued...
e) Which was the bigger threat to European peace in the 1930s;
* The re-militarisation of the Rhineland, 1936;
* The Nazi-Soviet Pact 1939?
You must refer to both parts when explaining your answer.(10 marks)
YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT:
o Describe, Explain , Assess each of the points.
o Say what happened, say how it is linked to the question,
o Assess which was the most important reason.
o Write 4 paragraphs: An introduction where you ‘smack the examiner in the face’
by directly answering the question, one paragraph per point and one paragraph
as a conclusion. Your conclusion should make a decision as to which one is the
most important and to give evidence for your conclusion.
f) Which of the following events was the greater success in Hitler’s foreign
policy:
* The re-militarisation of the Rhineland in 1936;
* The occupation of the Sudetenland in 1938?
You must refer to both events when explaining your answer. (10 marks)
YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT:
o Describe, Explain , Assess each of the points.
o Say what happened, say how it is linked to the question,
o Assess which was the most important reason.
o Write 4 paragraphs: An introduction where you ‘smack the examiner in the face’
by directly answering the question, one paragraph per point and one paragraph
as a conclusion. Your conclusion should make a decision as to which one is the
most important and to give evidence for your conclusion.

SMACK the EXAMINER in the face!
A selection of MARK SCHEMES from the 2004, 2005,
2006 exam papers. Use them to help practice your exam
questions from the previous page.
b) How accurate is the view given in Source B of the aims of Britain and France at Munich ?
Use Source D and your knowledge to explain your answer. (6 marks)
L1 – Statement about the source’s limitations/ content (1)
L2 – Inferences (suggestions) made about the content of the source (2-3)
L3 – Considers ‘WWW’: What was going on at the time? Who the audience was? Why it was
produced/ What the purpose is? OR Use of own knowledge of the period to question the accuracy.
(4-5)
L4 – Combines both parts of L3 (WWW and Own Know.) (6)
c) How accurate is the view in Source C of Hitler’s aims in foreign policy in the 1930s?
L1 – Statement about the source’s limitations/ content (1)
L2 – Inferences (suggestions) made about the content of the source (2-3)
L3 – Considers ‘WWW’: What was going on at the time? Who the audience was? Why it was
produced/ What the purpose is? OR Use of own knowledge of the period to question the accuracy.
(4-5)
L4 – Combines both parts of L3 (WWW and Own Know.) (6)
d) How accurate is the view in Source D of the importance of the decisions made at Munich in
September 1938? (6 marks)
L1 – Statement about the source’s limitations/ content (1)
L2 – Inferences (suggestions) made about the content of the source (2-3)
L3 – Considers ‘WWW’: What was going on at the time? Who the audience was? Why it was
produced/ What the purpose is? OR Use of own knowledge of the period to question the accuracy.
(4-5)
L4 – Combines both parts of L3 (WWW and Own Know.) (6)
e) Which was the bigger threat to European peace in the 1930s;
* The re-militarisation of the Rhineland, 1936;
* The Nazi-Soviet Pact 1939?
You must refer to both parts when explaining your answer.(10 marks)
L1 Simple descriptive narrative with general coverage of the topic. (1-2 marks)
e.g. makes simple statements about the re-militarisation/Pact, possibly with a comment that it was a
threat to peace; why it was important to Hitler; why Stalin signed it; its consequences.

L2 Develops one cause OR Covers both with some development or explanation. This will involve
description or explanation of both with little focus on the question (3-5 marks)
e.g. describes and explains the occupation of the Rhineland - why it was forbidden; Hitler’s views . the
risk he took; why it was ignored by GB and France. Describes and explains the Nazi Soviet Pact
L3 A structured answer covering both bullet points, though one may be in greater depth, focused on the
question. (6-8)
Must be some assessment of at least one with focus on the question for this level. Reasoned arguments
with judgement but little supporting evidence should be placed at this level.
Level 4 Balanced well argued answer covering both parts, focused on the question. e.g. assesses both
parts relatively in depth and reaches an explained judgement. (9-10)
f) Which of the following events was the greater success in Hitler’s foreign policy:
* The re-militarisation of the Rhineland in 1936;
* The occupation of the Sudetenland in 1938?
You must refer to both events when explaining your answer. (10 marks)
L1: EITHER Simple descriptive statement based on own knowledge(1-2)
e.g. Hitler sent his troops into the Rhineland in 1936. Hitler was given the Sudetenland at Munich in
1938.
L2 Develops one cause OR Covers both with some development or explanation. This will involve
description or explanation of both with little focus on the question (3-5 marks)
e.g describes what happened in the Rhineland, explains why it was successful, why GB and France did
not resist, assesses success of Hitler, what he had gained, the risk he had taken etc. OR Describes
Hitler’s meetings with Chamberlain, explains why Hitler was given the Sudetenland, assesses Hitler’s
success.
L3 A structured answer covering both bullet points, though one may be in greater depth, focused on the
question. (6-8)
Must be some assessment of at least one with focus on the question for this level. Reasoned arguments
with judgement but little supporting evidence should be placed at this level.
Level 4: Balanced well argued answer covering both parts, focused on the question. e.g. assesses both
parts relatively and in depth. Must reach a reasoned judgement for top of level. 9-10