Why had international peace collapsed by 1939

1. OPTION B : KEY QUESTION 3
WHY HAD INTERNATIONAL PEACE
COLLAPSED BY 1939?

2. WHY HAD INTERNATIONAL PEACE COLLAPSED BY 1939?
YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
 What were the long-term consequences of the
peace treaties of 1919–1923?
 What were the consequences of the failures of the
League in the 1930s?
 How far was Hitler’s foreign policy to blame for the
outbreak of war in 1939?
 Was the policy of appeasement justified?
 How important was the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
 Why did Britain and France declare war on
Germany in September 1939?

3. YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT
The collapse of international order in the 1930s
the increasing militarism of Germany, Italy and Japan
Hitler’s foreign policy up to 1939 including:
• The Saar,
• Remilitarisation of the Rhineland,
• Austria,
• Czechoslovakia
• Poland; the Nazi-Soviet Pact
Appeasement and the outbreak of war in 1939.

4. REVISION NOTES
 1. Hitler’s Foreign Policy Aims
 2. German Rearmament
 3. The Saar Plebiscite
 4. Remilitarisation of the Rhineland
 5. Austria (Anschluss), 1938
 6. Appeasement Czechoslovakia, 1938
 7. Why did Britain support a policy of Appeasement?
 8. End of Appeasement: Czechoslovakia, 1939
 9. The Nazi-Soviet Pact
 10. German Invasion of Poland, 1939
 11. How far was Hitler’s Foreign Policy to blame?
 12. Cartoons on Hitler’s Foreign Policy

5.  Hitler’s Foreign Policy Aims
 When Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in
1933, he was determined to make Germany the
leading military power in Europe and conquer
territory in Eastern Europe. However, he faced a
number of obstacles that he had to overcome in
order to put his plan into action, Germany was a
democracy and her armed forces were limited by
the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, which was in
turn policed by the League of Nations.

6.  Within three months of being elected as Chancellor (Prime
Minister) of Germany, Hitler had overthrown democracy in
Germany and turned German into a One Party State. By
1934, he had removed all opposition to himself within his own
party with the help of the SS and the army and became a
military dictator.

7. NOW HAD THE POWER HE NEEDED TO PUT HIS AIMS
INTO PRACTICE:
 Abolish the Treaty of Versailles –The terms were unfair as
Germany was the only country that had been forced to disarm.
Other countries like Austria and Hungary had been let off from
having to pay reparations when their countries went bankrupt,
whilst Germany on the other hand was invaded by both France
and Belgium in 1923.
 Rearm Germany – The German Army was limited to 100,000
men, was not allowed to have an air force, submarines or have
any modern weapons and only a tiny navy. This was unfair as
Germany could not defend herself from attack.
 Remilitarize the Rhineland – As part of the Armistice and the
terms of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany had to demilitarize the
Rhineland, which bordered France and Belgium, as well as
containing the majority of Germany’s manufacturing, coal and
iron industries. This effectively left the front door open and
allowed both France and Belgium to invade in 1923. This was
unfair and if Germany was to grow strong again she needed to
be able to secure her borders.

8.  Unite all German speaking peoples – as a result of the Treaty
of Versailles, 6 million Germans were denied the right to self
determination that was given to other Europeans and forced to
live in other countries. Austria was also banned from uniting with
Germany. This was unfair as the German people had the right to
self-determination and to live in their own country if they wished.
 Expand German Territory – as a direct result of the Treaty of
Versailles, Germany had lost 13% of its land, 16% of its coal
industry, 15% of its iron industry and 48% of its most productive
agricultural land. If Germany was going to grow strong again and
feed its people, it would need this land back.

Lebensraum – The German people were a master race and
needed land or ‘living space’ for their expanding population. In
order to survive, Germany would have to conquer land in the
East.
 Defeat Communism – Communism was an idea started by a
Karl Marx, a German Jew and was threatening to take over the
world. In order to stop this Jewish plot to take over the World,
Germany would have to defeat the USSR or communist Russia.
Communists in Germany were also responsible for weakening
Germany both during and after the First World War. They are
enemies of the state and must be punished and wiped off the
face of the earth.

9.  German Rearmament
 When Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933, he was determined
to make Germany the leading military power in Europe and conquer
territory in Eastern Europe for his master race. In order to do this he
needed to rearm Germany with modern weapons and increase the size
of her armed forces. However, the main obstacle to his plan was the
Treaty of Versailles, which was enforced by the League of Nations.
Luckily for Germany, the international determination to make the League
of Nations work had been weakened in the 1920s and had been further
undermined by the Great Depression, which made it difficult for the
League to enforce it’s economic sanctions. As a result, countries were
focusing on fixing their own problems, rather than those in other
countries. Aware of this, Hitler was careful to avoid provoking Britain and
France until he was ready.
 German rearmament began immediately in 1933. At first, this was done
secretly with the help of industrialists who supported Hitler and helped to
fund the Nazi party. Production of new tanks, aircraft and other weapons
began.
 In 1934, Hitler went to the Geneva Disarmament Conference. He asked
for equality with the French army. The British agreed but the French
refused. Hitler walked out left the League of Nations claiming that
Germany was being treated unfairly. Britain and France blamed each
other for the failure to reach agreement.

10.  In 1935, the Anglo-German Naval agreement allowed
Germany to increase her Navy beyond the limits set at
Versailles. The French were furious and believed the British
were too soft with Germany. This further divided Britain and
France to Hitler’s advantage.
 Later in 1935 Hitler declared that he was increasing the
German Army to 500,000. He also announced the existence of
a German Air Force. These things had been forbidden at
Versailles.
 Rearmament was very popular in Germany and it boosted
support for the Nazi party. Hitler also knew that the British
public had some sympathy with Germany on the issue.
 At each stage Britain and France were divided over what to
do. Many people in Britain felt that the terms of the Treaty of
Versailles were too harsh and were prepared to support
politicians who were prepared to follow policies which avoid
confrontation with Germany.

12. MILITARISM OF ITALY
 1930s - Led a horrendous war on Libyan
'resistance', including chemical attacks -
accused of genocide
 · Signed the Four Power Pact in 1933 with
France, Britain and Germany for greater
international security; this was a blow to the
LON which was bypassed.
 · Invaded Abyssinia, 1935-6
 · Sent 50 000 'volunteers' to help Republicans
in the Spanish Civil War, 1936
 · Re-armed - although equipment was poor and
'tanquettes' (armoured cars) used instead of real
tanks
 · Left the League of Nations in 1937
 · Visited Germany in 1937
 · invaded Albania April, 1939 - defeated King
Zog
 · May 1939 - signs Pact of Steel with Germany
- mutual agreement for support in a war

13. MILITARISM OF JAPAN
 Re-armed; invested heavily in the navy, created Yamato
warships as well as aircraft carriers capable of carrying
3000 aircraft in total. Had an army of 1m men and 2m
reserves by 1939
 · Defeated Russia in the Russo-Japanese War 1905
 · 1928 - sent troops to China to stop a unified China
under Chang Kai Shekthreatening Japan
 · Invaded and occupied Manchuria, China, 1931-33
 · Withdrew from League of Nations, 1933
 · Army attempts a coup but fails when High Command
does not join in - shows the mentality and strength of
the army, 1936
 · 1936 - signs Anti-Commintern Pact with Ger, Italy to
contain spread of Communism
 · 1937 - withdraws from Washington Naval Agreement
(which had limited ship tonnage to a ratio of Britain
5:USA 5:Japan 3)
 · Began Second Sino-Japanese War with China, 1937
- led to Nanking Massacre
Emperor
Hirohito

14.  The Saar Plebiscite
 The Treaty of Versailles placed the Saar, an important coal-
mining area on the Franco-German border, under the League
of Nation’s administration for 15 years. The profits from the
German coal mines in this area were used to help pay
towards the reparations that Germany owed to France. This
was seen at the time as a great injustice by the German
people as the people of the Saar were being denied their
rights to determine whether they wanted to be a part of
Germany.
 In January, 1935 the people of the Saar were finally given the
opportunity to vote in a plebiscite on whether they wanted to
become a part of Germany or France. They voted by 477,000
to 48,000 to return to Germany. This overwhelming vote was
seen as a propaganda victory for Hitler, who increased its
international impact by promising to make no further claims on
French territory and in particular the areas of Alsace and
Lorraine. This helped to improve his international image by
presenting him as a reasonable man who was only wanted to
get justice for the German people who were suffering from the
harsh effects of the Treaty of Versailles.

15.  1919 – The Saar was removed from Germany on a temporary /
permanent basis for 15 years and put under the control of the
League of Nations. All the profits from this rich coal mining area are
given to France as part of her reparation payments. This is bitterly
resent by most Germans as the people in the Saar were no longer
part of Germany.
 1933 – When Hitler comes to power, some of his opponents took
refuge in the Saar, where they campaigned for the area to remain
under the League, but the great majority of the people living there
were Germans and there was rooted hostility to France.
 1935 – The League of Nations holds a plebiscite or vote on whether
the Saar should reunite with Germany. They voted 477,000 or 90% to
48,000 or 10% in favour of a return to Germany. This was an
important victory for the Nazis who were able to portray themselves
as representing the popular will of the German people in the fight
against the unfair treaty of Versailles.
 Germans turning out to vote in the Saar Plebiscite

Germans who lived outside Germany had shown the world that they
hated the Treaty of Versailles democratically 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
and his aims for ‘One People, One Leader, One Empire.’

17.  Remilitarisation of the Rhineland
 The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles,
forbade Germany from having any armed
forces in the Rhineland. This was done
to stop future German aggression and
give both France and Belgium security.
However, both countries had exploited
this weakness by invading Germany in
1923 in order to force her into paying
reparations. This left a lasting sense of
bitterness in Germany and helped to
increase hatred towards the treaty of
Versailles, which helped the Nazis to get
elected in 1933.
 Aware of the fact that the world was
focusing on the international crisis in
Abyssinia, Hitler marched his troops
back into the Rhineland in March 1936.
Shocked by this turn of events Britain
and France did nothing.

19.  Austria, (Anschluss), 1938
 Hitler had been born in Austria. He
believed that as the Austrians were
German speaking, they should be
joined or united with into a greater
Germany. This was strictly forbidden
under the terms of the Treaty of
Versailles. However, a strong Nazi
Party already existed in Austria and
Hitler used them to stir up trouble and
make it appear that the Austrians
wanted to join with Germany. They
staged demonstrations calling for
political union with Germany
(Anschluss) and some of these
turned into riots. However, Hitler’s
dream was put on hold in 1934, when
Mussolini had stopped him. Four
years later the situation was very
different. Germany was stronger and
Hitler and Mussolini were now allies

20. COUNTDOWN TO ANSCHLUSS
 In February 1938, Hitler called a meeting with the Austrian Chancellor Herr
Schuschnigg and told him that they only way to solve Austria’s problems was
through Anschluss. The meeting ended with Hitler threatening Schuschnigg into
making concessions. See Source 5.
 On his return to Austria, Herr Schuschnigg decided to try and fight Hitler by trying
to arrange a plebiscite or referendum (vote) on whether his country should remain
independent of Germany.
 On 11 March, Hitler demanded that the vote should be stopped. Schuschnigg
resigned and Germany invaded, supposedly at the invitation of the Austrian Nazis.
 Britain and France did nothing to stop the invasion. Hitler later held a plebiscite or
vote in April 1938 and 99.75% of Austrian’s supposedly approved the uniting of
Austria with Germany.
 Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, felt that the Austrians and Germans had a
right to be united and felt that the Treaty of Versailles had been wrong to separate
them.
 Britain’s Lord Halifax had even suggested to Hitler before the Anschluss that
Britain would not resist Germany uniting with Austria.
 The lack of opposition from Britain and France made Hitler even more confident.
He was aware that many people Britain felt that the Treaty of Versailles had been
too harsh on Germany and that people did not want their country dragged into
another war.

22.  Appeasement: Czechoslovakia, 1938
 After the Anschluss, it was clear that
Czechoslovakia, with its land thrusting
deep into German territory, would be a
direct threat to Germany. Edward Benes,
the leader of Czechoslovakia was horrified
at the Anschluss. He realised that his
country would be next on Hitler’s takeover
list as it had three million ethnic Germans
living in an area called the Sudetenland.
 Although not a large country,
Czechoslovakia was well defended and
had a modern well equipped army which
was similar in size to the German Army.
The country had a lot of natural resources
including coal, iron and steel as well as a
thriving arms industry. With support from
Britain and France the Czechoslovakian’s
could have successfully resisted a German
invasion. There was a real threat of war!

23.  By 1938, Germany was in a very strong position and when
Hitler moved against Czechoslovakia, he was ready for war.
Britain was not and had only just begun to rearm.
 Within a few weeks of the Anschluss, Nazis living in the
Sudetenland started claiming that they were being treated
badly by the Czechoslovakian government.
 Hitler ordered his generals to start planning for an invasion on
1st October 1938 and told them: ‘It is my unalterable decision
to smash Czechoslovakia. At a meeting with the Czech
President Benes, he demanded the Sudetenland be given to
Germany.
 The Soviet Union (USSR) offered to help the Czechs provided
the French were willing to fight. The Czechs and the French
began to mobilize their armies. German troops were moved to
the Czech border.
 In a last ditch attempt to prevent the invasion and keep the
peace, Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister flew to
Germany to meet with Hitler on 15th September 1938.

24.  The meeting appeared to go well. Hitler was prepared to
negotiate saying that he was only interested in the
Sudetenland and then only if a plebiscite or election
showed that the Sudeten Germans wanted to join
Germany. This seemed reasonable to Chamberlain or
thought that he could do a deal with Hitler.
 On 19th September, the British and French put to the
deal that Chamberlain had negotiated to the Czech
government. However, they refused to surrender the
Sudetenland as it would make them defenseless against
Germany.
 On 22nd September, Hitler went back on his word and
said that he wanted the whole of the Sudetenland.
Chamberlain refused saying that Hitler’s demands were
unreasonable. The British army and navy were mobilized
for war.

25.  Chamberlain was desperate for a solution that would avoid
war. Britain was not ready and had only just begun to rearm.
When Mussolini, proposed a four power conference, both
Hitler and Chamberlain, who both saw a solution to their
problems agreed to attend.
 On 29th September 1938, the leaders of Britain, France,
Germany and France met at Munich and signed an
agreement that gave Hitler the terms he had demanded.
Czechoslovakia was broken up and Hitler had got what he
wanted. However, as part of the agreement, Chamberlain also
got Hitler to agree that he would not take any more land in
Europe.
 Throughout these negotiations, neither the Czech nor the
USSR governments were consulted over the Munich
Agreement.
 On his return to Britain, Chamberlain claimed that the Munich
agreement would bring ‘peace in our time.’ However, this new
policy of appeasement relied very heavily on Hitler keeping
his promises. Meanwhile, Britain began to rearm in earnest
and prepare for war.

32. SORT OUT PRO OR CONS OF BR FOLLOWING
A POLICY OF APPEASEMENT

33.  The end of Appeasement:
Czechoslovakia, 1939
 At Munich, Hitler had given Chamberlain
meaningless promises about the
Sudetenland in future being the last
territorial claim that he had to make in
Europe. On his return to Britain
Chamberlain claimed in the news and the
press that he had secured a deal with
Hitler that promised ‘peace for our time’,
whilst privately the government began to
rearm and prepare for a possible future
war.
 If Chamberlain had hoped that the Munich
Agreement and his policy of Appeasement
would secure peace or at least buy Britain
more time to rearm, then his hopes were
to be shattered six months later when
Hitler took over the whole of
Czechoslovakia on the 15th March 1939. It
was now clear that appeasing or giving
into Hitler only made him more aggressive
and that his promises were worthless. The
time had finally come to stand up to him.

34.  On the 15th March 1939, German forces crossed the Czech
border and invaded the country.
 Czechoslovakia was unable to put up any resistance as it
had lost its key strategic defences as a result of the Munich
Agreement in 1938.
 Both Britain and France took no action and stood by as
German forces took what was left of Czechoslovakia. Britain
had only just begun to rearm and France was not prepared
to go to war without British support.
 However, for Chamberlain and British public opinion, this
was a step too far as Hitler had not only broken his
promises, but was now taking land that had never belonged
to Germany.
 For Hitler, this was about conquering Lebensraum or ‘living
space’ for his German master race.
 As part of a secret deal Hitler gave part of Czechoslovakia
to Hungary, whilst Poland not to be outdone also grabbed
some territory. Everyone was looking out for their own
interests. Nobody was prepared to fight to protect their
neighbours.
 It was clear that Poland would be Hitler’s next target. Britain
and France were determined to make a stand and on 30
March, they promised to assist Poland if Germany attacked.

35.  The Nazi-Soviet Pact
 Source 18: Stalin, leader of the USSR.
 A key aim of Hitler’s foreign policy was to take back land
that Germany had lost under the Treaty of Versailles and
to unite all German speaking people. Germany had lost a
lot land to Poland and many of the Germans living there
had been forced to move by the Polish Army. Hitler was
keen to get this land back and get revenge for the way
the Germans had been treated by the Poles in 1919.
After the invasion of the rest of Czechoslovakia,
Chamberlain declared that Britain would defend Poland if
Germany tried to take her over. Hitler was certain that
Chamberlain would back down as he had done before.
Meanwhile, Britain tried to make a deal with Stalin, the
leader of the Soviet Union (USSR), Chamberlain wanted
both countries to agree to protect Poland. However, as a
result of the Munich Agreement, Stalin did not trust either
Britain or Frances and suspected that they were hoping
to turn Hitler’s war machine away from Western to Easter
Europe and the USSR.

36.  USSR (Russian) Timeline of International
Relations
 In 1920, Poland had invaded Russia whilst it was
involved in a bitter civil war and unable to defend
itself. The poles then stole enough land from the
USSR to double its size.
 In 1934, the USSR had joined the League of
Nations, hoping that the League would protect it
from future German aggression as Hitler clearly
hated communism and wanted ‘living space’ in
Eastern Europe and USSR.
 However, during the 1930s, politicians in both
Britain and France had not resisted German
rearmament. Indeed some actually welcomed a
stronger Germany as a force to fight
communism.

37.  In 1935, Stalin signed a treaty with France, which
promised to help USSR if she was attacked by
Germany. However, Stalin was not sure that the
French could be trusted to stick to it, particularly after
they failed to stop Hitler moving his troops back into
the Rhineland, which was right on their own border.
 In 1936, the League proved to be weak and unable to
stop aggressive dictators like Mussolini from
attacking Abyssinia, which frightened Stalin and other
Russian leaders.
 In 1938, the USSR was not invited to the Munich
Agreement to discuss the future of Czechoslovakia
which increased Stalin’s concerns that Britain and
France were trying to turn the German war machine
away from Western towards Eastern Europe and the
USSR.

38.  After the invasion of what was left of Czechoslovakia in 1939,
Stalin concluded that neither Britain or France were strong
enough to stop Germany so he had better look out for his own
country’s interests rather than working cooperatively to stop
Hitler.
 When Chamberlain declared that he was prepared to defend
Poland if she was attacked by Germany, Stalin interpreted
this as Britain being prepared to protect one of USSR’s
potential enemies.
 In August 1939, Stalin stunned the world by signing the Nazi-
Soviet Pact with Germany. Both countries agreed not to
attack each other for ten years. Germany agreed to share
technology with the USSR, whilst the USSR agreed to supply
raw materials, oil and food to Germany if she was attacked.
 In the secret clauses of the pact, both countries agreed to
divide Poland up between them so that Germany could get
the land back that it had lost under the Treaty of Versailles
and the USSR could get the land back that it had lost to
Poland in 1920.

40. A TIMELINE OF
NAZI FOREIGN
POLICY, LEADING
TO WAR
(SOURCES
INCLUDED IN
PICTURES)

42.  German Invasion of Poland, 1939
 At dawn on 1st September 1939, German
troops crossed into Poland using their new
tactic, ‘Blitzkrieg’ or Lightening War. Hitler was
confident of an easy victory and that neither
Britain nor France would go to war over Poland.
Both countries sent an ultimatum to Germany,
which Hitler ignored. Then 24 hours later, Britain
and France both declared war on 3rd
September 1939. This did not stop Hitler who
continued his invasion.
 Due to the distances involved and the speed of
the German attack, Britain and France were
unable to act quickly enough to help Poland.
Although the Polish Army fought hard, their
men, horses and technology was no match for
the new German tactics. Then on the 17th
September, the USSR following the secret
clauses of the Nazi-Soviet Pact invaded Poland
from the east. Within a month Poland was
defeated.

43.  In the summer of 1939 the German newspapers and radio stations began to put
out anti Polish propaganda claiming that the Poles were persecuting Germans
living in the Polish Corridor.
 On September 1, 1939, German troops invaded Poland. Britain and France sent
an ultimatum to Hitler demanding that the German army withdraw. Hitler refused
and on 3 Sept Britain and France declared war on Germany.

44.  Cartoons on Hitler’s Foreign Policy
 Winston Church was not the only person who
suspected that Hitler was planning for another war.
Cartoonists such as David Low argued that Hitler
intended to go on and on, and that he would not
stop until he was stopped. Low hated Hitler, and the
feeling was returned with such intensity that Hitler
even tried to get Low’s cartoons banned. Many of
Low’s cartoons carry the idea that Hitler was always
planning his next move to take over his next victim
and are very popular with the exam board. The
table below shows some of Low’s most popular
cartoons and provides a mini summary courtesy of
the great history teacher John D Clare. Lots of
really useful revision materials can be downloaded
from www.johndclare.net

47. THE END