Munich Agreement Poland. Munich Agreement (1938)
The Munich Treaty was a treaty regarding the Sudetenland. It was concluded by the major powers of Europe on September 30, 1938 in Germany in the city of Munich. At this conference, Adolf Hitler demanded that the Sudetenland be annexed to Germany. The treaty, which was signed by France, Great Britain, Italy and Nazi Germany, allowed the Sudetenland to become part of Germany. Thus, Czechoslovakia was losing part of its territory.
Munich Agreement
This caused very serious harm to Czechoslovakia, since the Sudetenland was of great strategic importance for it; this territory contained the largest part of the country's border defense.
Representatives of Czechoslovakia were not present at this conference. The fate of this state was decided without his participation. This agreement is also called the Munich Treason.
Sudeten Germans
The Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia was populated mainly by ethnic Germans. They made up the majority of the population. They once belonged to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. They became part of Czechoslovakia in 1918. Therefore, the Sudeten Germans protested against the Czechoslovaks. They declared the German-Austrian province of Sudetanland in 1918 in the month of October. But this was prohibited after according to the Treaty of Saint Germain, which was concluded between the Allied Powers and the government of Czechoslovakia. Most Sudeten Germans did not want to be citizens of Czechoslovakia, since they were denied the self-determination that Woodrow Wilson, the US President, had promised them. This was enshrined in fourteen points of the agreement in January 1918.
The Sudetenland has always been part of the Kingdom of Bohemia. That's why they became part of Czechoslovakia. Some Germans have always considered themselves German-speaking Czechoslovaks and did not consider themselves Austrians or Germans who live on the territory of Czechoslovakia.
The situation is heating up
In March 1938, Austria was annexed by Germany to the Anschluss. Many then believed that the Sudetenland with its entire German population, then led by Nazi politician Konrad Haenlein, would be the next demand, as he increasingly made loud speeches demanding that the German minority in Czechoslovakia be reunited with their historical homeland. Most people then believed that there would soon be a war, and a peace treaty that would suit everyone would be impossible to achieve.
The Czechoslovak government counted on military and political assistance from France, because an alliance had been concluded between France and Czechoslovakia. But France, which was then led by Edouard Daladier, was not ready either politically or in the army for war. The government of the French Republic was struggling with the crisis in the country. And Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union had a peace treaty. Stalin was ready to cooperate with Great Britain and France.
Not a single state in Western Europe wanted war. Many at the time overestimated Adolf Hitler's military abilities. France and Great Britain had military forces superior to those of Germany. These countries quickly began to rearm. Hitler really hoped for a war with the West and believed that he could easily defeat it. Hitler held a conference with the fascist leader of Italy Benito Mussolini. But Mussolini was also not ready for a military conflict with Europe. He was also concerned about the increasing German power.
Meeting between Hitler and Chamberlain
British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain met with Hitler on September 15-16 in Berchtesgaden. They reached a preliminary agreement with Hitler that Germany would not take any military action without agreement. And Chamberlain, in turn, promised to convince the French and his cabinet to agree with the results of the referendum, which should take place in the Sudetenland.
After this, French Prime Minister Edouard Daladier and Foreign Minister Georges Bonnet held a meeting in London with British diplomats, after which they issued a joint statement that Germany should be given lands where Germans made up more than 50% of the population. Czechoslovakia initially rejected this proposal.
But on September 21, the Czechoslovakians were forced to accept it. But for Hitler this was not enough. And already on September 22, a meeting between Chamberlain and Hitler took place in Godesberg, where Hitler stated that he now wants the Sudetenland to be occupied by the German army, and for the Czechoslovaks to leave these territories before September 28, 1938. Hitler sought hegemony in Europe.
Chamberlain was forced to agree with him. He presented the new agreement to the Czechoslovak government. But the Czechoslovaks rejected him. Both the French and the British cabinet did not agree with this proposal.
On September 23, Czechoslovakia announced general mobilization, and on September 24, the French announced partial mobilization. This was the first French mobilization after the First World War. To avoid war, Chamberlain proposed calling a conference to settle the dispute.
Four parties were to participate. Hitler, although he really wanted war, agreed with this. The meeting took place in Munich on September 29. Hitler, Chamberlain, Mussolini and Daladier took part in it.
Signing the contract
An agreement was reached on September 29. And on September 30, Neville Chamberlain, Adolf Hitler, Edouard Daladier and Benito Mussolini signed the Munich Treaty. This treaty was officially proposed by Mussolini, but it was actually prepared by the German Foreign Office. This coincided almost entirely with Godesberg's proposal, according to which the German army would occupy the Sudeten lands by October 10, and an international commission would decide the future of other disputed territories.
Great Britain and France informed Czechoslovakia that it would either oppose Germany or submit to annexation. The government of Czechoslovakia was forced to accept this agreement, as it realized the hopelessness of the fight against Germany. On October 10, the lands passed to Germany, which now controlled the main part of Czechoslovakia. Hitler promised to go further.
On September 30, after some respite, Chamberlain visited Hitler with a request to sign a peace treaty between Great Britain and Germany. Hitler agreed. After this, Chamberlain said that resolving the Czechoslovakia issue would be a prelude to achieving peace in Europe.
A new treaty was signed in Fuhrerbau. Chamberlain believed that he brought peace to Britain. Hitler was furious. He believed that he had been humiliated and was now being forced to act like a bourgeois politician.
British reaction
At first the British accepted the treaty positively, as they expected war. But then their opinion changed. Chamberlain was under the patronage of the royal family. He was invited to Buckingham Palace as a hero. But when he presented the treaty in parliament, the opposition opposed it.
Winston Churchill also condemned this agreement in the House of Commons.
In the Soviet Union, this agreement was ridiculed by cartoonists Kukryniksy. They depicted Western states offering Czechoslovakia to Hitler on a platter. Soviet politicians said that Czechoslovakia would be completely absorbed by the Nazi regime, and warned that this would lead to war and a global catastrophe, with horrific consequences. All this was said against Western democracies. The Soviet Union warned that this was only the first step, and that the Soviet state had only just risen to its feet, but the world was already on the brink of war again, and our people would stand up for freedom, as in the old days.
Hitler, Daladier and Stalin
Hitler now began to despise Chamberlain. He said that the British diplomat was arrogant, and his speech was the absurd jargon of an outdated democracy. Hitler called him a stupid old man.
Daladier, unlike Chamberlain, had no illusions about Hitler's ultimate goals. He told the British in 1938 that Hitler's ultimate goal was domination of Europe and Asia, and that Napoleon's goals were much smaller. He warned that after Czechoslovakia it would be Poland and Romania’s turn, and when the Germans provided themselves with oil and wheat, which they did not have, they would encroach on the West. He called for increased efforts to avoid war. This would require France and Britain to come together to negotiate concessions, but at the same time they would defend Czechoslovakia's independence. If this does not happen, then war cannot be avoided. But, nevertheless, Daladier allowed Chamberlain to go his own way, he was very discouraged by his decadent moods.
Stalin was also dissatisfied and upset with the results of the Munich Conference. There was no one from the Soviet Union at this conference, although the USSR was considered a major power. Britain and France used the Soviet Union as a threat to Hitler. Stalin believed that Western countries conspired with Hitler to ensure that the USSR was absorbed by Nazi Germany. He feared that the USSR would be destroyed and divided by the Western powers among themselves. Therefore, he signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany in 1939.
Czechoslovakia
Citizens of Czechoslovakia were also unhappy with this agreement. Many of them left the Sudetenland, moving to the south of Slovakia, which was then occupied by Hungary. Czechoslovak President Edward Benes could then declare war at any time. As a result of the annexation of the Sudeten territories, Czechoslovakia lost 70% of its iron, 70% of its electricity and 3.5 million citizens.
Invasion of Czechoslovakia
In 1937, Germany developed a plan called Operation Green to invade Czechoslovakia. The Germans, who included Austria in the Reich, believed that they were surrounded by hostile states. They carried out their plan on March 15, 1939. German troops occupied Prague and the rest of Bohemia and Moravia, as Churchill predicted. These lands were converted into a Reich protectorate. Slovakia became a separate state.
Beginning of World War II
Chamberlain finally realized that he had made a mistake in believing Hitler. His policies failed. After this, he took a tougher stance towards the Nazis. The UK began to mobilize its armed forces. France did the same.
At the same time, Italy invaded Albania in April 1939.
The attack of Hitler's Germany on Poland in September 1939 marked the beginning of the Second World War.
“Future historians, a thousand years later, will try in vain to comprehend the secrets of our politics. They will never be able to understand how it happened that a people who had won a victory, who had something in their souls, stooped to such a fall and threw away everything that they had won as a result of immeasurable sacrifices and decisive triumph over the enemy. They will not understand why the victors were defeated, and those who laid down on the battlefield and prayed for a truce are now moving towards domination of the world.”
from Churchill's speech in the English Parliament on March 24, 1937.
During the signing of the Munich Agreement. From left to right: Chamberlain, Daladier, Hitler, Mussolini and Ciano
From the very beginning of his political activity, Hitler conducted active propaganda among the German population about the suffering and terrible living conditions of several million Germans living in the territory of Czechoslovakia in the Sudetenland (about 90% of the region's population), Slovakia and Transcarpathian Ukraine (Carpathian Germans) and under the yoke of the Slavic population countries. The reasons for the appearance of Germans in this area go back to the 13th century, when Czech kings invited settlers to uninhabited areas on the borders of the Czech Kingdom. The situation began to worsen when Germany openly began to support fascist-type parties in the Sudetenland. One of them, the National Separatist Party of Konrad Henlein, won the elections in 1935. The provocations and riots organized by this gang of Hitler's henchmen heated up the atmosphere in the Sudetenland, and the Czechoslovak government had to take a number of countermeasures (German representation in the National Assembly, local government, education in the native language) designed to reduce tensions in the region. But in April, Henlein’s completely insolent party put forward demands for autonomy for the region in a threatening manner. At the same time, German military units began to move, positioning themselves near the Czechoslovak border. In response, with the support of the USSR and France, Czechoslovak troops occupy the Sudetenland. Frightened, Hitler sends Henlein to negotiations with the Czechoslovak government, which, however, lead nowhere and end on September 7 after a series of provoked riots and clashes between the Sudeten Germans and regular troops. Hitler publicly declares that he sincerely wants peace, but if the Czechoslovak government does not withdraw troops from the Sudetenland, he will be forced to start a war. With a mission to “save the whole world,” Chamberlain meets him in the Bavarian Alps on September 15. In it, the Fuhrer convincingly argues that territories where more than 50 percent of Germans live are obliged to pass to Germany, supposedly on the basis of the right of nations to self-determination. Chamberlain agrees, and Great Britain, and later France, act as guarantors of Czechoslovakia's new borders. On September 21, envoys of these great powers announced an ultimatum to the Czechoslovak government, which was weakly accepted by President Edvard Benes. After this, a general strike was declared in the country, protest demonstrations and a change of government took place, and a general mobilization was announced. The flight of Jews, Czechs and German anti-fascists begins from the Sudetenland. Even without French support, the USSR declares its readiness to fulfill its obligations to protect Czechoslovakia. There are official documents that Moscow offered Prague very specific plans for assistance in the use of ground forces and the transfer of fighters in order to strengthen the capabilities of Czechoslovak military aviation. On the southwestern and western border, rifle divisions, tank units, aviation and air defense forces of our country were put on combat readiness. But then Poland announced that it would not allow parts of the Red Army to pass through its territory, warning of a strike on the flank in the event of the advance of Soviet troops and the destruction of any aircraft flying over its airspace. The decisive factor was the refusal to help Czechoslovakia itself, which, obviously, Stalin inspired no less fear than Hitler.
It is also known that England and France put pressure on Czechoslovakia: “If the Czechs unite with the Russians, the war could take on the character of a crusade against the Bolsheviks. Then it will be very difficult for the governments of England and France to remain on the sidelines.”
Seeing the mobilization of the Czechoslovak military, Hitler informs the ambassadors of England and France that he is being forced to start a war. Continuous columns of soldiers armed from head to toe march grimly through the streets of Berlin.
Chamberlain (left) and Hitler at a meeting in Bad Godesberg, September 23, 1938. In the middle, chief translator Dr. Paul Schmidt
On September 26, in the Berlin Sports Palace, the Fuhrer said: “If by October 1, the Sudetenland is not transferred to Germany, I, Hitler, myself, as the first soldier, will go against Czechoslovakia.”
Here he proclaimed: “After the Sudeten-German question is resolved, we will not have any further territorial claims in Europe... We do not need the Czechs.”
Chamberlain immediately assures Hitler that everything will work out “without war and without delay.” To resolve this issue, on September 29, 1938, the heads of government of Germany, Italy, Great Britain and France (Hitler, Mussolini, Chamberlain and Daladier, respectively) gathered at Hitler’s Munich residence “Führerbau”.
On September 28, an emergency meeting of the English House of Commons took place. Chamberlain addressed the House: “I have a further message to make to the House. Mr. Hitler informs me that he invites me to meet him tomorrow morning in Munich.” Members of Parliament, who dreamed of an agreement with Hitler, greeted this statement with noisy applause.
At 12:45 a.m. the conference of plenipotentiaries opened in the Brown House. Contrary to the promise to Chamberlain, the envoys of Czechoslovakia were not allowed, and the USSR was generally refused participation. During two days of negotiations, the fate of Czechoslovakia was finally decided. Its representatives were invited and announced in “recommendatory” form a verdict - to transfer to Germany the Sudetenland and the areas bordering the former Austria, with all property, including weapons and fortifications. Czechoslovakia had to clear the transferred territories from October 1 to October 10. The agreement also prescribed the settlement of the issue of the Polish and Hungarian national minorities in the country, which implied the separation from Czechoslovakia of other parts of its territory in favor of Poland and Hungary. The Munich Agreement was signed at one in the morning on September 30, 1938 by Hitler, Chamberlain, Daladier and Mussolini. Vojtěch Mastny and Hubert Masaryk, on behalf of the Czechoslovak people, also signed an agreement. If it was not fulfilled, France abdicated all responsibility for protecting Czechoslovakia from German aggression.
Returning from Munich to London, Chamberlain declared on the plane's steps: “I brought peace to our generation.”
Daladier was already met at the airfield by a huge crowd shouting: “Long live Daladier! Long live the world!
Churchill assessed the results of Munich completely differently: “England had to choose between war and shame. Its ministers chose shame in order to then get war.”
Welcoming Chamberlain to the House of Commons, Churchill said gloomily: “Don’t think that this is the end. This is just the beginning of the reckoning. This is the first sip. The first foretaste of that bitter cup that will be offered to us year after year.”
Edouard Daladier (center) with Joachim von Ribbentrop at a meeting in Munich in 1938
The Munich Agreement became an exemplary example of betrayal committed on the scale of an entire country, and the culmination of the British “policy of appeasement.” The French could have easily mobilized an army to throw German units out of the Rhineland within a few hours, but they did not. Everyone wanted Germany to move east, eventually attacking our country.
The French ambassador in Moscow, Robert Coulondre, noted: “The Munich Agreement especially threatens the Soviet Union. After the neutralization of Czechoslovakia, the path to the southeast is open for Germany.” The same is stated in diplomatic documents from France, Germany, Italy, the USA, Poland and a number of other countries.
The slogan of the English Conservatives at that time was: “For Britain to live, Bolshevism must die.”
After October 1, 1938, Czech parties, the Czech language, books, newspapers and much more were banned in the Sudetenland. Under pressure from Germany, the Czechoslovak government recognized the autonomy of Slovakia on October 7, and on October 8 a decision was made to grant autonomy to Transcarpathian Ukraine. Even earlier, on October 1, Poland presented Czechoslovakia with ultimatum demands, supported by the Nazis, to transfer the Cieszyn region to it. Thus, a divided country, deprived of border fortifications and economically drained of blood, found itself defenseless against the Nazi invaders. In March 1939, the Nazis began the final liquidation of Czechoslovakia as a state. Czech President Haha, who was summoned to Berlin on the night of March 14-15, signed Hitler’s statement on preventing any resistance to the invasion of German troops.
On the same day, Hitler said: “I am not bragging, but I must say that I did it really elegantly.”
On March 15, German troops occupied Bohemia and Moravia that remained from the once united Czechoslovakia, declaring a protectorate over them. The Germans took no measures to keep their actions secret, but there was no protest from the Western powers.
To all questions, Chamberlain only answered: “Czechoslovakia ceased to exist as a result of internal collapse.”
Daladier demanded that the protest of the Communist Party be suppressed. The USSR Plenipotentiary Representative in France wrote: “The majority of the chamber responded to this demand with a thunderous ovation. It was difficult to imagine a more shameful sight...”
The Soviet Union was the only country willing to help the Czechoslovak Republic. But the ruling circles of this country did not accept our support this time either.
The Soviet government stated: “We cannot recognize the inclusion of the Czech Republic into the German Empire, and in one form or another also of Slovakia, as legitimate and in accordance with generally accepted norms of international law and justice or the principle of self-determination of peoples.”
As a result of the occupation of Czechoslovakia in the center of Europe, one of the forces that could potentially serve the cause of defeating the Nazis disappeared. When Hitler visited this “new Reich territory,” he expressed joy that the Wehrmacht did not have to storm the Czechoslovak defense lines, for which the Germans would have had to pay dearly. From a military point of view, Germany's gain was enormous. The Wehrmacht acquired excellent army weapons and factories that produced these weapons, but the industry of Czechoslovakia was at that time one of the most developed in Europe. Before the attack on the USSR, out of 21 Wehrmacht tank divisions, 5 were equipped with Czechoslovak-made tanks. Germany also received all the trump cards for attacking Poland from several directions, which until the very end imagined itself as an ally of Germany and, together with it, cheerfully dismembered Czechoslovakia. But a few months later Poland was gone, and Slovak soldiers were photographed against the backdrop of burnt houses and Polish prisoners of war.
The Munich model did not work. The war began in the West, ending with the shameful capitulation of France, a change of cabinet in England and the formation of an anti-Hitler coalition according to the scheme that was proposed by the Soviet Union back in 1935. England came to its senses, a little later the USA, and then France under the leadership of de Gaulle jumped on the bandwagon of the departing train. In 1942, Great Britain and France, in 1944 Italy, in 1950 the GDR and in 1973 the Federal Republic of Germany declared the Munich Agreement initially invalid.
Munich Agreement 1938(in Soviet historiography usually Munich Agreement; Czech Mnichovska dohoda; Slovak Mnichovska dohoda; German Munchner Abkommen; fr. Accords de Munich; Italian Accordi di Monaco)) is an agreement drawn up in Munich on September 29, 1938 and signed on September 30 of the same year by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, French Prime Minister Edouard Daladier, German Chancellor Adolf Hitler and Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini. The agreement concerned the transfer of the Sudetenland by Czechoslovakia to Germany.
Background
In 1938, 14 million people lived in Czechoslovakia, of which 3.5 million were ethnic Germans living compactly in the Sudetenland, as well as in Slovakia and Transcarpathian Ukraine (Carpathian Germans). The industry of Czechoslovakia, including the military, was one of the most developed in Europe. From the moment of occupation by Germany until the start of the war with Poland, the Skoda factories produced almost as much military products as the entire military industry of Great Britain produced during the same time. Czechoslovakia was one of the world's leading arms exporters, its army was superbly armed and relied on powerful fortifications in the Sudetenland.
The Sudeten Germans, through the mouth of the head of the national-separatist Sudeten-German Party K. Henlein, constantly stated that their rights were being infringed by the Czechoslovak government. The government took a number of measures to ensure representation of Sudeten Germans in the National Assembly, local self-government, and education in their native language, but the tension was not resolved. Based on these statements, Hitler in February 1938 appealed to the Reichstag to “pay attention to the appalling living conditions of their German brethren in Czechoslovakia.”
First Sudeten Crisis
After the Anschluss of Austria in March 1938, Henlein arrived in Berlin, where he received instructions on further actions. In April, his party adopted the so-called Carlsbad program, which contained demands for autonomy. In May, the Henleinites intensify pro-German propaganda, put forward a demand for a referendum on the annexation of the Sudetenland to Germany, and on May 22, the day of municipal elections, they prepare a putsch in order to turn these elections into a plebiscite. At the same time, the Wehrmacht was advancing to the Czechoslovak border. This triggered the first Sudetenland crisis. Partial mobilization took place in Czechoslovakia, troops were sent into the Sudetenland and occupied border fortifications. At the same time, the USSR and France declared their support for Czechoslovakia (in pursuance of the Soviet-French treaty of May 2, 1935 and the Soviet-Czechoslovak treaty of May 16, 1935). Even Germany's ally Italy protested against the use of force to resolve the crisis. The attempt to seize the Sudetenland based on the separatist movement of the Sudeten Germans this time failed. Hitler moved on to negotiations. Negotiations were conducted between Henlein and the Czechoslovak government through the mediation of England.
Second Sudeten Crisis
On September 12, 1938, after the failure of negotiations, the second Sudetenland crisis was triggered. The Henleinites organized mass protests in the Sudetenland, which forced the Czechoslovak government to send troops into the areas inhabited by the Germans and declare martial law there. Henlein, avoiding arrest, fled to Germany. The next day, Chamberlain notified Hitler by telegram that he was ready to visit him “for the sake of saving the world.” On September 15, 1938, Chamberlain arrives to meet Hitler in the city of Berchtesgaden, in the Bavarian Alps. During this meeting, the Fuhrer said that he wanted peace, but was ready for war because of the Czechoslovak problem. However, war can be avoided if Britain agrees to transfer the Sudetenland to Germany on the basis of the right of nations to self-determination. Chamberlain agreed with this.
On September 18, Anglo-French consultations took place in London. The parties agreed that the territories where more than 50% of Germans live should go to Germany, and that Great Britain and France would guarantee the new borders of Czechoslovakia. On September 20-21, the British and French envoys in Czechoslovakia told the Czechoslovak government that if it did not accept the Anglo-French proposals, the French government “would not fulfill the agreement” with Czechoslovakia. They also reported the following: “If the Czechs unite with the Russians, the war could take on the character of a crusade against the Bolsheviks. Then it will be very difficult for the governments of England and France to remain on the sidelines.” The Czech government refused to fulfill these conditions.
On September 22, Hitler issues an ultimatum: do not interfere with Germany’s occupation of the Sudetenland. In response to this, Czechoslovakia and France announce mobilization. On September 27, Hitler, facing the threat of war, backed down and sent Chamberlain a letter in which he said that he did not want war, was ready to guarantee the security of the remaining part of Czechoslovakia and discuss the details of the treaty with Prague. On September 29 in Munich, on Hitler’s initiative, he meets with the heads of government of Great Britain, France and Italy. However, contrary to the promise in the letter to Chamberlain, Czechoslovak representatives were not allowed to discuss the agreement. The USSR was denied participation in the meeting.
Munich Agreement
The meeting in Munich in the Führerbau took place on September 29-30. The basis of the agreement was the proposals of Italy, which were practically no different from the demands put forward earlier by Hitler at his meeting with Chamberlain. Chamberlain and Daladier accepted these proposals. At one in the morning on September 30, 1938, Chamberlain, Daladier, Mussolini and Hitler signed the Munich Agreement. After this, the Czechoslovak delegation was allowed into the hall where this agreement was signed. The leadership of Great Britain and France put pressure on the government of Czechoslovakia, and President Benes, without the consent of the National Assembly, accepted this agreement for execution.
Consequences
The annexation of the Sudetenland was only the beginning of the process of dismemberment of Czechoslovakia.
Poland took part in the division of Czechoslovakia: on September 21, 1938, at the height of the Sudeten crisis, Polish leaders presented an ultimatum to the Czechs to “return” to them the Cieszyn region, where 80 thousand Poles and 120 thousand Czechs lived. On September 27, a repeated demand was voiced. Anti-Czech hysteria was whipped up in the country. On behalf of the so-called “Union of Silesian Insurgents” in Warsaw, recruitment into the Cieszyn Volunteer Corps was carried out completely openly. Detachments of “volunteers” then headed to the Czechoslovak border, where they staged armed provocations and sabotage, and attacked weapons depots. Polish planes violated the border of Czechoslovakia every day. Polish diplomats in London and Paris advocated an equal approach to resolving the Sudeten and Cieszyn problems, while the Polish and German military, meanwhile, were already agreeing on the line of demarcation of troops in the event of an invasion of Czechoslovakia. The day after the conclusion of the Munich agreement, September 30, Poland sent another ultimatum to Prague and, simultaneously with German troops, sent its army into the Cieszyn region, the subject of territorial disputes between it and Czechoslovakia in 1918-1920. Left in international isolation, the Czechoslovak government was forced to accept the terms of the ultimatum.
Under pressure from Germany, the Czechoslovak government decides on October 7 to grant autonomy to Slovakia, and on October 8 to Subcarpathian Ruthenia.
On November 2, 1938, Hungary, by decision of the First Vienna Arbitration, received the southern (plain) regions of Slovakia and Transcarpathian Ukraine (Subcarpathian Rus) with the cities of Uzhgorod, Mukachevo and Beregovo.
In March 1939, Germany occupied the remaining part of Czechoslovakia, incorporating it into the Reich under the name “Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.” The Czechoslovak army did not offer any noticeable resistance to the invaders. Germany had at its disposal significant reserves of weapons from the former Czechoslovak army, which made it possible to arm 9 infantry divisions, and Czech military factories. Before the attack on the USSR, out of 21 Wehrmacht tank divisions, 5 were equipped with Czechoslovak-made tanks.
March 19 - The USSR government presents a note to Germany, declaring its non-recognition of the German occupation of part of the territory of Czechoslovakia.
The agreement signed in Munich became the culmination of the British “policy of appeasement.” One part of historians considers this policy an attempt to rebuild the Versailles system of international relations, which is in crisis, diplomatically, through agreements between the four great European powers. Chamberlain, returning from Munich to London, declared at the plane's steps: “I brought peace to our generation.” Another part of historians believes that the true reason for this policy is the attempt of capitalist countries to crush the alien system at their side - the USSR. For example, British Deputy Foreign Secretary Cadogan wrote in his diary: “Prime Minister ( Chamberlain) stated that he would rather resign than sign an alliance with the Soviets." The Conservative slogan at that time was:
On the eve of Chamberlain's meeting with Hitler, on September 10, 1938, Sir Horace Wilson, the prime minister's closest adviser on all political matters, suggested that Chamberlain express to the German leader his appreciation of the opinion that "Germany and England are the two pillars supporting a world of order against destruction." pressure of Bolshevism,” and that therefore he “wants not to do anything that could weaken the resistance that we can together provide to those who threaten our civilization.”
Thus, the “policy of appeasement” pursued since 1937 did not justify itself: Hitler used England to strengthen Germany, then captured almost all of continental Europe, after which he attacked the USSR.
Quotes
In 1938, Hitler began to become active in speaking out about his plans for Czechoslovakia. This caused quite a serious protest not only among various social groups, but also among the military. Beck (Chief of the General Staff) dared to warn the Fuhrer against invading Czechoslovakia, anticipating complications in relations with France, Britain and Russia. This incident provoked the unification of disparate Resistance groups in order to develop a coup plan to overthrow the Nazi regime.
The Munich Agreement was supposed to satisfy Hitler's demands. The Fuhrer did not want to put up with the existence of Czechoslovakia, and all three million Germans living there had to unite with the Reich. Chamberlain (the British Prime Minister) was invited for negotiations.
Hitler on September 18, 1938 issues an order for five armies on combat readiness. The Fuhrer approves the list of officers for the posts of commanders in ten armies. All these actions were aimed at preparing an attack on Czechoslovakia.
The Munich Agreement could have resolved the issue peacefully. According to the agreement, Hitler received everything he demanded in Godesberg. The final Munich Treaty was signed on November 20.
The agreement obligated Czechoslovakia to give up 11 thousand miles of its territory in favor of Germany. Eight hundred thousand Czechs and two million and eight hundred thousand Sudeten Germans lived on them. In addition, on these lands there were located branches of the Czech fortification system, which were considered the most impregnable in Europe.
Divided the country. As a result of the signing of the agreement in Czechoslovakia, the existing system of highways and railways was disrupted, the telephone system and the Munich Agreement deprived the country of 66% of coal reserves, 86% of raw materials for the chemical industry, 40% of timber, 80% of the textile industry, cement, brown coal, 70% of electricity .
Thus, the Munich Agreement overnight turned a prosperous industrial power into a ruined and torn apart one. The Czechs, according to the agreement, had to leave the territories.
However, according to all the generals close to Hitler and who survived the war, if the agreement had not been signed, the Fuhrer would have invaded Czechoslovakia on October 1. At the same time, some believe that Russia, France and England, despite the doubts of the heads of power, would have been drawn into the war.
Assessing the situation, it should be noted that on October 1 Germany was not ready to wage war against France, England, Czechoslovakia, and, especially, against Russia. If hostilities broke out, Hitler would lose quickly. This would lead to the end of Generals Witzleben, Halder and their supporters planned to overthrow the Fuhrer at the moment when he would give the order to attack Czechoslovakia. ruined their plans. The generals hoped for the firmness of England and the Western allies on the Czechoslovak issue.
Despite the fact that the Soviet Union was in a military alliance with Czechoslovakia and France, Germany, England and France unanimously excluded Russia from the number of participants in the negotiations.
The signing of the agreement turned out to be a serious disaster for France. Chamberlain, by selling Czechoslovakia, not only saved Hitler from possible military failures, but also significantly strengthened his military power. This was accompanied by a fanatical desire, present in Chamberlain, to give the Fuhrer everything he wanted.
With the signing of the agreement, France's military strength was reduced to zero. Now the French army was half the German one. French weapons production was significantly inferior to German. In addition, the Eastern Allies now did not trust France.
By giving up Czechoslovakia, Chamberlain made a historical mistake, which inevitably led to war.
The Munich Agreement of 1938 (also known as the Munich Agreement) was an agreement signed on September 30, 1938 by the heads of government of Germany, Italy, Great Britain and France. It implied the separation from Czechoslovakia of the border Sudetenland with a predominant German population and its transfer to Germany. It is considered one of the most important events that preceded and contributed to the outbreak of World War II.
Czechoslovakia.
The events of 1938 were a consequence of the results of the First World War. One of its consequences was the formation of the Czechoslovak Republic, on whose territory, according to the 1930 census, over 3.5 million Germans lived. In a number of regions of the Czech Republic bordering Germany and Austria, called the Sudetenland, Germans made up the majority of the population. The Germans had the right to receive education in their own language and had their own political parties.
Czechoslovakia, which had a strong army, erected powerful military fortifications on the border with Germany. In 1935, it received security guarantees from the USSR and France. According to them, in the event of an appropriate request from the Czechoslovak authorities, the Soviet Union should come to the aid of Czechoslovakia if France does so. In March 1938, Hitler developed a “green” plan for war with Czechoslovakia, which was not implemented.
First Sudeten crisis.
After coming to power in Germany in 1933, separatist sentiments intensified among the Czechoslovak Germans. Their spokesman was the Sudeten-German Party (also called the “Henlein Party” after its leader K. Henlein). She openly headed for the secession of the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia and its annexation to the Third Reich. The party enjoyed the open support of the leader of Germany, who in February 1938 announced the terrible situation of the Germans in Czechoslovakia.
After the Anschluss of Austria in March 1938, the Sudeten-German Party moved on to further steps. On April 24, she adopted the Carlsbad Program, demanding broad autonomy for the Sudetenland. Party representatives also announced preparations for a referendum on the annexation of the Sudetenland to Germany. On May 22, the “Henleinites” planned a putsch, and the German army was pulled to the Czechoslovak border. This triggered the First Sudetenland Crisis.
In response, the Czechoslovak government announced partial mobilization, mobilized troops in the Sudetenland and did not allow the coup to be organized. The USSR, France and Italy expressed protest over Germany's actions. The President of Czechoslovakia expressed his readiness to make a number of concessions, but not to abandon the Sudetenland in favor of Germany. The Soviet Union confirmed its desire to provide military assistance to Czechoslovakia, but this was difficult to do due to the lack of a common border and Poland’s refusal to allow the Red Army through its territory. Otherwise, the Polish authorities threatened the USSR with war.
At the end of the First Sudetenland Crisis, negotiations began between the authorities of Czechoslovakia and the Sudeten-German Party, supported by Germany. Great Britain took on the role of mediator in them, sending a mission to Czechoslovakia led by Lord W. Runciman. The mission lasted from August 3 to September 16, 1938. During the negotiations, representatives of the Sudeten Germans rejected the idea of concessions and broad autonomy. As a result, Runciman was inclined to the idea of separating areas with a predominant German population from Czechoslovakia.
Second Sudeten crisis.
In September 1938, the Second Sudetenland Crisis broke out. In the Sudetenland, clashes resumed between detachments of local Germans and the Czechoslovak army. On September 7, K. Henlein interrupted negotiations with the government of Czechoslovakia. On the same day, following its obligations, France announced a call for reservists. But on September 11, France, together with Great Britain, made it clear that it would support Czechoslovakia in the event of war. However, if Germany does not start a war, its demands will be satisfied.
On September 12, A. Hitler, at the NSDAP congress in Nuremberg, announced his readiness to provide military assistance to the Sudeten Germans if the Czechoslovak authorities did not stop their oppression. On the same day, a new rebellion broke out in the Sudetenland, K. Henlein demanded the withdrawal of Czechoslovak troops and the transfer of law enforcement to local detachments. Czechoslovakia suppressed the putsch by September 15th.
On September 15, A. Hitler informed British Prime Minister N. Chamberlain, who had arrived in Germany, about his readiness to start a war with Czechoslovakia over the Sudetenland. But he made a reservation that war could be avoided if the Czechoslovak authorities agreed to transfer the Sudetenland to Germany. N. Chamberlain agreed. On September 18, during British-French negotiations in London, France gave its consent to the annexation of the Sudetenland.
On September 19, President E. Benes received guarantees from the USSR that the Soviet Union was ready to come to the aid of Czechoslovakia even if France did not do the same, and if Poland and Romania refused to voluntarily allow Soviet troops through their territory. On September 23, during a speech at a meeting of the League of Nations in Geneva, the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR confirmed its readiness to help Czechoslovakia. The Soviet Union also put a number of its units on alert.
On September 19, the governments of Great Britain and France conveyed their joint statement to the government of Czechoslovakia. It stated that in order to ensure security in Europe and the security of Czechoslovakia itself, it must transfer to the Third Reich areas in which the majority of the population is German. The transfer can be carried out directly or through a plebescite, which, according to the British and French, is extremely difficult to carry out. Great Britain and France also expressed their readiness to guarantee the future security of Czechoslovakia.
At the same time, Great Britain and France blocked the USSR's proposals to discuss the issue of collective support for Czechoslovakia in the League of Nations. The latter's government initially did not agree with the proposal from London and Paris. However, on September 21, the British and French ambassadors to Czechoslovakia said that the country could not count on help if it did not comply with the Anglo-French proposal. As a result, the Czechoslovak government agreed with the plan of the Western powers.
On September 22, 1938, Poland made a claim to the Cieszyn region in northern Czechoslovakia. In response, the Soviet Union threatened to break the non-aggression pact with it if Polish troops invaded Czechoslovakia. On the same day, at a new meeting with N. Chamberlain, A. Hitler demanded that the Sudetenland be transferred to Germany by September 28. He also insisted on the transfer of Cieszyn Silesia to Poland, and to Hungary the southern part of Slovakia with a predominant Hungarian population.
On September 23, Czechoslovakia announced general mobilization. Four days later, Hitler, in a conversation with the ambassadors of Great Britain and France, again declared his readiness to start a war if his demands were not met without delay. The next day, Chamberlain assured the leader of the Third Reich that he could get what he wanted without war.
Munich Agreement
On September 29, 1938, a meeting between A. Hitler, N. Chamberlain, the head of the French government and the leader of Italy took place in Munich. Representatives of Czechoslovakia were not allowed to discuss the future agreement. The USSR also did not take part in the meeting. The final document was signed at about one o'clock on the night of September 30, after which the Czechoslovak delegation was allowed into the hall to familiarize itself with it.
According to the document, Czechoslovakia, from October 1 to October 10, pledged to transfer to Germany areas with a predominant German population. The agreement provided for the possibility of population exchange between the two countries. In a number of disputed areas, plebiscites were to be held within six months under the supervision of an international commission consisting of representatives of Germany, Great Britain, France and Italy.
Great Britain and France announced their guarantees of the new borders of Czechoslovakia. Germany and Italy were also ready to provide their security guarantee after the issue of transferring part of the territories to Poland and Hungary was resolved. Czechoslovakia had to resolve the issue with the Polish and Hungarian minorities within three months - otherwise the issue would also be transferred to a meeting of the four powers that signed the document.
Collapse of Czechoslovakia
On September 30, Czechoslovak President E. Benes agreed to the proposed agreement. On October 1, Germany and Poland sent troops to the Sudetenland and Cieszyn region, respectively. An administrative unit of the Third Reich, Sudetenland, was formed on the territory of the Sudetenland. On November 2, by decision of the First Vienna Arbitration, Hungary occupied southern Slovakia. Czechoslovakia lost over a third of its territory and population, about 40% of its industrial potential and powerful military fortifications along the German border.
Centrifugal tendencies also intensified within Czechoslovakia. On October 7-8, 1938, the authorities in Prague granted broad autonomy to Slovakia and Subcarpathian Ruthenia. The country was named Czecho-Slovakia, or the second Czecho-Slovak Republic. It existed until March 14, 1939, when the leadership of the Slovak Autonomy, after visiting Berlin, proclaimed the formation of an independent state.
On March 15, 1939, German troops occupied the remaining part of the Czech Republic; a day later, the protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, subordinate to the Third Reich, was formed on its territory. Contrary to their obligations under the Munich Agreement, Great Britain and France did not send troops to defend Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic. This gave grounds for many historians to talk about the failure of the Western powers’ policy of “pacifying the aggressor,” and the events themselves were called the “Munich Agreement.”
In September 1938, the Soviet Union brought its troops on the western border to full combat readiness, and they remained in this state until October 25, 1938. The USSR officially disowned support for the Munich Agreement, and on March 19, 1939, refused to recognize the occupation of the Czech Republic.
Great Britain withdrew its signature to the Munich Agreement on August 5, 1942. The withdrawal of France's signature was announced on September 29, 1942 by the leader of the French resistance, General. Italy renounced its signature in 1944. On June 9, 1942, the USSR announced the need to restore the former borders of Czechoslovakia. Subsequently, representatives of the Western powers were inclined to do the same.
After World War II, the seized Sudetenland returned to Czechoslovakia, and the local German population was deported to Germany and Austria. The final line under the Munich Agreement was drawn by Czechoslovakia and Germany in the agreement on December 11, 1973, in which it was called “insignificant.”