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What caused the Second World War?
Rearmament
Even before he came into power in Germany, Hitler had made it plain what the
basis of his foreign policy would be. He wanted to reverse the Treaty of Versailles,
one part of which was the humiliating military clauses. The Germany army was
limited to 100,000 men with no conscription, also a limited navy and no air force.
In 1933, Hitler ordered his army generals to
treble the size of the army to 300,000 men. He
also ordered the construction of 1,000 planes.
Hitler withdrew Germany from the Geneva
Disarmament Conference. His manoeuvring was
masterful. He wanted the French to disarm to
the level of the Germans or that the Germans
should re-arm to the level of the French. Either
way, Hitler knew that the French would not
accept his plan, but he withdrew from the
conference it was Hitler that was seen as the
more realistic politician whilst the French were
seen the unreasonable aggressors.
For two years, the German military expanded in
secret. Hermann Goering was given
responsibility for the creation of the German air force (Luftwaffe). Goering was a
former fighting ace from the First World War, and was able to bring his vast
personality to the fore. In March 1935, Hitler felt to make the size of the German
military public. In contravention of the Treaty of Versailles, the leaders of Europe
learned that the Luftwaffe numbered 2,500 planes and an army (Wehrmacht) of
300,000 men. At the same time, Hitler introduced conscription and announced that
the army would further increase to 550,000.
Initially, the French and British did nothing in reaction. The French began the
construction of the Maginot Line, a series of forts on the French and German
border. Britain even encouraged rearmament through the Anglo-German Naval
Treaty. This allowed the German navy to grow to one third of the British navy. The
British leaders were hoping that they could satisfy Hitler by getting rid of some of
the most hated aspects of the Treaty of Versailles – an agreement that was
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becoming increasingly unpopular in Britain too. Unfortunately, Hitler viewed the
agreement as a sign of weakness, calling the day that he signed it the “happiest day
of my life”. He had reversed one part of the Treaty of Versailles, and he began to
plan how other sections could also be changed.
“German and Italian rearmament is proceeding more rapidly than rearmament can in
England. In three years Germany will be ready.”
Adolf Hitler speaking privately to Mussolini’s son-in-law, October 1936.
1. According to the source, what were results of the policy of rearmament?
2. What limits were set on the German military by the Treaty of Versailles?
3. How did Hitler appear a reasonable leader whilst withdrawing from the
Geneva Disarmament Conference?
4. To what extent did the German army expand between 1933 and 1935?
5. How did the French react to the news that the Germans were openly building
up their military?
6. How did the British react to the news that the Germans were openly building
up their military?
7. What were the consequences of the Anglo-German Naval Agreement?
8. How useful is the source to an historian looking at European rearmament in
the 1930s?
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What caused the Second World War?
Rhineland and Anschluss
Once Hitler had rearmed the German military, he began to use it to reverse some
of the territorial clauses in the hated Treaty of Versailles. His first territorial
success came when the Saar voted to join Germany in a plebiscite (public vote) in
1935. Hitler and Germany were not particularly reversing the Treaty of Versailles –
the Saar plebiscite had always been planned to take place. However, the result of
the vote, and the fact that Britain and France accepted it, showed Hitler that he
had some degree of support for German expansion.
Under the terms of the treaty, the Rhineland was an area of German territory but
was a demilitarised zone. In March 1936, Hitler gambled that he could send his
army into the Rhineland and the other European powers would not stop him. He
ordered his generals to retreat if the French showed the slightest hint of making
a military stand. This did not occur, and over 32,000 soldiers and armed policemen
crossed into the Rhineland. Hitler said that “if France had then marched into the
Rhineland, we would have had to withdraw with our tails between our legs”.
France was threatened by the move, but was not willing to act without British
support. In Britain, both the public and politicians thought that Germany was only
going into her own backyard and that the Rhineland clause in the Treaty of
Versailles was overly harsh.
Another territorial clause in the Treaty of
Versailles was that a union between
Germany and Austria (Anschluss) had been
forbidden. In 1934, Italy had prepared for
war when there were rumours that the
assassination of the Austrian Chancellor
Dolfus would lead to a German invasion.
However, by 1936, Germany and Italy were
forming a friendship. Hitler saw this as an
opportunity to act. He thought that Austria
was rightfully German because they had a similar culture and language. Hitler was
also an Austrian himself.
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Hitler began to pressure the Austrian Chancellor, Schuschnigg, into uniting with
Germany. Schuschnigg tried to organise a public vote about whether the people of
Austria wanted Anschluss. However, this was an unacceptable risk to Hitler in case
the Austrain people voted against Anschluss. After Germany threatened to invade,
Schuschnigg resigned. German troops were invited into Austria by his pro-Nazi
replacement, Seyss-Inquart. In March 1938, Hitler entered Vienna. Many people
came onto the streets to celebrate. In a public vote organised by the new Nazi
leadership, 99.75% of the voters said that they agreed with Anschluss. There is no
doubt that many who disagreed felt threatened and did not dare to cast their
vote, although even if they had, the result would probably have been the same. As
Hitler thought, the British and French governments voiced their concerns but did
not do anything to stop Anschluss. Through Anschluss and the remilitarisation of
the Rhineland, Germany had considerably added to her territory and population,
making her a stronger power and an even greater threat in the future.
“The law, enacted by the Austrian government and ‘accepted’ by the German government
states: that Austria is a state of the German Reich and that on Sunday, April 10, a free
and secret plebiscite (vote) of the German men and women of Austria over twenty years of
age will take place regarding the reunion with the German Reich. Austria now becomes a
Federal State of the Reich, such as Bavaria, Saxony and Wurttemberberg. Austria, like
Bavaria, will retain her own Government, and for the present the existing laws will remain in
force. Herr Hitler has incorporated the Austrian Army in the German Army and placed it
under his command.”
A report from the Manchester Guardian, 14th March 1938.
1. According to the source, what were the results of the Anschluss law?
2. What effect did the Saar plebiscite have on Hitler’s foreign policy?
3. What evidence is there that Hitler recognised that Germany was still weak
when it came to the remilitarisation of the Rhineland?
4. What change gave Hitler the confidence to attempt German union with
Austria?
5. Why did German troops enter Austria?
6. What evidence is there that Anschluss was popular in Austria?
7. What were the consequences of the remilitarisation of the Rhineland and
Anschluss?
8. How useful is the source to an historian looking at the unification of Austria
and Germany in 1938?
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What caused the Second World War?
The Munich Conference
A crisis in Czechoslovakia in 1938 brought Germany very close to war with Britain
and France. Czechoslovakia had been created in 1919. The new country was created
out of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire and contained numerous nationalities, the
main two of which were Czechs and Germans. The Germans mostly lived in the
region on the western border with Germany called the Sudetenland.
Hitler wanted all ethnic Germans to live in one German nation, and had already
united Germany and Austria. In 1938, he ordered preparations for the invasion of
Czechoslovakia. The Czech military was weak, but they were supported by a
guarantee of French support.
British public opinion was largely in favour of a negotiated peace. British people
thought that if war broke out, it would be fought in the trenches like the First
World War. They were desperate to avoid the carnage of the trenches again. They
also, like many politicians, preferred the idea of a strong Germany under Hitler to
a strong communist USSR. They thought that if Germany was allowed to grow
stronger, they would act as a buffer against communism.
Some British politicians felt that Hitler’s aims were reasonable. They accepted
that many ethnic Germans lived in the Sudetenland, so the borders of Europe
should be redrawn. Many politicians in the government also had access to secret
military documents that suggested that Britain was in no position to fight a war.
During the Spanish Civil War, many people had died in bombing raids carried out by
German planes at Guernica. Looking at this, the British military chiefs said that
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over one million people would be killed by bombing raids in the first sixty days of
the war and that mass graves would be needed as there would not be enough wood
for coffins. Instead, they should play for time until the air force constructed new
planes to replace the old biplanes from the First World War and a new radar
system was constructed.
The British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, went to three meetings with
Hitler to discuss the crisis in Czechoslovakia. At the third meeting in Munich,
without consulting the Czechs, they agreed that the Sudetenland should be given
to Germany immediately. In return, Hitler agreed that he would not seek to expand
Germany elsewhere. The governments of Britain and France made it clear to
Czechoslovakia that if the Czechs rejected this solution, they would have to fight
Germany by themselves.
Chamberlain returned to London and was hailed as a hero who had prevented war.
He waved the piece of paper signed by himself and Hitler to the cheering crowd,
declaring “peace in our time”. Hitler called it a “scrap of paper” and knew that he
had no intention of keeping to his promise. In March 1939, the German army
marched into the rest of Czechoslovakia. Neville Chamberlain realised that he had
been betrayed Hitler, and began to mobilise the British army. France did the same.
There was, however, no declaration of war.
“The Munich Agreement is a total defeat. Czechoslovakia will be swallowed up by
the Nazis. And do not suppose that this is the end. This is only the beginning.”
Winston Churchill, speaking in Parliament in 1938.
1. What is said in the source about the Munich Agreement?
2. Why did Hitler want to take control of the Sudetenland?
3. Why did the British public want to negotiate rather than declare war?
4. How did the USSR affect the British attitude to at the Munich Conference?
5. Why did the British military chiefs think that they were not ready for war?
6. What was agreed at the Munich Conference?
7. How successful was the Munich Conference in preventing war?
8. How reliable is the source to an historian looking at attitudes to the Munich
Conference?
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What caused the Second World War?
Nazi-Soviet Pact
With Germany growing in military strength and increasing in size, she was becoming
more of a concern. Stalin, the leader of the USSR, knew that Hitler’s ultimate aim
was to attack the USSR. In 1939, he invited Lord Halifax, the British Foreign
Secretary, to go to the USSR to discuss an alliance against Germany. Britain
refused. The British feared communism, the method by which the USSR was
governed.
While Hitler began to make preparations to invade Poland, the British sent a
foreign office official to the USSR. They gave an impression that they were not
taking the talks seriously. He travelled by boat rather than plane, and was unwilling
to commit to anything. Stalin suggested that he would send troops into Poland if
Germany invaded. The British refused, saying that they would guarantee the safety
of Poland by themselves. After the Munich Agreement, Stalin became increasingly
convinced that Britain would break its promise to Poland, and he was thought that
Britain was trying to provoke a war between Germany and the USSR.
In August 1939, Hitler sent Ribbentrop, a senior
Nazi official, to the USSR. He offered a NaziSoviet alliance, saying that Russia and Germany
would partition (divide) Poland between them.
Stalin knew Hitler was lying, but he did not trust
the British either. Stalin had two choices. If he
made an alliance with Britain, he would end up
fighting a war with Hitler over Poland. If he
made an alliance with Germany, he would get half
of Poland, and time to prepare for the coming
war with Germany. He chose the latter. On 23
August 1939, he signed the Pact with Hitler.
The Nazi-Soviet Pact also had a secret
agreement saying that the USSR had a sphere of
influence where Germany would not involve themselves. Effectively, they were
giving the USSR the option to invade Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania
and Poland.
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On 1st September 1939, satisfied that his eastern frontier was more secure, and
also thinking that Britain and France would continue to appease him, the German
army invaded Poland. Hitler stuck to the terms of the Nazi-Soviet Pact, and
claimed the land that he had agreed to. These were parts of the old Germany that
were given to Poland in the Treaty of Versailles, as well as other parts of Polish
territory that had never been controlled by Germany but which contained a large
proportion of ethnic Germans. The British government demanded that the German
army leave Poland. When they refused to do so, Britain declared war on Germany on
3rd September 1939.
“The Anglo-French plan was to direct Germany towards the East and involve Hitler
in conflict with the Soviet Union. Munich and the negotiations of 1939 provided
clear proof of the unwillingness of the British and French governments to form an
anti-Hitler alliance. The treaty with Germany was a step which the USSR was
forced to take in the difficult situation which had come about in the summer of
1939. The Soviet government realised Hitler’s aims and understood the treaty
would only bring a breathing space which would give them time to carry through the
political and military measures needed to ensure the country’s security.”
A Soviet historian writing in 1969.
1. According to the source, why did the USSR sign the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
2. Why did Stalin propose an alliance with Britain?
3. What evidence is there that Britain was reluctant to ally with the USSR?
4. What did Ribbentrop propose to Stalin?
5. Why did Stalin choose to sign an agreement with Hitler, a man he regarded
as an enemy?
6. What were the consequences of the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
7. Why did Britain declare war on Germany?
8. How reliable is the source to an historian studying the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
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