Factors that caused WWII in Europe (Nazi)

Question 1

What was the Munich Agreement and how did it cause WWII in Europe?

Answer 1

• Czechoslovakia’s leader, Edvard Benes, was horrified by the Anchluss and Nazi’s Expansion → Felt it was the next target → Britain and France promised to protect against Hitler
• Hitler interested as Sudentenland region was largely constituted of Germans. → May 1938, Hitler claimed to protect the Sudenten Germans and threatened to invade the country if not handed over.
• Benes was confident to fight due to his modern army and his support from Britain and France . → People aware of the imminence of another war.
• To defuse threat of war, Chamberlain gave in to Hitler’s demand to take over the Sudetenland.
• Removed possibilities of intervention that could have stopped Hitler early on.
• Convinced Hitler that Britain and France would give in to anything as long as war could be avoided, allowed him to grow in ambitions and aggression, emboldened to go further with every successive step in Europe, increase in tensions.
• Policy gave Hitler time for rearmament, raised the scale of war afterwards because Germany was allowed time to grow in strength, made stopping Hitler even harder.

Question 2

What was the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression pact?

Answer 2

• Hitler targeted the Polish Corridor and the city of Danzig → Hitler thought Britain and France would not risk war over Poland
• However, Poland was contiguous with USSR → USSR would oppose, Germany and Britain and France would act too → Two front war heralded the downfall of Germany
• Stalin concerned western powers were not resisting Hitler’s expansion and not consulted to Munich Agreement → Lost faith in Britain and France
• Split Poland in half between USSR and Germany, buy time to get forces ready in case if Hitler turned against the pact. (1939)
• Anglo-Polish Agreement in 1939 for mutual assistance by Britain in case of a military invasion from Nazi Germany, as specified in a secret protocol
• Agreement assured that Germany would not face his fear of a two-front war and allowed Hitler to invade Poland without fear of Soviet intervention.