The Sudeten Crisis & Munich Agreement, 1938 (AQA GCSE History)

How did appeasement fail in the Sudeten Crisis? - Summary

The Sudeten Crisis of 1938 was a key moment when the policy of appeasement failed. The Sudetenland was a region in Czechoslovakia where many ethnic Germans lived. Adolf Hitler demanded that this area be given to Germany, claiming that the Czech government mistreated German-speaking people.

In September 1938, the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Italy met in Munich to discuss the crisis. They agreed to let Hitler take over the Sudetenland without consulting Czechoslovakia. They believed that this concession would satisfy Hitler and prevent further conflict. This agreement is known as the Munich Agreement. British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain famously declared that the agreement had secured "peace for our time." 

The failure of appeasement became clear soon after the Munich Agreement. Instead of being satisfied, Hitler saw that Britain and France were unwilling to stand up to him. This encouraged him to continue his expansion. In March 1939, just a few months after the Munich Agreement, Hitler broke his promises and took over the rest of Czechoslovakia. This showed that appeasement had failed because it did not stop Hitler's ambitions. It only made Hitler more confident that he could keep expanding without facing serious opposition.

 Why did Hitler want to gain the Sudetenland?

• Hitler wanted to gain the Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia for Germany because:

  • After Anschluss, Germany bordered Czechoslovakia on three sides

    • Claiming Czechoslovakia would protect Germany from invasion

  • The Sudetenland had rich mineral resources and the Skoda armament factory

    • This would help Germany’s armament industry

  • The Sudetenland had fortifications 

    • By claiming this area, it would make invading the whole of Czechoslovakia easier for Hitler

  • Over 3.5 million Germans lived in the Sudetenland

    • The Sudeten Germans claimed that the Czech government mistreated them

    • Hitler would continue to achieve his foreign policy aims of Grossdeutchland and Lebensraum

• In 1938, Hitler began his attempt to claim Czechoslovakia

What was the Sudeten Crisis?

The Munich Conference & Agreement

• There were three meetings between Hitler and other European nations about the Sudeten Crisis:

  • 15th September 1938 - Berchtesgarden

  • 22nd September 1938 - Godesberg

  • 30th September 1938 - Munich

• The meeting at Munich was the biggest, and most important, meeting about the Sudetenland

The Munich Conference

• Representatives from Italy, Britain, France and Germany attended the conference

  • Czechoslovakia was not invited to the meeting

    • This made the meeting unfair from the start

  • The USSR was not involved in the conference

    • This created distrust between the USSR and the Western powers

The Munich Agreement

• The four nations (Italy, Britain, France and Germany) developed the Munich Agreement on 30th September 1938

  • These were terms agreed by Hitler to avoid war

• The Munich Agreement stated that:

  • Hitler would gain the Sudetenland

  • Czechoslovakia would keep the rest of their territory

• The Munich Agreement was controversial because:

  • Czechoslovakia had to accept the terms

  • Hungary and Poland also claimed areas of Czechoslovakia 

    • Poland gained Teschen in October 1938

• Hitler marched into the Sudetenland on 1st October 1938

Consequences of the Munich Agreement

Initial reactions to the Munich Agreement

Consequences of the Munich Agreement to Europe

• War in Europe had been delayed

  • This gave Britain and France the vital time needed to rearm

• Britain and France’s decision to exclude the USSR from the Munich Agreement angered Stalin

  • It increased Stalin’s distrust of Britain and France

    • He did not believe that they would defend the USSR if Hitler began to invade their territory

  • It forced Stalin to make difficult decisions

    • Stalin began to consider an alliance with Hitler to protect his borders

• Hitler’s invasion of the whole of Czechoslovakia seemed inevitable to its leaders

  • Hitler had gained confidence through the Munich Agreement. He was convinced that Britain and France would not defend Czechoslovakia

  • Czechoslovakia had no defences to fight against Hitler’s armed forces

The occupation of Czechoslovakia

• By March 1939, Hitler gained the rest of Czechoslovakia

  • Hitler demanded the Czech government surrender control of Czechoslovakia

    • Failure to do this would result in the Luftwaffe bombing of Prague

  • On 15th March, Hitler marched into Prague

  • He succeeded in encouraging Slovakia to declare independence

• Hitler could not defend his actions to claim the whole of Czechoslovakia

  • There was no German-speaking population in the land he claimed

  • Hitler intended to increase Germany’s power

• The invasion of Czechoslovakia ended the policy of appeasement

  • Chamberlain stated on 17th March that he could no longer trust Hitler

  • Britain and France looked to protect vulnerable countries in Europe from Hitler

AWAITING IMAGE
A map showing how far Hitler had extended Germany’s territory by March 1939