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A website discussing the non-aggression pact between Germany and Russia.

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On this day in 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression pact, stunning the world, given their diametrically opposed ideologies. But the dictators were, despite appearances, both playing to their own political needs.

After Nazi Germany's invasion of Czechoslovakia, Britain had to decide to what extent it would intervene should Hitler continue German expansion. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, at first indifferent to Hitler's capture of the Sudetenland, the German-speaking area of Czechoslovakia, suddenly snapped to life when Poland became threatened. He made it plain that Britain would be obliged to come to the aid of Poland in the event of German invasion. But he wanted, and needed, an ally. The only power large enough to stop Hitler, and with a vested interest in doing so, was the Soviet Union. But Stalin was cool to Britain after its effort to create a political alliance with Britain and France against Germany had been rebuffed a year earlier. Plus, Poland's leaders were less than thrilled with the prospect of Russia becoming its guardian; to them, it was simply occupation by another monstrous regime.

Hitler believed that Britain would never take him on alone, so he decided to swallow his fear and loathing of communism and cozy up to the Soviet dictator, thereby pulling the rug out from the British initiative. Both sides were extremely suspicious of the other, trying to discern ulterior motives. But Hitler was in a hurry; he knew if he was to invade Poland it had to be done quickly, before the West could create a unified front. Agreeing basically to carve up parts of Eastern Europe-and leave each other alone in the process-Hitler's foreign minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop, flew to Moscow and signed the non-aggression pact with his Soviet counterpart, V.M. Molotov (which is why the pact is often referred to as the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact). Supporters of bolshevism around the world had their heretofore romantic view of "international socialism" ruined; they were outraged that Stalin would enter into any kind of league with the fascist dictator.

But once Poland was German-occupied territory, the alliance would not last for long.

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The Hitler-Stalin Pact - Aug 23, 1939 - HISTORY.com

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On this day in 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression pact, stunning the world, given their diametrically opposed ideologies. But the dictators were, despite appearances, both playing to their own political needs. After Nazi Germany's invasion of Czechoslovakia, Britain had to decide to what extent it would intervene should Hitler continue German expansion.

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A website looking at Japanese imperialism and aggression in World War Two

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The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, was the impetus for the United States’ entrance into World War II.

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A powerpoint that walks through how to write an essay. Includes a brainstorm of topics for each question.

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How am I being marked? Used the Rubric to see what you're aiming to achieve with this essay.

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An explanation of the various ways Hitler broke the Treaty of Versailles and how Britain and France responded.

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Why didn't France and Britain step in when Germany disobeyed the ToV and invaded the Rhineland?

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BBC - Higher Bitesize History - Rhineland : Revision

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A BBC Bitesize secondary school revision resource for Higher History on the road to war: Rhineland, the importance of the Rhineland, reactions to Hitler.

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Why didn't France and Britain step in when Germany disobeyed the Treaty of Versailles and started rebuilding their military?

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Citation: C N Trueman "Germany and rearmament"
historylearningsite.co.uk. The History Learning Site, 28 Apr 2015. 24 May 2018.

When Nazi Germany openly started re-armament in 1935, few should have been surprised as Hitler had made it very clear both in his speeches and in "Mein Kampf" that he would break the "unjust" terms of the Treaty of Versailles.

Hitler had made it plain what the basis of his foreign policy would be. He had clearly stated that he would :

undo what had been imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles re-unite all Germans into one nation re-arm Germany "Mein Kampf" also clearly stated what he thought of east Europeans and the Jews. Both groups were the "untermenschen" - the sub-humans of Europe who had no place in the Europe Hitler dreamed of. Eastern Europe, in the mind of Hitler, would be where Germans would find the space to live - lebensraum - where they would use the land in a modern and productive manner, thus fulfilling the belief that Hitler held that all good Germans would work off the land and produce the food that the state would need.

Hitler saw Nazi Germany as being at the centre of Europe and as the great power of Europe, the nation needed a strong military. Throughout the 1920's, Germany had been technically keeping to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles but in reality she had been bending the rules regarding training. Versialles had not stated that Germany could not train submarine crews abroad or that pilots for the banned German Air Force could train on civilian planes. Therefore, on paper Hitler inherited a weak military but this was not in reality the case. However, Hitler knew that publicly Nazi Germany was still seen within Europe as being held to the terms of Versailles and he was determined to openly break these terms and re-assert Germany's right to control its own military.

In 1933, Hitler ordered his army generals to prepare to treble the size of the army to 300,000 men. He ordered the Air Ministry to plan to build 1,000 war planes. Military buildings such as barracks were built. He withdrew from the Geneva Disarmament Conference when the French refused to accept his plan that the French should disarm to the level of the Germans or that the Germans should re-arm to the level of the French. Either way, the two main powers of Europe would be balanced. Hitler knew that the French would not accept his plan and therefore when he withdrew from the conference, he was seen by some as the politician who had a more realistic approach to foreign policy and the French were seen as the nation that had caused Nazi Germany to withdraw.

For two years, the German military expanded in secret. By March 1935, Hitler felt strong enough to go public on Nazi Germany's military expansion - which broke the terms of the Versailles Treaty. Europe learned that the Nazis had 2,500 war planes in its Luftwaffe and an army of 300,000 men in its Wehrmacht. Hitler felt confident enough to publicly announce that there would be compulsory military conscription in Nazi Germany and that the army would be increased to 550,000 men.

How did Europe react to this flagrant violation of Versailles?

Essentially, the French and British did nothing. Britain was still recovering from the Depression which had devastated her economy. She could not afford a conflict. The French preferred a defensive policy against a potential German threat and she spent time and money building the vast Maginot Line - a series of vast forts on the French and German border. The most Britain, France and Italy did (at this time, Italy did not view German as a potential ally as the above was pre- Abyssinia) was to form the Stresa Front which issued a protest against Hitler's rearmament policy but did nothing else.

It seemed that Britain was even supporting Germany's breaking of the Treaty of Versailles. This treaty had clearly stated what Germany's navy should be - no submarines and only six warships over 10,000 tons. In June 1935 the Anglo-German Naval Agreement was signed. This allowed Germany to have one third of the tonnage of the British navy's surface fleet (probably the largest in the world at this time) and an equal tonnage of submarines. Why did Britain agree that Nazi Germany could break the terms of Versailles?

This event saw the start of what was to be called appeasement. It was believed that Nazi Germany would develop her navy regardless and that an official agreement between Nazi Germany and Britain would do much to foster relations between both countries. There was also a feeling in some quarters in Britain, that the Treaty of Versailles had been too harsh on Germany and that the time was right to loosen the terms as time had moved on and Europe had to live together. It was felt that this approach would satisfy Hitler and that Europe would benefit from this approach as Nazi Germany would have no reason to be angered or feel cornered by the old terms of Versailles. Such an approach would do much to stabilise Europe and end the anger felt by Germans at the terms of Versailles. Above all else, if Nazi Germany kept the1935 Agreement, Britain would have a very good idea of the size of Germany's navy as she would know how big her navy was and could work on a third of that figure equalling the German's navy.

However, if this agreement served any purpose it was to confuse the British public. Only two months earlier, Britain had signed the Stresa Front which had condemned Germany's military build up. Now, Britain was agreeing that Germany could do exactly what Britain had condemned !! It also showed Hitler that he could push Britain and get away with it. Were there other aspects of Versailles he could challenge ?

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Germany and rearmament - History Learning Site

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When Nazi Germany openly started re-armament in 1935, few should have been surprised as Hitler had made it very clear both in his speeches and in "Mein Kampf" that he would break the "unjust" terms of theTreaty of Versailles. Hitler had made it plain what the basis of his foreign policy would be.

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How did Hitler increase his power. Discussion of the Parliament Fire, controlling/ brainwashing women and youth, using propaganda.

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BBC - Higher Bitesize History - Impact of Nazi rule : Revision

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A BBC Bitesize secondary school revision resource for Higher History on German national consciousness: Germany 1815, opponents, allies, political turmoil.

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A site outlining the purpose of appeasement and an examination of why it failed.

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BBC - Higher Bitesize History - Appeasement : Revision

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A BBC Bitesize secondary school revision resource for Higher History on the road to war: appeasement of Germany, reasons for British policy of appeasement.

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The links on this site provide clear information about many aspects of Nazi rule, including how he treated women and youth, and whether people benefitted from Hitler's leadership.

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Links 4 & 5 on this page explain how Hitler used lies, fear, opportunism and intimidation to become leader of Germany.

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A site (aimed at students) that explains the economic policies used to pull Germany out of the Great Depression - and how successful they were.

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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Economic policies and benefits

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A secondary school revision resource for GCSE History

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A site that describes some of Hitler's failings as a leader, including his reliance on 'instinct' rather than planning.

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Reliance on instinct

Whatever the problems with his generals, however, there is no doubt that Hitler lacked many of the qualities he needed to control military affairs with consistent success. There have been examples - Churchill was one - of political leaders who successfully interceded in the details of military strategy and operations, but Hitler had neither the experience nor the personality for such a role. He shunned serious, comprehensive intellectual effort and was largely ignorant of military affairs and foreign cultures. He tended to reject any information that did not fit with his (often wildly inaccurate) preconceptions. Instead he relied on his 'instinct' and a belief that the will to win would overcome every obstacle in the end.

His talents - or lack thereof - aside, Hitler took the practice of personal command much too far. No military leader can hope to understand the realities of the situation on the ground from hundreds of miles away, and yet he came to believe that he could control all but the smallest units at the front. At the end of 1942, for example, during the battle of Stalingrad, he actually had a street map of the city spread out before him so that he could follow the fighting, block by block.

Similarly, near the end of the war he ordered that no unit could move without his express permission, and he demanded lengthy reports on every armoured vehicle and position that his forces lost. Such methods guaranteed that opportunities and dangers alike would go unnoticed, that good commanders would be trapped in impossible situations and bad ones allowed to avoid responsibility.

Hitler also combined his insistence on personal control with a leadership style that often consisted of equal parts indecisiveness and stubbornness. He sometimes put off difficult decisions for weeks, especially as the military situation grew worse. In 1943, for instance, his inability to make up his mind about an attack at Kursk eventually pushed the attack back from April to July - by which time the Soviets were well prepared.

Arguments among his commanders and advisors did not help the situation. By late 1942 Hitler's subordinates had split into cliques that competed for increasingly scarce resources, while he remained the final arbiter of all disputes. His senior commanders felt free to contact him directly; they knew that the last man to brief him often got what he wanted. At other times, though, Hitler would cling to a decision stubbornly, regardless of its merits. His decision to attack in the Ardennes in 1944 is one good example: his commanders tried, both directly and indirectly, to persuade him to adopt a more realistic plan, without success.

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Whatever the problems with his generals, however, there is no doubt that Hitler lacked many of the qualities he needed to control military affairs with consistent success. There have been examples - Churchill was one - of political leaders who successfully interceded in the details of military strategy and operations, but Hitler had neither the experience nor the personality for such a role.

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A short but detailed explanation of Hitler's aggressive actions in the lead-up to WWII.

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Citation: C N Trueman "Causes of World War Two"
historylearningsite.co.uk. The History Learning Site, 17 Mar 2015. 14 May 2018.

The causes of World War Two can be divided into long term causes and short term causes. There can be little doubt that one of the long term causes of the war was the anger felt in Weimar Germany that was caused by the Treaty of Versailles. Another long term cause was the obvious inability of the League of Nations to deal with major international issues. In the 1930's these would have been in Manchuria and Abyssinia. In both conflicts the League showed that it was unable to control those powers that worked outside of accepted international law. In the case of Manchuria it was Japan and in Abyssinia it was Mussolini's Italy.

With such apparent weakness, Hitler must have known that at the very least he could push the boundaries and see what he could get away with. His first major transgression was his defiance of the Versailles Treaty when he introduced re-armament into Nazi Germany. The expansion of all three arms of the military was forbidden by treaty. Hitler, however, ignored these restrictions. The world's powers did nothing. The same occurred in 1936 when Nazi Germany re-occupied the Rhineland. Forbidden by Versailles, Hitler felt confident enough to ignore it. Europe's failure to react was also demonstrated when Austria and the Sudentenland were occupied. Only when it became obvious that Hitler was determined to expand east and that what was left of Czechoslovakia and region Poland were to be his next targets, did the major powers of Europe react. Hitler's reference to the Munich Agreement as a " scrap of paper" made clear his intentions. However, in 1938, very many in the UK had supported Neville Chamberlain's attempts at avoiding war (appeasement) and public opinion was on his side. This only changed when it became clear that appeasement had failed and the public rallied to the side of Winston Churchill - the man who had insisted that Chamberlain had taken the wrong course of action.

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Causes of World War Two - History Learning Site

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The causes of World War Two can be divided into long term causes and short term causes. There can be little doubt that one of the long term causes of the war was the anger felt in Weimar Germany that was caused by the Treaty of Versailles.

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This page discusses the role different countries played in the lead-up to WWII, and provides detail on the Munich Agreement (and its failure)

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The Nazis set out on the road to war in the mid-1930s, as Hitler and his government adopted domestic and foreign policies which contributed to the outbreak of World War II. Many involved flagrant violations of the Treaty of Versailles (1919), as well as other international agreements. Yet while European governments were well aware of these breaches, they took no strong action against Germany. Most leaders adopted a soft line on the Hitler regime, ignoring or rationalising his actions. They preferred to make concessions to Germany rather than risking another devastating war. This approach has become known as appeasement. With hindsight, the appeasement of Nazi Germany was an error of judgement. It encouraged Hitler, who was already hell-bent on war and conquest, to further intimidate and menace Germany's neighbours.

The following Nazi policies, events and factors all contributed to the outbreak of World War II in 1939:

Rearmament. Hitler's economic policy through the mid-1930s centered on the re-arming and expansion of the German military. This program began in secret but it was widely known around Europe by 1935, the year Hitler reintroduced conscription and approved the first of several large military parades. The following year Hitler unveiled his Four-Year Plan: ostensibly an economic program to achieve German self-sufficiency; in reality a schedule to prepare the nation's military for war. By the start of 1939 Germany's armed forces boasted more than 900,000 soldiers, 8,000 aircraft and 95 warships.

The Rhineland. The region surrounding the Rhine River was essentially a buffer zone between Germany and her western neighbours: France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Holland. The Versailles treaty prohibited Germany from stationing any military forces in this area. In March 1936 Hitler ordered German troops back into the Rhineland, in defiance of the treaty. The remilitarisation of the Rhineland was hardly a dramatic incident (most Wehrmacht soldiers rode into the region on tractors and horseback; they had been ordered to retreat if the French retaliated). The move could have instigated a war with France, whose forces were then numerically superior to Hitler's. But the fuhrer had chosen his moment: France was in the middle of an election and distracted by domestic issues. Neither London or Brussels opposed the re-militarisation, though Winston Churchill - then a back bencher in the House of Commons - proposed military action to remove the German troops.

The Hossbach memorandum. In November 1937 Hitler summoned his foreign policy advisors and military commanders to a secret meeting in Berlin. There he laid out his concerns about Germany's economic growth, stressing the need for autarky (self-sufficiency in food and raw materials) but also acknowledging it was going to be unachievable. Hitler instead proposed a military solution: expansion into eastern Europe so Germany could access land and raw materials there. Much of the meeting focused on how European powers would respond to this. Hitler's advisors agreed that aggression against nations like Czechoslovakia would probably provoke war with Britain and France - but they urged Hitler to wait, suggesting Germany would not be prepared for a major war until 1941 or 1942. Discussions at this meeting were recorded in a memorandum prepared by Colonel Friedrich Hossbach. This document was one of the most compelling pieces of evidence of Hitler's war plans.

Anschluss. The term anschluss is German for 'connection'. In the 1930s it was used to describe the proposed union of Germany and Austria. There had been support for this as early as 1918 - however a combined Austro-German state was considered a danger to its neighbours, so it was explicitly banned in the Treaty of Versailles. By the mid-1930s Austria had its own Nazi group, influenced by its parent movement in Germany. In July 1934 Austrian Nazis launched an unsuccessful coup attempt, murdering the Austrian chancellor. They continued to attract members and advocate unification with Germany, a proposal rejected by the centrist government in Vienna. Under considerable pressure, the Austrian chancellor Schuschnigg convened a March 1938 referendum on Austrian independence. Claiming the election was rigged, Hitler sent Schuschnigg an ultimatum: relinquish power to the Austrian Nazi Party or face invasion by the Wehrmacht. Schuschnigg sought help from Britain and France but this was refused, so he resigned as chancellor. German forces crossed the border the next day, moving into Austria without resistance. Local Nazis were installed in power in Vienna; Anschluss was confirmed (99.7 per cent) by an April 1938 plebiscite, itself almost certainly rigged.

Sudetenland. Having secured anschluss with Austria, Hitler turned his attention to the Sudetenland, a western region of Czechoslovakia inhabited mostly by German-speakers. Czechoslovakia was itself a relatively new nation, carved out of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire by the Treaty of St Germain (September 1919). But Hitler had no respect for this treaty or for Czechoslovakian sovereignty. He began claiming ethnic Germans in the Sudetenland were being persecuted by Prague. A small but vocal pro-Nazi group in the Sudetenland, led by Konrad Henlein, echoed these grievances, though most were exaggerated or fabricated. In April 1938 Henlein's party demanded political autonomy for the Sudetenland. Through mid-1938 they organised terrorist attacks against Czechoslovakian government troops and facilities. Hitler, in an ominous speech in Berlin, promised to protect the Germans in western Czechoslovakia:

"With regard to the problem of the Sudeten-Germans, my patience is now at an end! I have made [Czechoslovakian leader] Benes an offer ... the decision now lies in his hands: Peace or War! He will either accept this offer and give to the Germans their freedom - or we will go and fetch this freedom for ourselves!"

"The term 'appeasement' was originally a term of approval. It had positive connotations of peaceful change in a world not recovered, and perhaps never to recover, from the ravages of... the Great War ... It was in this context that the prospect of another war looked not only terrifying but in some sense hopeless to chose in charge in England and France in the 1930s. They had scraped through by the skin of their teeth the last time; what were the prospects of doing so again? Were there any conceivable causes for which they could call on their peoples to fight and die once again?"
Gerhard Weinberg

Munich agreement. With Hitler menacing Czechoslovakia, British prime minister Neville Chamberlain intervened, meeting the fuhrer three times in September 1938. At the first of these meetings, on September 15th, Chamberlain agreed to Hitler's demands; Britain subsequently urged Czechoslovakia to concede the Sudetenland to Germany. The two leaders met again a week later and Hitler's position had hardened: he demanded German forces be granted immediate access to the Sudeten region. On September 29th Hitler, Chamberlain, Benito Mussolini (Italy) and Edouard Daladier (France) met in Munich to resolve the crisis. They signed an agreement approving the Nazi annexation of the Sudetenland, provided Hitler proceed no further into Czechoslovakia. The Czechoslovak leader Benes was told he could submit to the occupation of the Sudetenland or resist the Nazis alone; he chose the former. Chamberlain returned to Britain where he famously - and incorrectly - said the Munich agreement had secured "peace for our time". German troops rolled into the Sudetenland two days later. In December 1938, elections there returned a 97.3 per cent vote for the Nazi Party.

Czechoslovakia. Having lost its western region to the Nazis, in late 1938 Czechoslovakia was further torn apart by international conferences. Significant Czechoslovak territory was surrendered to Germany, Hungary and Poland, further reducing and weakening it as a nation. Hitler, of course, had no intentions of honouring the Munich agreement. In March 1939 he summoned the new Czechoslovak leader, Emil Hacha, to Berlin and told him a Nazi invasion would commence later that day. Threatened with the carpet-bombing of Prague by the Luftwaffe, Hacha ordered the surrender of his armed forces. By the end of the following day Hitler himself was standing in Prague and proclaiming victory. Independent Czechoslovakia ceased to exist; its eastern half, Slovakia, was given autonomy as a pro-Nazi satellite state. The Munich agreement was exposed as a sham; the policy of appeasement had failed utterly. Hitler's ruthlessness, dishonesty and contempt for international negotiation had been exposed.

The Soviet-German pact. By mid-1939 the Nazis had turned their attention to Poland. In public, Hitler's main concern was the city of Danzig, once part of East Prussia but now deep in Polish territory. As with the Sudetenland, the majority of Danzig citizens were German-speakers. But Hitler's true interest in Poland was lebensraum: 'living space' and natural resources for Germans. The only obstacle to a Nazi invasion of Poland was how the Soviet Union might respond. This question was resolved in August 1939 with the signing of the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union. This agreement committed Berlin and Moscow to peaceful relations for a period of five years; it also provided for exchanges of raw materials, machinery and weapons. Hitler and Stalin had previously been bitter rivals, more likely to make war than sign peace treaties, so the pact shocked observers around the world. They would have been more shocked if they knew that at the same negotiating table, the Nazis and Soviets had made secret plans to carve up and lay claim to Poland and eastern Europe.

1. The march to war was driven by Hitler's obsession with lebensraum: obtaining more territory for the German people.
2. His intentions were made clear in a meeting with military leaders in late 1937, as recorded in the Hossbach memorandum.
3. In 1938, Hitler ordered a series of provocative and expansionist moves into Austria and Czechoslovakia.
4. Britain and France adopted a policy of appeasement, allowing some German expansion in the hope of preventing war.
5. In the 1938 Munich Agreement, Hitler pledged to restrain further expansion if his claims to German sovereignty over the Sudetenland were recognised.

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This page was written by Jennifer Llewellyn, Jim Southey and Steve Thompson. To reference this page, use the following citation:
J. Llewellyn et al, "The road to war", Alpha History, accessed [today's date], http://alphahistory.com/nazigermany/the-road-to-war/.

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The Nazis set out on the road to war in the mid-1930s, as Hitler and his government adopted domestic and foreign policies which contributed to the outbreak of World War II. Many involved flagrant violations of the Treaty of Versailles (1919), as well as other international agreements.