History rev

• International peace collapsed because:

  • Germany's reaction to the terms of the treaty were generally negative. This was because they thought that the treaty was unfair to them and also humiliated them since the treaty removed parts of Germany that the Germans took pride in.
  • Territories lost
  • France, impacted horribly by the war, wanted Germany to suffer as much as possible as revenge but Britain didn't want to punish them so harshly. Clemencau wanted revenge, Lloyd George wanted justice.
• Hitler's 3 main aims were: 1. To unite Germany/Expand German territory 2. To restore Germany's pride 3. To restore Germany's power.
• The saar Plebiscite

  • There was a vote by the people of saarland if they should return to Germany after being ran by the League of Nations since 1919. About 90% of the population voted to rejoin Germany.
  • The vote was an overachieving success for Hitler and gave him a morale boost. It could serve as an argument that German people that got misplaced would want to return to Germany.
• Hitler got involved in the Spanish civil war because:

  • He wanted the right-wing nationalists to win. It would help defeat "the allies" if they won because Spain was on the other side of France. This would also help defeat communism and Franco would send fee iron.
  • Moreover, Hitler saw this as an opportunity to test out his armed forces. The best way to test out your armed forces was with war, in which he saw an opening with Guernica. Hitler was also preparing for "German conquest" in which he needed a strong army to complete it.
• What is appeasement?

  Appeasement, in an international context, is a diplomatic policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power to avoid conflict.
• Arguments for appeasement:

  • At least Hitler was standing up to communism - Hitler was not the only concern of Britain and its allies. He was not even their main worry. They were more concerned about the spread of communism and particularly about the dangers to world peace and posed by Stalin, the new leader in the USSR. Many saw Hitler as the buffer to the threat of spreading communism.
• Arguments for appeasement:

  • The attitude of British Empire - It was not all certain that British Empire and commonwealth states (e.g Canada) would support a war against Germany
  • We must not repeat the horrors of the great war - Both British and French leaders vividly remember the horrific experiences of the first world war. They wished to avoid another war at any cost.
• Arguments for appeasement:

  • Britain is not ready for war - The British government believed that armed forces were not ready for war against Hitler.
  • Our economic problems are a higher priority - Britain and France were still suffering from the efforts of the Depression. They had large debts and huge unemployment
  • Hitler was right: The Treaty of Versailles was unfair. - Many felt that the Treaty of Versailles was unfair to Germany.
• Arguments against Appeasement:

  • It encouraged Hitler to be more aggressive - The gambles he took and got away with gave him the courage to take bigger risks.
  • It allowed Germany to grow too strong - With hindsight, one could see that Germany not only re-gaining land, but it was also growing stronger than Britain and France.
• Arguments against appeasement:

  • Too much trust in Hitler's promises - With hindsight you could see that Hitler often went back on his promises. Appeasement was based on the mistaken idea that Hitler was trustworthy.
  • It scared the USSR - With hindsight you could see how the policy alarmed the USSR. Hitler made no secret of his plans to expand eastwards. Appeasement sent the message that Britain and France would not stand in Hitler's way.
• The Stresa Front:

  • An allience of France, Britain and Italy
  • Formed in April 1935 at Stresa, Italy
  • It was in response to Hitler's rearmament of Germany
  • Italy signed it as they feared German aggression through Austria.
• What did Hitler encourage the Austrian Nazis to do and why?(Stresa front and anschluss)

  Hitler encouraged the Austrian Nazi party to stir up trouble for the government because he wanted the unification between Germany and Austria to Happen.
• What did Hitler tell the Austrian Chancellor?(Stresa front and anschluss)

  Hitler told him that only Anschluss (political union) could sort out the problems caused by the Austrian Nazi's (Demonstrations, riots, etc..)
• Who did the Austrian Cancellor ask for help?(Stresa front and anschluss)

  He asked help from France and Britain but they refused it. So he called a plebiscite, to see what the Austrian people wanted.
• What did Hitler do when Schuchnigg called the plebiscite and how did he justify it?(Stresa front and anschluss)

  Hitler was not ready to risk the plebiscite, so he simply sent his troops into Austria in march 1938, to supposedly guarantee a trouble - free plebiscite.
• What was the result of the Plebiscite? (Stresa front and anschluss)


  Under the watchful eye of the Nazi Troops, 99.75% voted for Anschluss.
• What was the responce from Britain to the Anschluss? (Stresa front and anschluss)


  Britain would not resist Germany uniting with Austria. British prime minister Neville Chamberlein thought that they had the right.
• What did Chamberlain and Hitler inicially agree in September 1938? (The sudetenland crisis and the Munich agreement.)

  Hitler said that he was only interested in part of the Sudetenland and they agreed to not take over the rest of Czechoslovakia.
• Why was Chamberlain eager to make a deal? (The sudetenland crisis and the Munich agreement.)

  Because he did not want a war to break out when Britain was still militarily exhausted.
• What demands did Hitler then make after the agreement in September? (The sudetenland crisis and the Munich agreement.)

  He increased his demands, he went from wanting part of the Sudetenland to demanding all of Sudetenland. Then he started wanting all of Czechia.
• What did Hitler and Chamberlain then agree at the Munich conference? (The sudetenland crisis and the Munich agreement.)


  They decided to give Hitler what he wanted and decided the Fate of Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia was to loose the Sudetenland.
• Why were the Czechs furious? (The sudetenland crisis and the Munich agreement.)

  Because they weren't consulted about the terms of the Munich conference, and they were betrayed.
• Why did Stalin have reasons to fear Nazi Germany? (Nazi - Soviet pact)

  • Hitler's hatred of Communism
  • German rearmament
  • Nazi movement east / territorial
  • Failure of the League.
• What was the Nazi - Soviet pact?

  • The pact was an agreement of convenience between two bitter enemies.
• What were Hitler's reasons for signing the Nazi - Soviet pact?

  • Two front war - With Germany being surrounded by opposing sides, It would be difficult to win or even fight the war. So, Hitler took part in the pact to have an ally on one side (The east side) instead of an enemy.
  • Polish Guarantee - Britain and France promised to help Poland if they were attacked by Germany. So, he allied with Stalin to help fight against the allies.
• What were Stalins reasons for signing the Nazi - Soviet pact?

  • Buy time!
  • Red army purges
  • Industrializing