How does Hitler develop tension in the 1930’s?

• Dollfuss Affair 1934:

  > The Austrian Chancellor, Dollfuss, banned the Nazi Party in Austria. Hitler responded by telling Austrian Nazis to create havoc in Austria and they murdered Dollfuss. Mussolini moved his troops to the Austrian border promising to stop the Anschluss. Hitler backed down.
• The Saar Plebiscite January 1935:

  > The Saar (full of COAL) had been given to France for 15 years, but this ended in 1935. A plebiscite was held to see who should govern the area and 90% of voters chose to join Germany. Hitler used this as propaganda to say that all VOLKSDEUTSCHE wanted to unite.
• Rearmament 1935:

  > At a rally in 1935 Hitler showed off weapons and troops that he had secretly been building. Hitler announced that he was reintroducing CONSCRIPTION in 1936 and expanding the German army to 750,000 men.
• Stresa Front – 1935:

  > Agreement between Britain, France and Italy that they would uphold the Locarno Treaties. They also agreed to protect Austrian independence and stop Hitler breaking anymore terms of the Treaty of Versailles. The Stresa Front was dissolved later in 1935, as the Anglo-German Naval Agreement and Italian invasion of Abyssinia created tension between the three powers.
• Anglo-German Naval Agreement – 1935:

  > Britain agreed that Germany could build a navy 35% of the British navy. Britain was breaking the agreement they had

  made in the Stresa Front that they had signed just 10 weeks earlier.
• Anglo-German Naval Agreement – 1935:

  > Mussolini was furious that Britain had broken the Stresa Front and this drove him to stop working with Britain and France. By agreeing to this, Britain was undermining the Treaty of Versailles and Hitler used this to show that the Treaty of Versailles was unfair.