Word: hitlers
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...Hitler's antagonists had changed over the years, and now the important newcomer on the international scene was Neville Chamberlain, who had replaced Stanley Baldwin as Conservative Prime Minister of Britain in the spring of 1937. Chamberlain's background was in business; he believed in orderly negotiations. He had no experience in dealing with an unscrupulous improviser like Hitler, but he nonetheless invited himself to a meeting with the Fuhrer. Hitler received him in Berchtesgaden, and soon began ranting about the Czechs. He said he would not "tolerate any longer that a small, second-rate country should treat the mighty...
...next day Chamberlain returned to Germany to tell Hitler he could have everything he asked. "Do I understand," asked the Fuhrer, "that the British, French and Czech governments have agreed to the transfer of the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia to Germany...
...terribly sorry," said Hitler, "but that no longer suits me." The German leader seemed determined to humiliate the Czechs and expose the weakness of the British and French. He no longer wanted a plebiscite. The Czechs would simply have to hand over the Sudetenland by Oct. 1, or the Germans would invade. Now Chamberlain was angry. Returning to London, he found that the French were reluctantly ready to meet a German invasion with force, a decision in which he unhappily concurred. In London people began digging trenches to provide shelter from the expected air raids. "How horrible, fantastic, incredible...
Having reached the brink of war, the warriors hesitated. Chamberlain sent a message to Mussolini suggesting a meeting with Hitler and French Premier Daladier. Hitler agreed. Chamberlain was in the midst of addressing Parliament when he received Hitler's invitation to Munich the following day; he almost gasped with relief as he announced his acceptance. The Czechs were not even invited, so it took only twelve hours for the four leaders to agree on Sept. 30 on the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia. And they were pleased with what they had done. When Chamberlain returned to London, he proudly uttered his most...
Having won everything, Hitler still could not be satisfied. The following spring, deciding that he now wanted more than just the Sudetenland, he held a conference with Czech President Emil Hacha in Berlin (Bene had resigned and gone into exile after Munich). Hacha was 66 and suffering from heart trouble, so it did not help to have the meeting begin at 1:15 a.m. on March 15, 1939. Hitler told his guest that the Czechs were still guilty of "Bene tendencies," and therefore the Wehrmacht would invade Czechoslovakia at 6 that morning. The only question was whether the Czechs would...