APPEASEMENT. The Neville Chamberlain approach.
It certainly worked with Hitler, didn't it, Neville?
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Arthur Neville Chamberlain (1869 - 1940)
Arthur Neville Chamberlain, the man who made 'appeasement' famous, was from a family of statesmen. His father, Joseph, had been leader of both the Liberal Unionist party and then a colonial secretary in the Conservative government. Neville's older half-brother Austen held many Conservative cabinet positions throughout the early 20th century and won the Nobel Peace prize.
Neville himself started out in business, first managing his father's sisal plantation in the Bahamas, then moving on to a successful career in the metalworking industry in Birmingham. It was there that he took his first political position, when he was appointed Lord Mayor of Birmingham in 1915. During World War One he supervised national conscription in Lloyd George's government, but when it became clear his job didn't offer the power he needed, he resigned. One year later, he was elected to parliament as a Conservative MP.
He served as both Chancellor of the Exchequer (1923-24) and Minister of Health (1923, 1924-29, 1931), among other government positions. As Minister of Health, he helped simplify social services with a series of important social reforms.
He succeeded Stanley Baldwin as prime minister in 1937 and the appeasement years were upon Britain. In an attempt to forestall a general European war, Chamberlain travelled to Germany three times in September 1938, as Germany demanded the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia. As Germany's demands increased throughout the month of September, Chamberlain recommended the convening of a four-power conference. On 29th September, Hitler, Chamberlain, Daladier of France and Mussolini of Italy met in Munich to agree upon a plan that would remove the Germany army by 10th October.
Chamberlain left Munich with a declaration signed by Hitler that assured peace. The prime minister returned home happy, believing that he had achieved 'peace with honour. I believe it is peace in our time'.
Six months later, Hitler would disregard the agreement with the annexation of Czechoslovakia and later with the invasion of Poland in September of 1939. Chamberlain's policy of appeasement was seen as a failure by many at the time, and for many years to follow. Current [communist BBC] thinking has shifted, however, believing Chamberlain to have shrewdly agreed to appeasement to give the British armed forces the time they desperately needed to prepare for full-blown war.
In May 1940, Chamberlain was ousted from power after a failed British expedition to Norway. He served under Prime Minister Churchill as Lord President of the Council and died a few weeks after he left the post in October 1940.
bbc.co.uk
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