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Pastimes : My House -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Poet who wrote (1620)	9/30/2002 1:03:43 PM
From: Lazarus_Long	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 7689

Chamberlain probably did more long-term damage to the pacifist cause than any other man in the last several centuries. His actions are generally credited with leading directly to WW2. He did have some points that are conceded today: Chamberlain believed that Germany had been badly treated by the Allies after it was defeated in the First World War. He therefore thought that the German government had genuine grievances and that these needed to be addressed. He also thought that by agreeing to some of the demands being made by Adolf Hitler of Germany and Benito Mussolini of Italy, he could avoid a European war. spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk The gross stupidity of the European allies after WW2 undoubtedly had more to do with causing WW2 than Chamberlain. The French were out for revenge against the Germans. The British PM (can't remember his name) spoke (in reference to the Germans) of "squeezing them till the pips squeak". Germany was to be allowed no navy, no air force, and an army of only 100,000. These were incorporated in the infamous Treaty of Versailles. This treaty was signed in a railroad car on a siding. Hitler later had the pleasure of accepting the French surrender in that same railroad car. And (I think even thames would concede this) the American President, Woodrow Wilson, got it right. He intended to let Germany rebuild under a democratic gov't. With no reparations and no revenge. Here's an interesting piece: In January 1934, a plebiscite in the Saarland returned that territory to Germany, and Hitler took the opportunity to renounce any further claims on France. In March, he announced the introduction of conscription, and despite opposition, he eventually negotiated a naval treaty in June 1935 with Britain. His greatest stroke came in March 1936, when he used the excuse of a pact between France and the Soviet Union to remilitarize the Rhineland. This was a decision Hitler made against the advice of his own general staff. holocaust-trc.org Those broken pledges ought to remind you of someone on the current world stage. That was the beginning of Hitler's march to war. The Versailles Treaty required Germany to place no troops in the Rhineland. Documents recovered after WW2 indicate that had Britain or France pulled their heads out of their butts and made it clear to Herr Hitler that they would use force if he did not withdraw from the Rhineland, he would have backed down. And there's a good chance he would have lost power and WW2 would not have happened.