Chapter 73: The Munich Conference
[Ask for collection, ask for recommendation, thank you]
"Report to the Führer, the British have sent a telegram informing us that British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain will pay a state visit to our country on September 15, 1938."
"Got it."
Hitler had no interest in Chamberlain's visit, but since Chamberlain was coming to Berlin, Hitler would not oppose it, and just took advantage of Chamberlain's appeasement policy to create conditions for Germany to recover the Sudetenland without bloodshed.
Today is September 11, 1938, Hitler summoned Zhang Jun to ask about the equipment and training of the 1st SS Panzer Corps, after receiving Zhang Jun's affirmative answer, he amiably kept praising Zhang Jun, Hitler also wanted to have an army that was completely loyal to him, and the self-righteous guys of the Wehrmacht were not completely trustworthy, and there were a handful of people among them who were against the Great Führer.
You must know that Hitler came to power through elections, and then ruthlessly suppressed the opposition, either shot or sent to prison, these opponents cannot be wiped out, some of them are still hidden in the crowd, waiting for the opportunity to plot to overthrow or assassinate Hitler, Hitler has been assassinated 44 times in later generations. If it weren't for Zhang Jun and the SS Guard Banner Corps last time Goering's conspiracy, the situation would have been very critical. Therefore, the current Hitler is more eager to have a completely loyal elite army than the historical Hitler, and the direction of his finger is the direction of their attack.
Hitler's little turnip, Zhang Jun's loyalty, was unquestionable, and his command skills were also tested in the war, so what reason did Hitler have to keep this completely loyal army strong? There was no reason why the 1st SS Panzer Corps, which was completely loyal to itself, must be vigorously propped up. They would be an armed force independent of the Wehrmacht and under the personal command of Hitler.
The weapons and equipment of the current SS First Panzer Corps have been completely installed, of course, the weapons and equipment in service in Germany, and some of the new weapons and equipment ordered by Zhang Jun have been stored in Krupp's secret warehouse, and now is not the time for them to come out, Zhang Jun needs them when they need it most in Germany, and suddenly appeared to hit the enemy by surprise, and the first battle gained the strategic and tactical advantage in the early stage of the war.
Early the next morning, Zhang Jun set off to the Sudetenland border with the 1st SS Panzer Corps in accordance with Hitler's orders, this time it was not an exercise, Hitler specially formulated a series of strategic plans for this, and the 600,000 German ** team was drawn to the Czech border on September 12, 1938, and the steel torrent rolled forward.
And Hitler also presided over a military conference on the Sudetenland on the same day, but the German Wehrmacht fully opposed Hitler's military adventures, and Hitler now basically transferred Germany's active elite troops to the Sudetenland border, and the reserves were not mobilized and assembled at all, if Britain and France joined forces to send troops to Germany, then the rest of Germany would be unable to defend. Therefore, the Wehrmacht's considerations are also reasonable, but the great Führer was determined to recover Taiwan and Germany, and despite the opposition of the Wehrmacht, he forcibly issued an order to send troops, because of the opposition of the Wehrmacht, this military transfer did not even have a commander-in-chief, and the result was that the secretary of the Secretariat of the Führer's Office was responsible for coordinating relevant matters, and the commander-in-chief was Hitler himself.
What kind of battles these people commanded there were completely the orders of the last exercise and then issued them, so the troops who set off for the Sudetenland border did not make a mistake.
Germany mobilized troops on a large scale to the German-Czech border and drew up a "green plan" to prepare October 1 as the day for an attack on the Czech Republic. Seeing that the troops were approaching the city, the Czech government naturally did not want to be slaughtered, and also strengthened the combat forces on the border. The two armies are facing each other, and war seems to be about to break out. At this critical moment, the most nerve-wracking thing was the leaders of Britain, France, and other countries, and British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain stayed up all night.
On the evening of September 13, 1938, Hitler received a telegram from Chamberlain, which read: "As the situation is getting worse, I intend to come to see you in order to find a peaceful solution." I want to come by plane and be ready to leave tomorrow. "Why should the Prime Minister of the British Empire be so eager to meet Hitler?
It turned out that after the First World War, the Czech Republic restored its sovereignty under the protection of Britain and France, and signed mutual assistance and alliance treaties with Britain and France, and if Germany and the Czech Republic were at war, Britain and France would inevitably be involved in the war in accordance with the treaty, and the war in Western Europe would spread. Chamberlain was so nervous that French Prime Minister Daladier sent a telegram to Chamberlain, urging him to meet Hitler and ask him to "achieve the best results possible."
On September 15, Chamberlain hurried and landed in Munich on a seven-hour plane for the first time in his life. After that, take another 3-hour train ride. Skaden came to Germany to meet Hitler.
Hitler was overjoyed, and he was overwhelmed by the invasion of the Czech Republic. Because Germany's strength was limited at that time, only 600,000 were ready to attack the Czechs, while the Czechs had 35 well-equipped divisions and 30 newly formed divisions, with a total strength of more than 1.1 million (in history, Germany only dispatched 12 divisions, and now the strength of both sides has increased), and the German Wehrmacht General Staff opposed the military adventure of invading the Czechs; If Britain and France had resolutely sided with the Czechs, Hitler's wishful thinking would have been in vain. Now that Chamberlain has come to the door to sue for peace, isn't this a ready-made opportunity for blackmail? Negotiations between Hitler and Chamberlain took place in secret in a secret room. According to the notes of the translator at the time seized after the war, Hitler spoke of his "merits" to the German people, to international peace, and to the goodwill between Germany and Britain. Finally, with a frown, he threatened murderously:
"No matter what method is used, this time we must solve the problem of the 3 million Germanic people in the Czech Republic, and we will not hesitate to fight a world war for this purpose." Chamberlain, who was deeply afraid of being burned by the flames of war, hurriedly retorted: "If the Führer decides to use force, then what is the need for us to negotiate?" ”
Hitler abruptly asked: "Did Britain agree to cede the Sudetenland?" At this time, Hitler was no longer talking about the autonomy of the Sudetenland Germans, but was nakedly demanding that this region be ceded to Germany.
This did not surprise Chamberlain, who had agreed with France that they would never help the Czechs in their war, and had decided to compromise with Hitler at the expense of Czechoslovakia. Chamberlain said slowly: "The Germans of the Sudetenland, whether they were in Germany or outside Germany, in principle do not matter to me. This implied that he had agreed to cede the Sudetenland to Germany.
On 16 September, Chamberlain returned to London and held a cabinet meeting that night, arguing that only the cession of the Sudetenland to Germany could prevent Hitler from invading the entire Czech Republic. On 18 September, Daladier also rushed to London with a sad face. After some secret planning, Britain and France concocted a plan to betray the Czechs: "All the territories of the Sudetenland, where more than 50% of the Germanic population lived, were transferred directly to the German Empire."
The next day, Britain and France presented to the Czech government a "proposal" to cede the Sudetenland to Germany. Under pressure from the people, the Czech government at first rejected this "proposal". Britain and France threatened to dissolve the Covenant, and warned that the Czechs would be fully responsible if war was to be waged and European interests were threatened. In desperation, the Czech government had no choice but to yield to the interests of Britain and France and agreed to cede territory.
On September 29, 1938, Hitler, Mussolini, Chamberlain, and Daladier held talks in the "Führer's Palace" in Munich. In fact, there is nothing new in this meeting, just a supplementary procedure for the deal that has already been reached.
At half past one a.m. the next day, the four countries signed the Munich Agreement, according to which the Czech Republic was required to hand over the Sudetenland and all its attached equipment to Germany free of charge within 10 days beginning on October 1. Two representatives of the Czech Republic had arrived before the talks, but were not allowed to attend the talks and had to wait for the verdict of the four powers in the next room outside the conference room. Hitler said at the Munich Conference that the occupation of the Sudetenland was his last territorial claim to the West. Chamberlain had no doubt about this, and when he returned to London to disembark, he cheerfully claimed that he had brought back "the peace of a generation," and he said to the British: "This is the peace of our time, and I advise you to sleep in peace!" ”。
The Munich conspiracy to push the appeasement policy practiced by Britain, France and other countries to the top The essence of the appeasement policy was that the Western powers appeased Hitler's expansion at the expense of the interests of small countries**, this method could only increase Hitler's prestige in the hearts of the entire German people, and the whole of Germany cheered for their great Führer.
The benefits of Germany gaining access to the Sudetenland, which was a strategic barrier to the western part of the Third Reich due to its difficult terrain and well-defended facilities (originally aimed at Germany). At the same time, the military industrial plant was perfected. Strengthened Germany's strength. Economically, the Sudetenland was the most developed area of heavy industry in Czechoslovakia, and Germany received these economic facilities intact. These things could not be obtained by means of war, and now the Wehrmacht was completely impressed by Hitler's personal charm, and of course there were dissidents hidden in the crowd. But 99 percent of the people in Germany admired and supported Hitler, and these dissidents were a drop in the ocean.
On October 5, 1938, Adolf Hitler's troops fanned into the Sudetenland, occupying the fiercely contested Czech border region. Hitler himself arrived in Eger today and was greeted with a heroic welcome.
The scene of the German army marching into Austria not long ago is repeated here. Huge crowds waved Nazi flags, threw flowers into the streets, and greeted the Führer.
A local Nazi official who had assisted Hitler in his subversion of Edward. Konrad Henlein of the Benes government came to welcome the German leader. "We are happy because we are no longer forced to accept a regime that is both alien and hostile to us, but a regime that is part of ourselves," he said. And he said: "Now you are welcome to be a part of your own country." ”