The Appeasement Debate

What was the debate about appeasement?

Appeasement was a policy followed by the British and other European leaders in their approach to Hitler's actions in the 1930s. However it was the subject of huge debate both at the time and since.

What were the arguments for the policy of appeasement?

There are 9 key arguments that support the policy of appeasement:

• ❖ People felt that some of Hitler's actions were fair, given how harsh the Treaty of Versailles was for example he should have been allowed to rearm in order to protect Germany.
• ❖ The horrors of the First World War were still raw in people's memories. Millions of people were killed, including Neville Chamberlain's son, and they were desperate to avoid another war. Britain held a peace ballot in 1934 the vast majority of people believed Britain should not take military action.
• ❖ People believed Hitler when he said he was only looking to overturn the Treaty of Versailles and that he was a man of peace.
• ❖ Hitler was clever and made his actions look democratic. 99 percent of people in Austria voted for Anschluss. People did not see Hitler as doing something wrong.
• ❖ People trusted Chamberlain when he said he had "secured peace in our time" after the Munich Conference and did not think they had anything to be worried about.
• ❖ The Great Depression meant that countries like Britain and France not only did not want another war they could not afford another war. People felt that their governments needed to focus on the problems at home like mass unemployment and poverty rather than the affairs of other countries.
• ❖ Since the Russian Revolution in 1917 many capitalist countries like Britain saw communism as a real threat and thought a strong Germany could stop the spread of communism.
• ❖ Britain lacked the military capabilities to fight a war. Rearmament did not start until 1936 and it would take 4 years to build an army ready for war. Appeasement was seen as a policy that could buy time.
• ❖ During the 1930s America was still committed to its policy of isolationism. Britain and France could not fight the war without the support of such a powerful nation as they did not have the money or resources to fight.

What were the arguments against the policy of appeasement?

There are 5 key arguments against the policy of appeasement.

• ❖ Hitler made no secret of his plans. His speeches since the 1920s made it very clear that he would use violence to make Germany strong again. People were foolish to trust him.
• ❖ Opportunities were missed to stop Hitler including: failures at the World Disarmament Conference. Not agreeing to the naval agreement in 1935. And forcing him to stand down when re entered the Rhineland.
• ❖ Appeasement empowered Hitler, the more countries gave into him the stronger he grew. When he gained the Sudetenland this gave him the confidence to invade the rest of Czechoslovakia.
• ❖ Appeasement pushed the USSR towards Hitler and Nazi Germany. Stalin was well aware Hitler might invade the USSR and he felt Britain and France would not support him due to the policy of appeasement. He signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact as a result and this was a key trigger to the Second World War.
• ❖ Appeasement was immoral. Whilst a large majority of Austrians voted for Anschluss there was not protection offered for Austrian Jews, and the policy left nations like Czechoslovakia with no defence against Hitler.