The Invasion of Czechoslovakia, March 1939

What was invasion of Czechoslovakia?

In March 1939, the German Army occupied Czechoslovakia's remaining territories despite promising to respect its independence at the Munich Conference.

Why did Germany invade Czechoslovakia?

There were a number of reasons for Germany's invasion of Czechoslovakia:

• ❖ Czechoslovakia was rich in resources, agriculture and industries that would benefit Germany.
• ❖ The country contained many different national groups. Once the Sudetenland was gone the rest of the country began to break up, and countries such as Poland and Hungary seized territory.
• ❖ Hitler was therefore able to pressure the Czech president into allowing German forces into the country to maintain order.
• ❖ Hitler wanted to take control of the Czech army, which had 34 divisions, as well as its strong defences in the Sudetenland.

What happened when Germany invaded Czechoslovakia?

Following the Munich Conference, Hitler's actions undermined Czechoslovakia's independence further. The key events include:

• ❖ Hitler encouraged other nationalities in Czechoslovakia to demand autonomy for themselves. He encouraged Poland and Hungary to seize land, and the Slovakian government to declare independence.
• ❖ Hitler forced the Czech president, Emil Hacha, to surrender Czechoslovakia by threatening to order the Luftwaffe to conduct an aerial bombardment of Prague.
• ❖ Hitler marched into Prague on 15th March. He was able to claim that his troops had been invited to occupy Czechoslovakia, so Britain and France couldn't oppose him.

Why was the invasion of Czechoslovakia important?

The invasion of Czechoslovakia marked an important turning point, especially in the attitudes of Britain and France towards Germany's actions:

• ❖ Czechoslovakia was clearly invaded to increase Germany's power.
• ❖ It didn't have a German-speaking population, so Hitler's actions couldn't be justified by self-determination.
• ❖ Germany's actions were therefore merely aggressive and indicated that Hitler intended to dominate Europe through force.
• ❖ It marked the end of the policy of appeasement.