P+SAARLAND+AND+RHINELAND

Under the terms of [|Versailles], the Rhineland had been made into a demilitarised zone. Germany had political control of this area, but she was not allowed to put any troops into it. Therefore, many Germans concluded that they did not actually fully control the area despite it being in Germany itself. In March 1936, Hitler took what for him was a huge gamble - he ordered that his troops should openly re-enter the Rhineland thus breaking the terms of [|Versailles] once again. He did order his generals that the military should retreat out of the Rhineland if the French showed the slightest hint of making a military stand against him. This did not occur. Over 32,000 soldiers and armed policemen crossed into the Rhineland Why didn’t the Allies (Britain and France) do anything about this violation of the[| Versailles Treaty] ? France was going through an internal political crisis at the time and there was no political leadership to concentrate against [|Nazi Germany]. Britain generally supported the view that [|Nazi Germany] was only going into her own "backyard" and that this section of [|Versailles] was not needed to be enforced in the mid-1930’s. It was believed that Germany was behaving in a reasonable and understandable manner. Therefore, no action was taken against [|Nazi Germany], despite [|Hitler’s] later comment that the march into the Rhineland had been the most nerve-racking 48 hours of his life. **"If France had then marched into the Rhineland, we would have had to withdraw with our tails between our legs." - Hitler** [|Hitler] learned from this episode that he could all but gamble on France not doing anything. The Rhineland affected the French in that a demilitarised Rhineland was created at [|Versailles] to act as a barrier for the French if the Germans ever got war-like again. It appeared that in 1936 that France was not even willing to fight for this. Therefore, [|Hitler] concluded that it he turned his attentions to the east of Europe, France would be even less willing to involve herself. From the British point of view, Hitler concluded that there was room for movement with regards to[|Versailles] as the media, in some areas, had made it clear that they believed that some of the terms of [|Versailles] were not appropriate for the 1930’s.
 * RE-OOCUPATION OF THE RHINELAND from** []

 = **Nazi Germany - The Rhineland** = Under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles 1919 Germany was not allowed to have any military force, building or armaments in the Rhineland area. To ensure German compliance the area was occupied by British and French troops. Under the terms of the Treaty of Locarno 1925 Germany, France, Britain and Italy agreed that the Rhineland should remain a demilitarised zone permanently. By June 1930 British and French troops had evacuated the area. In January 1936 Adolf Hitler began to make plans to re-occupy the Rhineland. He argued that the move was needed as a defence strategy especially as France and the Soviet Union had renewed their alliance in 1935. The date for occupation was set for 7th March 1936 and in the early morning 32,000 armed German troops entered the Rhineland. Although Germany had been steadily building up her army since 1933 it was not strong enough to hold the Rhineland if France or Britain counter-attacked. Hitler later commented //"The forty-eight hours after the march into the Rhineland were the most nerve-racking in my life. If the French had then marched into the Rhineland we would have had to withdraw.."// France was on the verge of elections and politicians were unwilling to take steps that would be unpopular with the population. French politicians and leaders knew that taking military action against Germany would be expensive and could lead to a full-scale Franco-German war. The French appealed to the British for support but many British politicians felt that Germany was simply re-claiming what was theirs anyway. Additionally, popular feeling in Britain was totally against another major war. The League of Nations, established by the Treaty of Versailles to deal with acts such as this, condemned Hitler's action but did not enact economic or military sanctions.

Nazis March into the Rhineland from []

> High above the town of Berchtesgaden in southeastern Bavaria, Adolf Hitler spent many hours in solitude at his mountain retreat with its magnificent views of the Alps and the valleys below. It was here that the Führer came to contemplate the future of Germany and to make all of his big decisions. > Sometimes he mulled things over for weeks or even months. But once the final decision was made, it was utterly unshakable and no one could ever convince him to change his mind. > On Friday, March 15, 1935, Hitler departed his mountain retreat and returned to Berlin. He immediately convened a Cabinet meeting and also assembled members of the Army's General Staff. He then announced a major decision he had just come to – Germany would openly defy the military limitations set by the Treaty of Versailles and re-arm. > No one in the room objected or voiced any concern. After the announcement, Nazi legal officials quickly set to work drafting the necessary laws, while Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels worked with Hitler to compose the actual proclamations to be read to Nazi Party members and the German people. > On Saturday, March 16th, the Cabinet and Generals met once again and listened to Hitler read the finished proclamations, after which all of those present gave a hearty 'three cheers' for the Führer. The proclamations were then announced to the world by Goebbels at a hastily called press conference. > || June 1935 - Army conscripts are numbered and lined up for medical inspection at Potsdam. Below: Raw recruits in Berlin try on their first pair of Army boots. || > || || > || Below: A map reading exercise at the newly-reopened War Academy in Berlin. > || || > || Below: Saturday, March 7, 1936 - German Army troops cross a bridge over the Rhine River and enter the Rhineland - for the first time since the end of World War I. || > ||
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The press was told the Führer had decided Germany was going to reintroduce military conscription (compulsory enrollment) and build a new Army consisting of 36 divisions, totaling 550,000 men. > This was actually a flagrant violation of Part V of the Treaty of Versailles signed by Germany back in 1919 after its defeat in World War I. Breaking the Treaty was an affront to Germany's former World War I enemies, France and Great Britain. > Everyone waited to see how they would respond to the news. Some of Hitler's more cautious Army generals thought there might even be an immediate military attack by France. But absolutely nothing happened, except for a few diplomatic protests. > Hitler, for the first time in his career, had gambled against Germany's old enemies and won. He knew France was suffering from serious political in-fighting and that Britain was in the grips of an economic depression. He wagered that the two countries, given their internal problems, didn't have the stomachs to respond militarily. And he was right. > But Hitler still found it necessary to soothe the jangled nerves of the world's democracies and Germany's next door neighbors. On May 21st, two months after the conscription announcement, he appeared before the Reichstag in Berlin and delivered a conciliatory speech. "Germany wants peace...None of us means to threaten anybody," Hitler declared. He then announced a thirteen-point peace program containing all kinds of promises such as: Germany will respect all other provisions of the Treaty of Versailles including the demilitarization of the Rhineland; Germany is ready to cooperate in a collective system for safeguarding European peace; and the German government is ready in principle to conclude pacts of non-aggression with its neighbors. > Hitler's method of diplomacy in dealing with the gun-shy Western democracies was thus established. His original bombastic announcement was usually made on a Saturday to catch the other governments off-guard. It came in the midst of an ongoing action, or after the fact, and was followed by a conciliatory speech full of reassuring promises. > Between Hitler's gambles, there would be a considerable lapse of time, during which he returned to Berchtesgaden, contemplating his next move like a chess master pondering all of the potential outcomes. > Hitler's next big move in the game of international diplomacy didn't occur until a year later and it would be one of the biggest risks of his entire career. Beginning at dawn on Saturday, March 7, 1936, three battalions of the German Army crossed the bridges over the Rhine and entered into the industrial heartland of Germany known as the Rhineland. This demilitarized area included all territory west of the Rhine River extending to the French border as well as a portion east of the river including the cities of Cologne, Düsseldorf and Bonn. > At 10 a.m. that morning, Hitler's Foreign Minister, Constantin von Neurath, summoned the ambassadors of France, Britain, and Italy, and handed them a lengthy memorandum stating that the German government had "restored the full and unrestricted sovereignty of the Reich in the demilitarized zone of the Rhineland." > This was another gross violation of the Treaty of Versailles. > At noon, Hitler appeared before a hastily called Reichstag assembly, accompanied by several visibly nervous Army generals. The six hundred Reichstag members in attendance had no idea what was happening. As soon as Hitler informed them that German troops were on the march into the Rhineland, they jumped to their feet amid wild cheering for the Führer and shouts of 'Heil!' > When they calmed down, Hitler solemnly promised: "First, we swear to yield to no force whatever in the restoration of the honor of our people, preferring to succumb with honor to the severest hardships rather than to capitulate. Secondly, we pledge that now, more than ever, we shall strive for an understanding between European peoples, especially for one with our Western neighbor nations...We have no territorial demands to make in Europe!...Germany will never break the peace." > Once again, the whole world waited to see how the French and British would react. German troops entering the Rhineland even had orders to scoot back across the Rhine bridges if the French Army attacked. But in France, the politicians were simply unable to convince their generals to act, and were also unable to get any British support for a military response. So they did nothing. The French Army, with its one hundred divisions, never budged against the 30,000 lightly armed German soldiers occupying the Rhineland, even though France and Britain were both obligated to preserve the demilitarized zone by the Treaty of Versailles and the subsequent Locarno Pact of mutual assistance. > It had been a tremendous gamble for Hitler, one that might have cost him everything if his troops had been humiliated by their old enemies. Later, Hitler would privately admit: "The forty-eight hours after the march into the Rhineland were the most nerve-racking in my life. If the French had marched into the Rhineland, we would have had to withdraw with our tail between our legs, for the military resources at our disposal would have been wholly inadequate for even a moderate resistance." > Some of Hitler's top Army generals had gotten cold feet during the maneuver. Only Neurath, his Foreign Minister, had calmly assured him: "You can risk it. Nothing will happen." Hitler would never forget the fearful behavior exhibited by some of his top generals during his first military venture. As a result, their cautious advice would often be ignored in the future. > In the Rhineland, German Army troops marching under the Swastika banner were met by German priests conferring blessings upon them and women tossing flowers into their path. In Cologne, the people went wild with joy. Inside Cologne's Catholic Cathedral, Cardinal Schulte even praised Hitler for "sending back our Army." > A few weeks later, on March 29th, a nationwide referendum was held in which 99 percent of the registered voters in Germany went to the polls and gave a 98.8 percent "Ja" vote approving Hitler's reoccupation of the Rhineland. The Führer had reached new heights of popularity. > After this victory, Hitler once again went back to his mountain retreat at Berchtesgaden to relax and ponder his next move. Meanwhile, in Berlin and throughout Germany, preparations were underway to host the coming Summer Olympics. For the Nazis, the Berlin Olympics would be an opportunity to show off the New Order to people from all over the world. It would also be a chance to impress everyone with the natural superiority of Nazi athletes.
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