Hitler addresses German troops in Eger, Czechoslovakia, October 1938. Photo courtesy of the USHMM.

After the Nazis came to power in 1933, Hitler demanded the “return” of the ethnic German population of Czechoslovakia and the Sudetenland, where the 3 million ethnic Germans lived, to the German Reich. In late summer 1938, Hitler threatened to unleash a European war unless the Sudetenland was returned to Germany. On September 29, 1938, the leaders of Britain, France, Italy, and Germany met in Munich, Germany to discuss the fate of the Sudetenland. The leaders of Czechoslovakia were not invited.

Devastated by World War I, Britain and France, hoping to avoid further confrontation and to maintain peace in Europe, accepted Hitler’s demands. British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, French Premier Edouard Daladier, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, and Hitler signed the Munich Pact.  The agreement granted the German annexation of the Sudetenland in exchange for Hitler’s pledge to lay claim to no more territory. After the agreement, most of the world felt relieved and excited that the Sudeten Germans had achieved self-determination. However, Czech citizens were outraged by the settlement. Czech president Eduard Benes resigned. Czechoslovakia immediately underwent a transformation from a parliamentary democracy to an authoritarian regime.  The country was forced to reduce the size of its army, freedom of press was limited, and the economy was adjusted to suit German needs. The state was renamed Czecho-Slovakia and new boundaries were established, making Slovakia an independent state.  Led by Catholic priest Jozef Tiso, Slovakia was allied with Nazi Germany.  Surrounding countries, such as Hungary and Poland, seized other territories from the Czech lands. On March 15, 1939, Nazi Germany violated the Munich Pact by invading and occupying the Czech provinces of Bohemia and Moravia. These areas were made into a German protectorate declaring them territory of the Reich, thus nullifying the Munich Pact. While German inhabitants of these lands received citizenship and other privileges, Czech fascists beat up Jews and called for their removal from their professions and businesses.  A system of “aryanization” (confiscation of Jewish property and goods) commenced in summer 1939. The signing as well as the violation of the Munich Pact had grave consequences for the European community.  Tensions and fears arose in Paris and London when Chamberlain and Daladier realized that Hitler had had no intentions of adhering to the Munich Pact. Following the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, England and France declared war on Germany. By the end of the war, the Germans and their collaborators had murdered approximately 263,000 Jews who had resided in the territory of the Czechoslovak Republic prior to the Munich Pact. Teachers might emphasize the fact that various groups of people and countries were affected by this historical event. Students can address the following questions when studying the violation of the Munich Pact: Was the signing of the Munich Pact a symbol of appeasement?  How did the Munich Pact contribute to the beginning of World War II?  Could the massacre of Jews in Czechoslovakia been avoided if the Munich Pact had not been signed? Students should also consider the concept of nationalism and the threat to democracy the conference represented. Teachers may want to discuss what constitutes the values of democracy versus fascism and how such a conflict led to war.