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1. TEXT OF MUNICH AGREEMENT
Agreement concluded at Munich, September 29, 1938, between Germany, Great Britain, France and Italy
GERMANY, the United Kingdom, France and Italy, taking into consideration the agreement, which has been already reached in principle for the cession to Germany of the Sudeten German territory, have agreed on the following terms and conditions governing the said cession and the measures consequent thereon, and by this agreement they each hold themselves responsible for the steps necessary to secure its fulfilment:
(1) The evacuation will begin on 1st October. read more
2. The British Parliamentary Debate on the Munich Agreement
PRIME MINISTER NEVILLE CHAMBERLAIN, HOUSE OF COMMONS, OCTOBER 3, 1938.
In my view the strongest force of all, one which grew and took fresh shapes and forms every day was the force not of any one individual, but was that unmistakable sense of unanimity among the peoples of the world that war somehow must be averted. The peoples of the British Empire were at one with those of Germany, of France and of Italy, and their anxiety, their intense desire for peace, pervaded the whole atmosphere of the conference, and I believe that that, and not threats, made possible the Concessions that were made.... read more
3. Neville Chamberlain "Peace for Our Time," September 30, 1938
We, the German Fuhrer and Chancellor, and the British Prime Minister, have had a further meeting today and are agreed in recognizing that the question of Anglo-German relations is of the first importance for our two countries and for Europe. read more
4. Sir Winston Churchill THE MUNICH AGREEMENT
If I do not begin this afternoon by paying the usual, and indeed almost invariable, tributes to the Prime Minister for his handling of this crisis, it is certainly not from any lack of personal regard. We have always, over a great many years, had very pleasant relations, and I have deeply understood from personal experiences of my own in a similar crisis the stress and strain he has had to bear; but I am sure it is much better to say exactly what we think about public affairs, and this is certainly not the time when it is worth anyone's while to court political popularity. read more
5. Appeasement in Europe, Then and Now By Robert Spencer
It is astounding to informed onlookers that Europe would again be pursuing a policy of appeasement, after providing the world during the run-up to World War II with the most spectacular example in the history of the world of the failure of such policies. But hindsight is easy; in the 1930s, Britain and France were both war-weary and horrified by the pointless carnage of World War I. In that context, it seemed reasonable to make concessions, even ones with significant political ramifications, in order to ensure a lasting peace. Increasing sentiment in both countries that the Treaty of Versailles had been unjust to the Germans, and that those injustices needed to be redressed, compounded these sentiments. read more
6. The Bitter Fruits of Appeasement by Rachel Neuwirth
We can now look back over the last century with the benefit of hindsight and consider just what we have achieved with international appeasement and timidity. Many threats we face today have origins that can be linked back in time to decisions that were made many decades ago.
Following WWI the victorious allies met to design a new Middle East following the collapse of the 400 year-old Ottoman Turkish Empire. Three separate groups, Kurds, Shites and Sunis were arbitrarily brought together to create Iraq based on England’s oil interests rather than the needs of the local people. The British also sabotaged the amicable Arab-Jewish agreement for the Jewish National Home, ratified by the League of Nations, to occupy less than one percent of the vast territories promised to the Arabs. British imperialism and Arab despots were appeased, and today we have the Arab-Israeli conflict plus a fractious Iraq with Americans bearing the main burden in blood and expense. read more
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