American Catholic Opinion on the European Crisis, September 1938 to September 1939
Abstract
The German annexation of Austria in March 1938 marked the beginning of the end of the "long armistice" which for twenty years had been mistaken by so many for peace. The stage was then set for Hitler's next move, the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia, whose security was threatened not only because it was an obstacle to German expansion but also because it contained a diversity of racial minorities and thus lacked national unity.When Hitler took over Austria, he promised to respect the integrity of the Czech nation; yet in that same month Conrad Henlein, the leader of the Sudeten German party and an agent of Hitler, demanded from the Prague government complete autonomy. The Karlsbad program, which he proposed on April 24, demanded for the Sudeten Germans not only territorial autonomy and protection against denationalization, but also that "all Germans be permitted to declare their adhesion to the 'ideology of Germans and that restitution be made for the injustices and damages done to Germans in Czechoslovakia since 1918.
Subject Area
International Relations|Military history|Journalism
Recommended Citation
Begnal, Saint Callista, "American Catholic Opinion on the European Crisis, September 1938 to September 1939" (1946). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI28443210.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI28443210
