IGCSE History- Appeasement: for and against!

 Appeasement: for and against!

 

If Britain and France were not prepared to defend the Treaty of Versailles, would they let Hitler have more all his demands? Yes, and Britain's policy at this time is known as Appeasement. Neville Chamberlain is the man most associated with this policy (see Profile page f although he did it became Prime Minister until 1957. Many other British people probably the majority), including many politicians, were also in favour of this policy however, there were some at the time who were very critical Here are the main arguments for and against

Fear of Communism- Hit was not the only concern of Britain and its allies He was not even the man worry They were or concerned about the spread Communism and particularly the dangers to world peace paid by Stalin, the new leader in the USSR Many saw Hitler as the buffer to the threat of something Communism

The USA- American support had been Britain's success in the First World War Britain could not be sure it could lace up to Germany without the guarantee of American help. But since 1919 the USA had followed a policy of isolationism American leaders were determined not to be dragged into another European war

The Soviet Union- Hitler made no secret of his plans to expand eastwards He had openly talked of taking land in Russia. Appeasement sent the message to Stalin and the USSA that Britain and France would not stand in Hitler's way if he invaded Russia

Memories of the Great War- Both Birth and French leader, and much of their population, widely remembered the horrific experiences of the First World War They wished to avoid another war at almost any cost

The British empire- For Britain to fight a war against Germany it needed to be sure it had the support of the countries In Its empire or Commonwealth. It was not a guaranteed certainty that they would all support a war.

Hitler's allies-Hitler had already observed how his allies, particularly the right wing dictatorships in Japan and Italy had got away with acts of aggression.

German arms- Germany was rearming publically, and every country could see that year by year.

The Treaty of Versailles- Many felt that the Treaty of Versailles was unfair to Germany. Some of Hitler's demands not unreasonable They assumed that once these wrongs were put right then Germany would become a peaceful nation.

Economic problems- Britain and France had large debts and huge unemployment as a result of Depression. They could not afford to a war.

Trusting Hitler- After each new move he made Hitler said this was all he wanted Yet he often went back on those promise Appeasement wan based on the mistaken idea that Hitler was trustworthy.

British arms- The British government believed that the armed forces were not ready for war against Hitler. Britain only began rearming in 1935 and intelligence suggested the British were some way behind the Germans

Make a stand!- Hitler the gambler took increasing risks. He tried something out to see if there would be any come back. At same point therefore Britain and France needed to stand to Hitler to prevent a later bigger and more dangerous move.