Chapter 101 Chapter Seventeen "Stepping on the Edge" (1)

1938.5-10 Before Hitler advanced on Austria, he had said that he could no longer tolerate the "serious persecution" of the German minority by Czechoslovakia.While this was consistent with his vow to return lost peoples and lands to the Empire, his main concern was the geographical and political threat of Czechoslovakia.He argued that the Czech Republic was a country created by the Allies after the war, and that this peninsula should be included in the territory of the former empire.As long as it survives, it is a threat to the east of the Empire. Hitler was not alone in thinking that the Czech Republic was a dagger in the heart of Germany.The phantoms slashing across the empire from both east and west at the same time led the Germans to formulate a military countermeasure called the "Green Plan": a surprise attack on Czechoslovakia.For two years, however, the "green plan" has remained little more than talk on paper.

However, the easy victory over Austria completely changed all that.Overnight, Hitler had a great opportunity to upset the balance of power in Europe.Pushing into Czechoslovakia and destroying its strong defenses would allow the Germans to attack Poland or the Soviet Union without hindrance.All he needed was to find an excuse to invade, and now he found a ready-made one: encouraged by the German-Austrian merger, the 3.5 million Germans living in the Sudeten area also demanded a similar merger. debatable) is that they are a brutally oppressed minority.Their grievances and tradition of hostility to all things Czech have plagued the tiny republic since its founding.For nearly three years, Hitler secretly financed the Sudeten Party led by Konrad Henlein—by ​​this time the Germanic minority movements were entirely under its control. In late March 1938, the head of state appointed Hanlei as his personal representative and instructed him to make unacceptable demands to the Czech government.In this way, Germany's aid to it is even more heralded.This strategy, Hitler hoped, would create a perpetually volatile situation that would eventually make it "necessary" for Germany to intervene armed on the grounds of preventing a civil war and protecting the lives of German nationals in the Sudetenland.

Although there were excuses, Hitler still restrained because he was afraid that France, Britain or Russia would oppose the occupation of Czechoslovakia.Facing such a powerful opponent, it was necessary for him to enlist the support of his only ally.So, on May 2, 1938, Hitler led 500 entourage, including diplomats, military generals, security officials, party leaders and journalists, to Rome in a mighty way to get their support. Hitler had mixed feelings as he left Berlin.The joy of the bloodless conquest of the Rhineland and Austria was diminished by the relapse of his stomach pains which Dr. Pomerel had "miraculously" cured with "Mudaphro".Afraid of his own misfortune, he spent several hours on the train to Rome to make a will—just one book, and he made a fortune. (By 1943, the royalties paid to him by Eger Vilag amounted to 5.525 million Deutsche marks. He gave all his property, the Berghof villa, furniture and photos to the party, to love Eva Braun and his two sisters lived on 12,000 marks a year each, Alois 60,000 marks, and each of Hippital's relatives, Mrs. Wendt and his servants. There was a bequest. He also directed the party to "take good care of the lifelong lives of my two adjutants, Bruckner and Weidmann".)

The head of state and his party installed a total of five carriages.In the Brunner Valley they were greeted with flowers, flags and a procession of Italian soldiers and Fascist troops.The band played the national anthems of the two countries, and the duke of Pistoia welcomed them on behalf of the king.Afterwards, the German train drove into Italy, and guards of honor stood on both sides of the railway.On the roofs of every household, placards or flags were erected to praise the head of state and the friendship between Germany and Italy.As the delegation neared Rome, Hitler called for an aide-de-camp and ordered him—overheard by Ringe—to inform everyone from the carriage.When we talked about Rome, a very small man would come out to welcome us and say that everyone should behave properly and not laugh. "This is an order. The dwarf is the king of Italy."

When the train arrived at the Sao Paulo Railway Station, which was specially built for this visit, it was already late.Flags fly over the railway station.It displeased Hitler that it was King Victor Emmanuel instead of Mussolini who came out to greet him, and he displeased him by allowing His Majesty to get into the car first.Pulled by four horses, the car galloped along the old Roman triumphal road, passing by the illuminated fountain.Bright searchlights and torches turned night into day; the brightly lit Colosseum appeared to be on fire.Crowds stood along the way, cheering the guests.When the car drove to a place, a group of African cavalry suddenly galloped towards the guests, as if they had rushed out of "Song of the Desert".Hitler, however, felt slighted for being in such an ancient vehicle.Haven't the dukes of Savoy ever heard of cars?The rooms in the Quirinale Palace were not at all to his liking.The palace is neither comfortable nor light, like a museum.

From the very beginning, he and Victor Hermanuel got on badly.Hitler also resented the monarch's public display of indifference.He kept complaining that Mussolini should come out as the master.The dust-cleaning banquet held in Quirinal did not ease the situation in the slightest.Hitler rolled his eyeballs nervously, and the queen, who was taller than him, was on his arm.The short king was holding the tall governor's wife on his arm.The four formed a comical scene, and Hitler knew this in his heart.When the queen entered the banquet hall, the Italians either knelt or bowed deeply, and several even kissed her skirt.After this difficult "torture" passed, Hitler told his pilots privately that it was a "terrible moment. For me, this ritual is terrible. I will never get used to these things."

During the meal, Hitler and the queen did not speak a word.Hitler was particularly annoyed by the large crucifix hanging around the Empress' neck.He thought she was wearing it on purpose to annoy me.Not only that, but Royal goes beyond the bounds of rudeness.The king also spread rumours, maliciously slandering his guests.One of the rumors was that the Führer wanted a woman the night he arrived at Quirinale. "To my amazement," Ciano wrote in his diary, "it seemed that he could not sleep without a woman making his bed in front of him. It was difficult to find a woman, and the problem was solved when he found a hotel clerk. If this It is interesting and unbelievable that the situation is true, but is it true? Isn’t this the king’s malice? Didn’t the king also say that Hitler always injected stimulants and anesthetics?” The last part of the accusation is true, the so-called bed making It's also accurate -- and we have reason to believe it.Still, it was the king's malice.A few days later, when Hitler and his party watched "Aida" in Naples, this malice was manifested again.After the first performance, the audience deliberately did not applaud, and let the VIPs sitting in the royal box take the lead.Embarrassed, Hitler turned to look at the king for a little inspiration. "The sovereign snorted," writes Louis Rochner, "and pretended not to notice Hitler's unease."

After the opera, it was planned that Hitler would review Nazi drills in the German colonies.Because he was wearing a tuxedo, he asked Linge to bring a military cap and uniform to meet the occasion, but the king's adjutant told Linge that the train back to Rome would leave in a few minutes.In order not to disappoint the waiting party members, he hurried out into the street, saluted like a commander, and walked along the ranks.According to the formal method, he should put his left thumb into the belt before saluting. However, since he does not need a belt to wear this kind of trousers, he has to stick one hand to his buttocks and salute with the other.This situation is really ridiculous - bareheaded, like a Teutonic Graubridge Marx, with a long swallowtail swaying. “The Führer and Reich Chancellor,” Weidmann wrote, “looked like a head waiter at the peak of his career. He must have known what a shame he was.” Once on the train, Hitler took it out on Ribbin Troff's head.The latter loudly reprimanded the chief of protocol for being disloyal to the government and the head of state.

After returning to Rome, Hitler had regained his composure.At a banquet at the Palazzo Venezia on May 7, he delivered a powerful speech.According to Count Ciano, the speech was "so successful that it melted all the snow and ice around him".In fact, he offered to give Huolor as a gift to his master.This is a most generous gift.Because it would annoy his countrymen, especially the Bavarians. As early as 1924, when he was still serving his sentence in the Landsberg prison, he had made a similar gift through Göring.At that time, in order to support Italy's territorial claim on this hotly contested territory, he asked Italy to borrow 2 million lire, but failed to borrow a single penny, which made Hitler angry.In Mussolini's view, tonight's gift was a signal: this time, some kind of big reward was in order.

This speech was the first event of political significance since Hitler's arrival in Italy.Mussolini let the king act as host while he retreated into the background, filling his guest's schedule and keeping him busy day and night.This arrangement is very clever, because it avoids serious discussions.Later, Ribbentrop presented Ciano with a draft treaty suggesting an alliance.Ciano glanced at it, but said nothing.In fact, Mussolini's son-in-law had already written in his diary: "The prime minister wants to conclude this treaty, and we must conclude it, because he has thousands of reasons not to believe in Western democracy."

More importantly, Hitler finally found an opportunity to raise the issue that concerned him most-the Czechoslovak issue.Mussolini hardly cared to give Hitler the impression that the little country was of no importance to him and that his attention was elsewhere.With this assurance, Hitler was worth all the real and imagined insults he had suffered in the past, and he felt free to move on to the next step of his plan. President Benes and other Czech leaders had the illusion that Hitler would not take the risk of attacking the Czech Republic because he feared it would trigger a major war.If he did attack, wouldn't France, England, and Russia try to contain him?However, these three countries have no intention of being protectorates. "You only have to look at a map to see," Chamberlain wrote to his sister some time ago, "that if the Germans were to ravage Czechoslovakia, it would be very unlikely that we or France would be able to rescue it. . . so , we are not going to help Czechoslovakia - she will only be an excuse to lead to war with Germany. We will not do this unless we have the prospect of beating her to her knees in due time. But, I see no such prospect. I have therefore given up the idea of ​​guaranteeing Czechoslovakia, and I do not want to guarantee France its obligations to Czechoslovakia." The half-hearted British Prime Minister angered the French leader worry.Despite their repeated bold statements, sharp-eyed observers believe that France, whose foreign policy has followed Britain's ass since the occupation of the Rhineland, is not going to defend the Czech Republic anytime soon.The third potential defender, the Soviet Union, seized every opportunity to openly urge Britain and France to confront the Germans, while secretly doing nothing.What Stalin needed was for the West, not himself, to control Hitler. On May 6, the Soviet charge d'affaires in Prague admitted to the American ambassador that unless France provided military assistance to Czechoslovakia, the Soviet Union would not do so.Also, how did they get the troops there?They were separated by Poland and Romania; both countries refused to let the Red Army pass - understandably so.At the same time, Stalin privately assured Benes that "even if France does not give him military aid, even if Poland and Romania do not allow Soviet troops to transit to Czechoslovakia", the Soviet Union is ready to provide him with military aid. All this is part of the Soviet Union's attempt to convince liberals around the world that the Soviet Union is the true defender of the brave little besieged country, when in reality they, like Britain and France, are unwilling Quickly go to rescue it.Hitler read the minds of these people, and Mussolini acquiesced to him and sent troops into Czechoslovakia, so he ordered Goebbels to step up his propaganda campaign against this hapless country.Because of the saying that "that day" is coming soon, the Germans in the Sudeten area stepped up their activities.This was a rumor, but it was also made credible by the alarming news on May 19 and 20 that Hitler's troops were mobilizing on the Czech frontier.According to news, Hitler's 11 infantry divisions and 4 armored divisions are marching mightily towards the Bohemian border, and German and Austrian troops have already set up offensive postures in southern Silesia and northern Austria. On the 20th, Friday afternoon, Benes held an emergency meeting of the cabinet and the Supreme Defense Council.Shortly after 9 p.m., the Czech Republic ordered a "partial mobilization" without consulting its French allies.At dawn on Saturday, the Czech army occupied the frontier fortress and the Sudetenland area.In this way, Europe has experienced a hot crisis that has not been seen since 1914.A small country taking the initiative against a big one and showing the world that the Czech Republic is not a pawn in the game of European power politics.This practice of Czechoslovakia also forced her protectors, Britain and France, to be her backing. As a result, French Prime Minister Daladier summoned the German ambassador and showed him the mobilization order on his desk. "Whether I sign this document or not," he said, "is up to you, Your Excellency." In Berlin, British Ambassador Henderson also warned Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop, "French It has certain obligations towards Czechoslovakia, and if these obligations are inevitably fulfilled, the British Royal Government will not guarantee that it will not be involved if the situation compels it." Ribbentrop believed that Britain was the main enemy and sent the Great Britain Anger turned to anger, and he categorically denied that the German army threatened the Czech border.If Britain and France are actually "crazy" to the point of armed opposition to Germany, "then, we will have to fight to the death again." That night, Ribbentrop left Berlin by special plane and went to Bechstlergarden to negotiate with Hitler.Hitler was as furious as his foreign minister because Germany had not made any major military movements or buildups against Czechoslovakia.Who made the rumor?The rumors could have been created by the Communist Party, or by the Czechs, or by an anti-Hitler group that included Shahit, the self-proclaimed financial magician, and Admiral Canaris, the German intelligence chief.More likely it was the panic itself. Western newspapers spread the news that the head of state canceled the invasion because of foreign pressure.In doing so, it made the mistake of humiliating the Führer. "Hitler did not take the military path," writes Weitzsacker, "so there was no cancelation. Unfortunately, provocations in foreign newspapers made Hitler actually act. Thereafter, he strongly favored the use of force to solve the Czech problem .” Before the weekend came, Hitler quickly took drastic action. On May 28, he called a special meeting with the two top military leaders, foreign ministry officials and other important officials.As the unusually large crowd assembled outside the winter garden of the Chancellery, the speculation was that Hitler was about to take new military measures.Goering, who was nervous, pulled Captain Weidmann aside: "Don't the head of state understand what he is doing? This means fighting with France!" Tell the chief of staff. Hitler began to speak.He spoke calmly, but his words were explosive: "To wipe Czechoslovakia off the map is, I am determined to do... We will have to use methods that may not be immediately acceptable to you veterans." The offensive, he explained, was part of a broader strategy to gain survivability.Czechoslovakia would be a threat in the rear as Germany inevitably moved eastward in order to gain living space.Therefore, the Czech Republic must be eliminated, and this is the right time, because Britain and France do not want to fight, Russia does not want to intervene, and Italy is not interested in it. After Hitler finished speaking, Goering rushed to the stage with sparkling eyes and grabbed Hitler's hand. "My Fuehrer," blurted Goering, who had vowed to stop him an hour earlier, "I congratulate you on your unparalleled strategy!" There was no objection, not even a discussion.Goering walked with Hitler towards Keitel, Brauchitsch and Beck who stood in the corner. "That's it," he said, "let's touch the situation in the East (Czechoslovakia). Then I'll give you three to four years, and then we'll touch the situation in the West." The three generals said nothing at the time, but the next day Baker wrote a scathing memo.Germany, he declared, is no more powerful and vulnerable to air raids today than it was in 1914.What's more, Germany faced a quadruple alliance of Czechoslovakia, France, Great Britain, and the United States. "Germany's adversary," he concluded, "not only has time and space at its disposal, but also has manpower and material resources far superior to Germany and its allies. " On May 30, Baker handed over this dark assessment to Brauchitsch.Brauchitsch asked Keitel, how to let the Führer know is the best policy.Keitel suggested that the political part be cut out, lest Hitler therefore dismiss the analysis of the balance of power in the French intervention without even looking at it.Brauchitsch adopted this suggestion and presented the abridged text to Hitler during a meeting at the Artillery School at Jutterburg.The head of state strongly objected: the report was not objective and overestimated the strength of the French military. "This is another disaster for the Army," Keitel wrote, "and further demoralizes Brauchitsch. I deeply regret this. But the Führer did not ask Brauchitsch, but Baker and the General Staff are asking." Hitler overcame all arguments and decided to use force against Czechoslovakia, and ordered the army to implement it on October 1.In this way, the fourth text of the "Green Plan" was put into practice. The task of building the "Western Wall" defense system on the French border was undertaken by Fritz Todt, who built the highway, and was accelerated.A few weeks later, nearly 500,000 people were stepping up the construction of fortifications so that they could resist France with the smallest force while launching a blitzkrieg against Czechoslovakia on the eastern front.Meanwhile, Germany stepped up its propaganda campaign.Its purpose, in the words of the head of state himself, is to "use threats to frighten the Czechs and wear down their resistance; on the other hand, we must let our national groups know how to support our military operations and influence China Establish a faction and make it beneficial to me." During the Juterburg meeting, the German ambassador to Moscow sent a letter, which strengthened Hitler's determination to go east.Count von der Schulenburg reported that Czechoslovakia was interested in avoiding conflict and was prepared to make reasonable concessions. "The consensus view here is that at present the Soviet Union will do whatever it takes to avoid being drawn into the war. The reason for this is the difficult domestic situation and the fear of fighting on two fronts." The stage is set for a crisis in Europe that will make the events of May seem trivial.