Hitlers foreign policy

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Hitlers foreign policy
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Revenge for the Treaty of Versailles abolish
its terms.
Return all Germans outside Germany to their
homeland
Build a Master Race prove German racial
superiority.
Mein Kampf
Lebensraum Fight to get extra living space that
Germany needed.
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Hitlers Foreign Policy was to be
AGGRESSIVE EXPASIONIST RACIST
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Aims

• Short term remove terms of Versailles to make
  Germany stronger and remove new states in the way
  of longer term plans
• Long term racial and territorial

German postcard produced about the time of the
Treaty of Versailles. Its title is 'Hands off
German Homeland'. On the stone (bottom left) is
written 'd.ö.' standing for Deutsch-österreich
(German Austria).
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Hitler Rearms Germany
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(No Transcript)
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Speech to Generals

• keep up the battle against Versailles. Get
  equality of rights in Geneva Conference. Try to
  get allies
• building up of the armed forces. Most important
  thing for achieving goal of regaining political
  power. National service must be introduced. 1933
  Hitler

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Leaving the Disarmament conference, 1932

• League of Nations had organised the conference
• Britain believed that Germany should re-arm at a
  controlled rate
• France was not happy

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Context

• At the time Japan was invading Manchuria and the
  Nazis were making progress

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Outcome of Conference

• 1933 deal to reach equality in 5 years
• France changed this to 8 years
• Voted to ban aerial bombing/Limit heavy
  artillery/Ban chemical welfare
• Germany and Russia voted against this
• Germany refused until other countries disarmed
• Hitler withdrew from the conference and a new
  arms race began

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Why did he take this action?

• Doubted the power of the league to enforce any
  agreement
• Intuitive feeling for what was right at the time
• Returned from Geneva stating that he had achieved
  a great triumph

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What did Hitler do next?

• Held a plebiscite
• Asked the German people what they thought of his
  policies
• 95 agreed with Hitler

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Re-armament programme

• Plan to build armed forces
• 21 divisions by 1937
• 300,000 men
• Airforce, Luftwaffe, by 1934 2000 planes
• Open secret
• Announced formally during the Abyssinian crisis

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Reaction of allies

• Horrified at breach to terms but unable to act
• Held meeting with Italy at Stresa, 1935
• Promised to work together
• Meanwhile Britain and France were trying to stop
  Mussolinis plans
• Therefore meaningless

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Anglo-German Naval deal,1935

• Britain out of self interest and without
  consulting France met with the Germans
• Signed the Anglo-German Naval deal
• Agreed to let Germany have parity in the air
• Naval forces to be 35 of Britians
• Equal submarines
• Gave the go ahead to Germaany

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British publics reaction

• Viewed this as a sign that Hitler wanted closer
  ties with Britain
• Further negotiation could take place
• Consistent with British view that Germany should
  be allowed to re-arm at a controlled rate

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• This drawing by the British Cartoonist David
  Low (20 March 1935) is titled 'Cause comes before
  effect'.   The cartoon shows Hitler's armies
  marching past him - but at the front are
  politicians such as Chamberlain, Clemenceau,
  Laval and Mussolini, and they are saluting Hitler
  too.   They have rolled up the Versailles Treaty
  and carry a flag saying '10 years of lost
  opportunity'.   The message of the cartoon is
  that Hitler may be bringing war, but it is the
  politicians of France, Britain and Italy who are
  to blame - for letting him.