Third Reich Day by Day: March 1939

Despite the appeasement of Great Britain and France, Hitler’s territorial ambitions could only be satisfied by the conquest of Poland. Great Britain and France finally realized that Hitler was determined to absorb Poland just as he had the Austrians and Czechs. They therefore signed treaties with the Poles guaranteeing to declare war on Germany should Hitler invade. But the world was stunned by the Russo-German Non-Aggression Treaty, which sealed the fate of Poland. On September 1 German forces attacked Poland. World War II had begun.

March

Germany, Aggression

The Germany Army rolls into Bohemia in March as Hitler declares it and Moravia German
The Germany Army rolls into Bohemia in March as Hitler declares it and Moravia German "Protectorates".
The waterfront in Danzig, The Free City that Hitler wanted back. Note the Nazi flags; there were many Nazis in the city.
The waterfront in Danzig, The Free City that Hitler wanted back. Note the Nazi flags; there were many Nazis in the city.

Germany occupies Bohemia and Moravia as “Protectorates” - Czechoslovakia has disappeared from the map of Europe. Memel is also annexed from Lithuania. The Free City of Danzig and the “Polish Corridor” is also demanded. German nationalists were outraged when Poland was given the narrow strip of land that divided Prussia from the rest of Germany. At this time, Nazis within Danzig are agitating for union with Germany.