The Interwar Years and World War II (^) ‹ 187
extremist opposition and a source of anti-Semitism, which became prominent in the col-
laboration of the Vichy regime during the German occupation of France in World War II.
Fascism in Great Britain
In Great Britain, small right-wing extremist groups were united in the 1930s under the
leadership of Sir Oswald Mosley, who created the British Union of Fascists (BUF). They
were united by their hatred of socialism and their anti-Semitism. Although never politically
significant in Great Britain, the BUF did mount a serious public disturbance in October
1934 when it battled with socialists and Jewish groups in an incident that has come to be
known as the “Battle of Cable Street.” More importantly, the existence of the BUF and the
initial reluctance of the British government to ban it demonstrate the existence of some
sympathy for their authoritarian and anti-Semitic views among powerful people in Britain.
Once the war broke out, the BUF was banned and Mosley was jailed.
World War II
Hitler had come to power by promising to repudiate the Treaty of Versailles. In March
1936, he took his first big step by moving his revitalized armed forces into the Rhineland,
the area on the west bank of the Rhine River, which the treaty had deemed a demilita-
rized zone. When that move provoked no substantive response from France or Britain,
Hitler embarked on a series of moves to the east that eventually triggered the Second
World War:
• In March 1938, Germany annexed Austria without opposition (an event sometimes
referred to as the Anschluss).
• Hitler then claimed the Sudetenland, a region of Czechoslovakia that was home to 3.5
million German speakers.
• Great Britain reacted with what has been called a policy of appeasement, agreeing in
the Munich Agreement of September 1938 to allow Hitler to take the Sudetenland over
Czech objections in exchange for his promise that there would be no further aggression.
• In March 1939, Hitler broke the Munich Agreement by invading Czechoslovakia.
• As Hitler threatened Poland, the hope of Soviet intervention was dashed by the surprise
announcement, on August 23, 1939, of a Nazi–Soviet Non-Aggression Pact, guarantee-
ing Soviet neutrality in return for part of Poland.
• On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland.
• On September 3, 1939, both France and Great Britain declared war on Germany.
In order to understand why Great Britain followed a policy of appeasement and was
slow to recognize the pattern of aggressive expansion in Hitler’s actions in 1938 and 1939,
one has to take into account the following points:
• Great Britain and its allies, unlike Hitler’s Germany, had not begun any kind of military
buildup and were in no position to back up any ultimatums they might give to Hitler.
• Unlike the Germans, many of whom thought things could get no worse and were eager
to avenge the humiliation of defeat in World War I, the British public hoped that they
had fought and won the “war to end all wars,” and wanted no part of renewed hostilities.
• Many of the British leaders privately agreed with the Germans that the Versailles Treaty
had been unprecedented and unwarranted.
• Given British public opinion, a decision to pursue a military response to Hitler’s actions
would have been political suicide for British leaders.22_Bartolini_Ch22_181-194.indd 187 27/04/18 1:56 PM