Winston Churchill's Farewell To The Munich Conference

During the 1930’s, as Adolf Hitler rose to power and became chancellor of Germany, there were many important decisions that had to be made. Hitler’s power continued to expand across Europe; thus, his demands also grew larger- demands that contained Hitler’s main objectives for power. In attempts of gaining even more control over Europe, one of Hitler’s objectives was to induce the destruction of Czechoslovakia. In order to achieve this, Hitler demanded the cession of Sudetenland, one of Czechoslovakia’s most important territory, and threatened to risk “world war” to reach this objective (Spielvogel 964). Consequently, Hitler invited some of Czechoslovakia’s allies to the Munich Conference, where he explicitly asserted his demands. The British were participants of this conference, and British prime minister, Neville Chamberlain, refused to deny Hitler’s demands and reached an agreement with him that granted Germany’s wish to cease Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia. Thus, in the opposing viewpoint The Munich Conference: Two Views, Chamberlain’s decision at the Munich Conference is in question for its validity and morality. In this primary source, Winston Churchill,
Churchill disputed that instead of preventing Hitler from achieving his immoral demands, Britain’s decision not only helped Hitler achieve them, but also helped his objectives be “served to him” (Spielvogel 966). Additionally, Churchill clarified that this decision will not merely have an impact on Czechoslovakia- it will also have a significant impact on France and Great Britain. Thus, Churchill challenged the idea that Britain’s decision was made to create peace, and believed that it will rather create more profound problems, stating: “This is only the first sip, the first foretaste of a bitter cup” (Spielvogel