The Rest Is History

528. The Nazis' Road to War: Hitler Prepares to Strike (Part 1)


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Throughout the course of the 1930s, Adolf Hitler’s Nazi party has overwhelmingly, terrifyingly seized power in Germany. Now, Hitler’s vile ambitions have turned to Czechoslovakia. On the 12th of September 1938 at the Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg, he rabidly defended the supposed interests of the German speaking minority in Czechoslovakia, claiming that they had been ravaged and tortured by their cruel Czech overlords, but not so. In reality, Hitler is preparing the ground for the invasion and dismemberment of Czechoslovakia - what he sees as a crucial step towards the creation of a new German dominion in central and eastern Europe. In so doing, he is setting Europe upon the road to an increasingly imminent Second World War. With Nazism driven above all by the shattering experience of the First World War, a hunger for war burns at the very centre of the Nazi’s ambitions. For Hitler, it is personal - the German economy is in meltdown and with it, his frayed mental and physical state. Was it possible, then, that at this crucial juncture in 1938, the outcome of war could be prevented? Certainly, Britain’s Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, was determined to make it so…

Join Tom and Dominic for the opening episode in their next series on the Nazis’ road to the Second World War. With European politics in turmoil, Adolf Hitler hungry for war, and Neville Chamberlain desperate to appease him, will there be peace in our time? At Munich, one of the most controversial diplomatic instances in history, the fate of the world will be decided.

______

Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

@holland_tom

@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett + Aaliyah Akude

Editor: Jack Meek

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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