page_title: Munich Agreement
section_title: Polish and Hungarian actions
hierarchical_section_title: Munich Agreement / Reactions / Polish and Hungarian actions
context_page_description: The Munich Agreement or Munich Betrayal was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. It provided "cession to Germany of the Sudeten German territory" of Czechoslovakia. Most of Europe celebrated the agreement, because it prevented the war threatened by Adolf Hitler by allowing Nazi Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland, a region of western Czechoslovakia inhabited by more than 3 million people, mainly German speakers. Hitler announced it was his last territorial claim in Europe, and the choice seemed to be between war and appeasement.
  An emergency meeting of the main European powers – not including Czechoslovakia or the Soviet Union, an ally to both France and Czechoslovakia – took place in Munich, Germany, on 29–30 September 1938. An agreement was quickly reached on Hitler's terms. It was signed by the top leaders of Germany, France, Britain and Italy. Militarily, the Sudetenland was of strategic importance to Czechoslovakia as most of its border defenses were situated there to protect against a German attack.
context_section_description: Poland was building up a secret Polish organization in the area of Zaolzie from 1935. In summer 1938, Poland tried to organize guerrilla groups in the area. On 21 September, Poland officially requested a direct transfer of the area to its own control. This was accompanied by placing army along the Czechoslovak border on 23–24 September and by giving an order to the so-called "battle units" of Zaolzie Poles and the "Zaolzie Legion", a paramilitary organisation that was subordinate to army command and made up of volunteers from all over Poland, to cross the border to Czechoslovakia and attack Czechoslovak units. They, however, were repulsed by Czechoslovak forces and retreated to Poland.
  Hungary followed Polish request for transfer of territory with its own request on 22 September.
  Throughout the second half of September, Poland had been insisting on its territorial demands on Czechoslovakia, which had been denied by the Spa Conference in 1920, should be considered along with those of Germany. In the meantime, any German claims to the Polish Corridor and large parts of Prussia as well as half of Silesia were played down as the price of the co-operation of Warsaw.
  The Chief of the General Staff of the Czechoslovak Army, General Ludvík Krejčí, reported that "Our army will in about two days' time be in full condition to withstand an attack even by all Germany's forces together, provided Poland does not move against us".
  On 23 September, the Czechoslovakian military mobilized to defend against Nazi Germany.
  On 27 September, seeing that Czechoslovakia was in dire straits with Nazi troops readying to invade, Poland issued an ultimatum, demanding that Czechoslovakia hand over Těšín district, denied to Poland by the Spa Conference in 1920
  The Polish ultimatum finally decided Beneš, by his own account, to abadon any idea of resisting the settlement.
  The Germans were delighted with that outcome and were happy to give up the sacrifice of a small provincial rail centre to Poland in exchange for the ensuing propaganda benefits. It spread the blame of the partition of Czechoslovakia, made Poland a participant in the process and confused political expectations. Poland was accused of being an accomplice of Germany, a charge that Warsaw was hard-put to deny.
  After learning that territories populated by Poles were to be handed over to Germany, Poland issued a note to the Czechoslovak government that demanded "the immediate conclusion of an agreement whereby indisputably Polish territory should be occupied by Polish troops; this was to be followed by an agreement on plebiscites in districts with a strong percentage of Polish population".
  The Polish ultimatum [AJP Taylor most likely refers to the note of 27 September, unanswered until 30 September, not the ultimatum of late night 30 September - see below] finally decided Beneš, according to his own account, to abandon any idea of resisting the Munich Settlement.
  "Czechoslovakia decided to accept all of the Munich conditions on 30 September. On the morning of 30 September, Beneš turned despairingly to the Soviet ambassador. 'Czechoslovakia is confronted with the choice either of beginning war with Germany, having against her Britain and France,... or capitulating to the aggressor.' What would be the attitude of the U.S.S.R. to these two possibilities, 'that is, of further struggle or capitulation'? Before the Soviet government could debate the question, another telegram informed them that no answer was necessary: 'The Czechoslovak Government has already decided to accept all the conditions.' It is difficult to believe that the inquiry was made seriously. Beneš remained true to his resolve that Czechoslovakia must not fight alone nor with Soviet Russia as sole ally. Years later, in 1944, he claimed that the Polish threat at Tesin had given him the final push into surrender; if so, it was only a push in the direction where he had determined to go. Beneš still believed - rightly, as things turned out - that Hitler would over-reach himself; but the process took longer than he had hoped. Meanwhile,
caption: General Hans Oster, deputy head of the Abwehr met with other German military officers on 20 September 1938 to discuss final plans of a plot to overthrow the regime.
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