Chancellor Dollfus hadby his actions insured that Austrian Independence would remain but in makin Otto the King he had put a check on both himself and future Austrian Chancellors. Otto held talks with the Czechoslovkian Presiden concerning the ethnic Germans that were living in that country. While he had no use for any that may be Nazi sympathizers he did want to insure that the people were not mistreated.
Crown Prince Rupprecht for President in 1932
- Thread starter chris N
- Start date
I can see a much more modest German expansionism program developing under a Ruprecht administration. Anschluss and regaining Danzig are obvious, as is lifting of the military restrictions in exchange for whatever replacement penalty the French and British will want for it (reduction in reparation reductions?). All the German areas of Czechoslovakia would take political capital better spent elsewhere, but I can see the Egerland and maybe the German parts of southern Czechia being pried loose.
As for OP's concept of a German-backed Habsburg restoration in Hungary? That would probably come later, though it'd be on the agenda. More important for Hungary and her new ally, regaining the Hungary majority territory lost at Trianon. Northern Transylvania and Székely Land are a longshot, and would be either left for the future or written off entirely.
Regaining South Tyrol (not Trentino too, obviously, just South Tyrol) would require giving Italy something in return. Good solution? Encouraging all the rifts developing in Yugoslavia. Could get all of Yugoslavia's neighbors involved in that one, even Romania would have some majority Romanian areas on the border it could nibble off. Maybe even get Greek support for the project; deal could be made that in the event of a fragmentation of Yugoslavia, Albania's gain of the Albanian portions will be partly balanced out by ceding the majority Greek portions of Northern Epirus.
As for OP's concept of a German-backed Habsburg restoration in Hungary? That would probably come later, though it'd be on the agenda. More important for Hungary and her new ally, regaining the Hungary majority territory lost at Trianon. Northern Transylvania and Székely Land are a longshot, and would be either left for the future or written off entirely.
Regaining South Tyrol (not Trentino too, obviously, just South Tyrol) would require giving Italy something in return. Good solution? Encouraging all the rifts developing in Yugoslavia. Could get all of Yugoslavia's neighbors involved in that one, even Romania would have some majority Romanian areas on the border it could nibble off. Maybe even get Greek support for the project; deal could be made that in the event of a fragmentation of Yugoslavia, Albania's gain of the Albanian portions will be partly balanced out by ceding the majority Greek portions of Northern Epirus.
Disagree. The Sudetenland had a very important arms industry. It’s a much more valuable territory than Danzig, for example. Though honestly, a more patient and reasonable Germany can probably achieve Austria, Danzig and Sudetenland, given that they are all German majority areas that want to be part of Germany and it’s not blatant expansionism.
That’s supposing Mussolini would even consider negotiating that.
Yugoslavia is something that Mussolini always wanted a part of. It was a nation state that had been created without asking the Slovenians or Croatians if they wanted to be part of it. In addition there were parts of it that had large Hungarian and Romanian population in it. The former Kingdom of Montenegro was also something that the Italians wanted as the Italian King had a good claim to the region and yes the Greeks also claimed land. A deal could be made and regaining the South Tyrol would make Otto and Chancellor Dolfuss very popular in Austria.
Which is why it'd be a harder to sell the Entente on adding the whole thing to a Germany that's already gotten Austria and Danzig without coming off like threatening another war.
That said, looking at a terrain map and comparing it to a population map, there's plenty of odds and ends of the Sudetenland, in addition to the Egerland, that can be taken from Czechoslovakia without compromising its ability to defend Prague or looking like huge losses on a map.
Not really. OTL, just a *week* after the Anschluss, Chamberlain wrote to his sister observing that a single glance at the map showed there was nothing the WAllies could do for Czechoslovakia. And at the beginning of June he told a group of journalists that CZ might be better off as a more homogenous state (ie without the Sudetenland). Is there any reason why he should feel differently TTL?
Had Hitler taken a less bullying approach, perhaps just asking for a plebiscite there, he could probably have acquired the Sudetenland months earlier - but of course that wasn't what he wanted. OTOH it could very well be what Rupprecht wanted.
BTW, any thoughts on how Rupprecht would have handled the Rhineland?
Iirc, someone (Goering?) suggested remilitarising it "on the sly" by creating a special police force for the entire Reich, gradually arming them more heavily, and after a few years, when everyone had gotten used to them, issuing a decree absorbing them into the Reichswehr. Thus it would all have been done quietly, with no brass bands marching over the Rhine bridges. Obviously that was not Hitler's way, but a less bellicose regime might take a more "softly softly" approach.
Iirc, someone (Goering?) suggested remilitarising it "on the sly" by creating a special police force for the entire Reich, gradually arming them more heavily, and after a few years, when everyone had gotten used to them, issuing a decree absorbing them into the Reichswehr. Thus it would all have been done quietly, with no brass bands marching over the Rhine bridges. Obviously that was not Hitler's way, but a less bellicose regime might take a more "softly softly" approach.
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By now Germany had reached agreements with Britain allowing it to rebuild the Reich Marine to 35% of the size of the Royal Navy. . The Army was approaching 300,000 and growing. The Luftwaffe had come into existence . Germany had deployed a 36,000 man Border Guard force into the Rhineland.
Guess I was being overly cautious in my planning out. Thinking about how it would look on a map, thinking about the political capital costs of both taking the Sudetenland and boosting ally Hungary, what have you. Wasn't most of the agitation for joining Germany in the Egerland?
Negotiating its remilitarization with France and Belgium, I'm guessing. Probably at the same time as lifting military restrictions on Germany.
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My problem is that it gives Germany the worst of both worlds. If he settles for only Danzig, and leaves all the majority/Polish areas to Poland, then he has accepted that ethnographic borders trump historic ones. But if he accepts this principle when it works against Germany, why would he not assert it where it works in her favour?
Rupprecht may have been anti-Nazi, but he was still a thoroughly patriotic German. Why would he (or indeed *any* German) accept such a one-sided arrangement - especially as it becomes clear that Anglo-French opposition will be somewhere between half-hearted and nonexistent, so long as they are allowed to save a bit of face by agreeing to plebiscites?
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There's also terrain to consider though. The Entente and Prague would want to preserve Czechoslovakia's ability to defend itself from Germany if it came to a shooting war. There's a bunch of areas in the Sudetenland that can be taken with without bypassing all possible defense. I think Czechoslovakia and Poland could be more easily aligned with a Germany they don't feel is sizing them up for wholesale annexation.
Another thing that could be in the cards? Anschlussing Liechtenstein and Luxembourg.
Another thing that could be in the cards? Anschlussing Liechtenstein and Luxembourg.
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The German economy was recovering and unemployment had continued to fall. Germany was pressing the case that ethnic Germans should be ruled by either Germany or Austria. It was willing to comromise on the question of territory but not on Principal. . It proposed that there be an adjustment of Yugoslavian borders so that areas that had a majority Hungarian or Romanian Population be given to those countries. The South Tyrol be returned to Austria by Italy. Slovenia and Croatia be offered cchoices of leaving Yugoslavia, joining another Nation or Independence.
That didn't prevent Munich - despite Hitler being a far nastier character than Rupprecht. Why would he get any less than Hitler did?
It's not a matter of getting, it's about wanting to take. Besides, a productive, friendly Czechoslovakia is more valuable than an impoverished (the entire Sudetenland represented 70% of both Czechoslovakia's iron and steel industry and 70% of its electrical generation), subjugated, resentful Czechoslovakia that's existence presents Poland with both a preview of its own fate under a hypothetical actively hostile Germany and a wedge to drive against Germany.
The Rhine should obviously be remilitarized sometime during the 30'. A government that doesn't do that will forever be seen as weak and an Entente puppet. The thing here is that a better ruler would've tried to secure GB's support for this, and not rearm as blatantly as the Nazis do, alleviating most of the Emtente's concerns.
Sudetenland is probably more important than propping up Hungary if he's not planning for any wars short term.
A settlement woth Czechoslovakia might be possible. They might even be glad to get rid from such a big German minority, which while being surrounded by Germany is a dagger to their throats. This considering this Germany would make clear that they are onoy out for German territories and the rest of Czechoslovakia will be left alone.
My assumption here was that Rupprecht would not occupy Prague as Hitler did in March '39, so the non-German parts of it would *not* be subjugated.
He might also agree to some arrangement that, if/where main roads or railways were severed by the new border, citizens of both countries could use them w/o passport etc checks, and that any Czechs wiwho chose to move out of the ceded territory would be free to take their livestock etc with them (something Hitler refused). In short a sort of "Munich with a human face"..
Rupprecht and Otto Hapsburg were attempting to reach an agreement with the Czechoslovkian Government that would settle the "German Problem" that was created by the allies drawing the redrawing the borders at the Peace talks. While progress was being made both leaders were trying not to ram an unfair agreement. At the same time there was a problem that was growing elsewhere in Europe. In Spain the experiment know as the Spanish Republic was coming to a boil as forces on the left and right were seeing increasing incidents that was leading to a Civil War. There was concern in Italy and France was concern tat events there might trigger problems in France. Stalin was eager to gain an advantage.