26. Withstanding Pressure to Wrest a Political Victory
In 1936, Hitler decided to send soldiers into the Rhineland. Doing so was a huge risk, considering that Germany’s military at the time was in no condition to fight. If the Western Allies responded with even minimal armed force, German commanders knew that they would be forced to beat a hasty and humiliating retreat. Hitler faced great pressure from his generals, who warned him of the risks involved. However, the Fuhrer gambled that while the Western Allies had the power to thwart him, they lacked the will to actually use that power.
So on March 7, 1936, Hitler ordered 19 German battalions to occupy the Rhineland, in direct violation of the post-WWI treaties. He won the gamble: the British and French protested, but neither took direct action. Having taken the measure of France and Britain, Hitler’s appetite was whetted for ever-riskier gambles. He calculated that he could act egregiously, secure in the knowledge that the Western Allies would strongly protest and vehemently condemn, but do nothing more. He kept escalating until he invaded Poland in 1939, and was stunned when Britain and France finally had enough and declared war.