760F.62/1505: Telegram
The Chargé in France (Wilson) to the Secretary of State
[Received October 6—2:10 p.m.]
1705. The Counselor of the Czechoslovak Legation informs me that the proceedings of the International Commission at Berlin were broken off yesterday during several hours. The German representative demanded the occupation by German troops before October 10 of further territories which with the territories already occupied, would comprise practically the entire area shaded in red on the map20 attached to Hitler’s Godesberg memorandum.
Poland had protested against this and had received “feeble” support from the British and French Ambassadors. Whereupon the German representative had declared that if his demand was not granted the German Army would march in and “take” the territories in question. The proceedings were interrupted to allow the British and French Ambassadors to consult their Governments. When the Commission resumed its session in the late afternoon the British and French Ambassadors announced that they had received instructions to accept the German demand.
The Counselor stated that in the Czech fortifications abandoned to the German Army were heavy guns and machine guns to the value of 2 billion Czech crowns. Furthermore, the Czech fortifications had been constructed by French military engineers following the plans of the French Maginot Line and in abandoning these fortifications to Germany plans and complete information regarding the Maginot Line were thereby revealed to the German Army. The French Government as the Counselor put it “is making some valuable gifts to Germany.”
The Counselor said that the French Government had offered financial and economic assistance to Czechoslovakia. The Czech Government had requested a loan in the same amount as they had requested of the British Government. The British Government had at once granted a loan of 10 million pounds. The French Government had not even replied as yet.
- See British Documents, 3d ser., vol. ii, map I at end of volume.↩