740.0011 European War 1939/2795: Telegram
The Ambassador in Belgium (Cudahy) to the Secretary of State
[Received 12:25 p.m.]
104. I have just been informed by Foreign Office that at 8:40 this morning the German Ambassador55a called on the Foreign Minister at the Foreign Office and stated that because of the French and British threat to the neutrality of Belgium the German Government had decided to take military measures for the safeguarding of their neutrality. The German Ambassador stated that a great German force was massed on the Belgian frontier entirely adequate to protect the country and ensure its neutrality; that if the Belgian Government permitted the entry of German troops the German Government would give its guarantee to respect Belgian neutrality, also guarantee the safety of the King and the permanence of the Crown. The Foreign Minister refused to listen to the reading of the Ambassador’s statement setting forth this declaration and with great spirit expressed his repugnance at the ruthless tactics of the Germans in attacking the open city of Brussels without any note or warning of any description.
- Vicco von Bülow-Schwante.↩