Czechoslovakia

Series

Series Name

The March of Time 4th Year

Issue

Issue No.

3

Date Released

8 Aug 1938

Length of issue (in feet)

1841

Stories in this Issue:

1. 1Czechoslovakia
2. 2Brain Trust Island

Story

Story No. within this Issue

1 / 2

Summary

The March of Time synopsis: In all anxious Europe, in 1938, few men have a greater responsibility than the National Defence Council of Czechoslovakia. This little central European republic, born of the great war, is today a democratic island marked for conquest by Nazi Germany. Massaryk, its first President, who died in 1937, upheld the loftiest ideals of liberal democracy, and left to his successor, Dr. Eduard Benes, a nation whose progress had won it the world’s respect. Out of Prague, for centuries a provincial Austrian city, has emerged the modern capital of a vigorous young nation, the centre of a commerce and industry reaching out across the world. Today, Czechoslovakia maintains complete freedom of religion, of the press and of speech. Moreover, it is a nation of minority groups, the largest of them being the 3,500,000 Germans concentrated in the Sudeten Mountain regions - tied by language, customs and sympathies to the Germany of their ancestors. When world depression brought hard times and unemployment to the Sudeten Germans, they blamed the Czechs, whom they had always despised. Soon discontent took political shape, and with its 2,000,000 members working closely with Nazi Germany, the Sudeten party began to make its influence felt.

In Czechoslovakia is an abundance of Germany’s greatest needs; rich agriculture, flourishing industry, wealthy deposits of raw materials and great munition factories. But most important is her strategic value. Encircled by heavily fortified mountain ranges, Czechoslovakia is a natural fortress, commanding the whole of Central Europe. Because its well-equipped army is only a quarter the size of Hitler’s. Czechoslovakia’s prime guarantee of safety has always been its close alliance with powerful France. But in 1938, the Czechs, already concerned by a Franco-British alliance for peace, watched with anxiety as Conrad Helein, leader of the Sudeten German party flew to Berlin after talking with British statesmen in London. With rumours of German troop movements across the border, President Benes, remembering the fate of Austria, quickly mobilised the entire man-power of Czechoslovakia’s standing army and reserves, a force 400,000 strong. For the first time, a small nation, unaided, defied the thunderings of the mightiest warlord of modern times. Then came word that if Czechoslovakia was attacked, France would fight. And as the jubilant Czechs learnt that Hitler’s troops had fallen back from the frontier, they knew that they had won. But in the full knowledge that this was not the end, the nation issued a decrease assigning every man, woman and child to his defence station in readiness for war. For the valiant little republic is determined that Hitler will never destroy Czech freedom until he has first destroyed the Czech people.

Researcher Comments

This story was included in Vol.5 No.1 of the US edition.

Keywords

Occupied territories; War and conflict

Written sources

The March of Time Promotional Material   Lobby Card, Used for synopsis

Credits:

Production Co.

Time Inc.