Dismantlement of Czechoslovakia (1938-1939)

This map is part of a series of 19 animated maps showing the history of Europe and nations, 1918-1942.

Czechoslovakia, under Benes, was the only democracy in Central Europe to resist the wave of authoritarian regimes. However, this did not prevent its being abandoned by France and the United Kingdom when, at the Munich Conference in September 1938, they sought to avoid war by accepting Hitler’s plans for the 3 million German-speaking Sudetes.

Following Germany’s annexation of Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia was gradually dismantled:

-In October 1938, Poland occupied the region of Tesin.

-In November, Hungary took over the southern regions of Slovakia and its Hungarian population.

-On 14 March 1939, Slovakia proclaimed its independence and became a satellite state of the Third Reich and the next day, 15 March, Germany entered Prague and transformed Bohemia and Moravia into a protectorate, while Hungary annexed Carparthian Ruthenia.