January 27, 1940
Czech Protectorate – Prague We t with the Czech Side's Delegation in Prague at the Old Czech Governnt Complex, the sa building Hitler had used as the Reich Commissariat for Bohemia and Moravia (Governor-General's Office).
Our Side's Delegation consisted of my father and Chancellor, Hjalmar Schacht, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Weizs??cker, and , the Vice Minister of the Chancellery.
The Czech Side's Delegation included Edvard Bene??, the President at the ti of the Munich Agreent and current Leader of the Czechoslovak governnt-in-exile in France, and Emil Hácha, the Czech Governor who had surrendered to Hitler during the Annexation of Czechia and signed away his country.
After occupying Berlin and dealing with the Nazi Regi, we had also dismantled the Reich Commissariat for the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, but we simply renad it the Czech Protectorate and reappointed Emil Hácha as Governor, granting a considerable level of Autonomy.
In essence, we had halted the Assimilation Policy previously pushed by Hitler and were now pursuing an Appeasent policy, and since Emil Hácha was, after all, the President elected by the Czechs after the Bene?? Cabinet resigned, we kept him in place.
Edvard Bene??, a figure from the Czech Independence Movent against the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the President of Czechoslovakia who had attempted to stand against Hitler by proceeding with the Fortification of the Sudetenland, seed deeply moved to be stepping on his Holand's soil again.
"Welco back to Czechia, Forr President. I am Hjalmar Schacht, the Chancellor of Germany."
"…Edvard Bene??. I lead the Czechoslovak governnt-in-exile."
Starting with my father and Bene??, we went through the motions of introducing ourselves and exchanging handshakes.
The one saving grace was that after Nazi Germany fell, we had revealed a significant amount about the situation of the Third Reich, which had been mostly hidden from the outside world.
They must be well aware of the fact that my father was dismissed for opposing Hitler's complete annexation of Czechia and the war, and that we had banned all the persecution carried out by the Nazis as soon as the civil war ended.
Returning the regional na to Czechia and allowing a high level of autonomy gave the Czechs hope that we would, at the very least, be better than the Nazis.
Thanks to that, they ca to visit in person as soon as we reached out to their governnt-in-exile for a discussion.
"As you know, we have arranged this eting to discuss the liberation of Czechoslovakia."
When my father started, Bene??, Hácha, and the rest of the Czech negotiation team nodded with tense, rigid faces.
They ca because they were desperate, but as for whether they were favorable towards us, that's a bit ambiguous. After all, we're the perpetrators, and they're the victims.
On top of that, they already have a sponsor who promised to pressure the perpetrator and secure their liberation.
My father, Hjalmar Schacht, leaned back in his chair, a trademark-like, sowhat rotten smile on his face as he spoke.
"Well, since we all know what's what, let's not beat around the bush and get straight to it. We intend to return Czechoslovakia to its state after the conclusion of the Munich Agreent."
Bene?? spoke with a stiff expression.
"And the return of the Sudetenland?"
"Of course, that is impossible."
Objectively speaking, it's territory we plundered, but my father was so brazen about it that I didn't know what kind of expression to make.
Bene?? looked quite indignant.
"Do you intend to make us sign another coercive treaty like the one concluded in Munich?"
"I understand your country's stance, but the Munich Agreent is an official treaty that Britain and France also consented to."
Weizs??cker tried to lighten the mood a little, but Bene??'s response was cold.
"A treaty made between invaders and traitors. One in which you even broke the guarantee of independence you promised."
Good grief.
I expected as much, but this is going to be difficult.
"Even by the standard of the principle of national self-determination declared by the West, the return of the Sudetenland is impossible. If we tried to return it, our governnt, which is currently pursuing Czech independence, could be overthrown, and you can surely predict that the German Governnt that replaces it would have a more hardline nationalist disposition."
Even after hearing my words, Bene?? did not relax his stiff expression.
"Ahem, Bene??. This is an opportunity to rebuild Czechoslovakia with our own hands, without bloodshed."
Emil Hácha, perhaps because he had been a figurehead under Hitler and the Nazi Regi, seed to find our proposal sufficiently rational.
"It would be entrusting our fate to the hands of a foreign power once again!"
But Hácha, who was older, flinched at Bene??'s scolding and fell silent.
The already timid-looking man, perhaps because of his sin of rubber-stamping the downfall of Czechia, couldn't stand tall in front of Bene??, who had tried to resist until the end.
Honestly, I don't feel too good about this. Isn't this exactly like the situation of discussing how to carve up Korea after Japan's downfall?
Still, the fact that I have to do what must be done is depressing.
"Forr President Bene??. It may not be my place to say this, but this is the mont Czechoslovakia can achieve independence as one nation under the best possible conditions."
"Hah, I've heard much about the young Vice Minister of the Chancellery of Germany.
You're overflowing with confidence, aren't you?"
I suppressed the feeling that a sigh was about to burst out of
and opened my mouth.
"France must have told you they'd send us an ultimatum, using Poland's guarantee of independence and the liberation of Czechia as their justification, right?"
Bene?? clicked his tongue but didn't deny it.
France's rock-bottom security has been a ti-honored tradition since the last great war, after all.
"If France uses that as a pretext to pressure us and the Czechoslovak governnt-in-exile supports them, our course of action is simple."
I consciously imitated my father Hjalmar Schacht's rotten smile as I continued speaking to Bene??.
"We will dismantle all of your country's industrial facilities and move them to the German Holand, then liberate Czechia and Slovakia separately. And we will just leave them be. Though there are those nearby who would target the two weakened nations imdiately after liberation."
At this mont, Bene?? would be thinking of Carpatho-Ruthenia, which was devoured by Hungary right after gaining independence following the Munich Agreent.
"What! Our fatherland again…!"
"Unfortunately, that's the situation. When the governnt-in-exile trusts the guarantee of our enemy nation and sides with them, is there any reason for us to show Czechia any more consideration? Even if we do that, it will still be difficult for them to start a war on the pretext of liberating Czechia."
Of course, we'd take a beating internationally if we actually did sothing like that, so we should avoid such an incident if possible, but given what Germany has already done, it must sound quite chilling from the Czech perspective.
"Then the governnt-in-exile would have two choices. Either be stripped of your legitimacy by a new Czech governnt and be dismissed, or incite France to push ahead with a war on a weak justification after Czechia has already been liberated and pray they reclaim the Sudetenland and Slovakia for you."
Bene?? was practically trembling as he listened to .
Playing the villain role for one's nation is truly a painful thing.
"Even if France declares war, you'll have to wait until they win, and even if they do defeat us, I don't know if the Czech regi that establishes itself in the anti will acknowledge the governnt-in-exile's contributions.
Wouldn't you be lucky if they don't just bury you by pinning the bla for the Munich Agreent and the Annexation of Czechia on you?"
The first thing the Vichy Governnt did after the downfall of France was deny the legitimacy of the Third Republic, and the first thing Free France did after the downfall of the Nazis was deny the legitimacy of Vichy France.
The politicians of Czechoslovakia who have struggled as a governnt-in-exile must know all too well how they'll be cast aside if a new Czech governnt is established.
Bene?? remained silent. I concealed a bursting sigh and looked at my father, who gave
his peculiar unpleasant smile before speaking to Bene??.
"We are well aware of Czechoslovakia's anxiety about being liberated without the Sudetenland. If you accept our side's liberation plan in the upcoming negotiations with France, Germany will not only guarantee Czechoslovakia's independence but also guarantee trade through German ports and provide tariff benefits."
After all, Czechoslovakia is in a state of complete disarmant, and they are the ones who know best that self-rescue asures through the League of Nations or diplomacy are an illusion.
Even if it's an industrial powerhouse of Central Europe, now that the Sudetenland has been taken, it's no threat to us and it will take years just to restore its military. In the anti, it will need a country to protect it from Poland or Hungary, which already have a history of tearing off pieces of Czechoslovakia.
In the end, even in the long term, Czechoslovakia will have no choice but to be dependent on Germany for protection, ports, and trade routes, so we're offering benefits in that area to forge an even closer relationship.
There will be the issue of national sentint, but at least we, who liberated them from the Nazi Regi, are bound to be better than Poland or Hungary.
And in the end, economic influence is more important than national sentint.
It's like how modern Korea, despite hating China and Japan so much, finds it difficult to completely sever ties with them.
"If France recklessly tries to go to war with us, we don't know how Britain will react, and if that happens, won't the fate of Czechia and Slovakia beco more uncertain? If you want to achieve independence directly as the single nation of Czechoslovakia, not based on the interests of the Great Powers, then now is the ti."
My father relentlessly drove the point ho, and Bene?? sighed as if the ground would collapse, pressing his forehead.
Putting aside the emotional issues, he must understand that realistically, these are the best conditions possible.
They have already been too brutally abandoned to trust France with everything.
For France, the liberation of Czechia is nothing more than a pretext to pressure Germany.
"Ti… we need ti to think."
"Of course. We are prepared to respect the sovereign state of Czechoslovakia."
Hearing my father's words, Bene?? let out a sigh and left the room with the Czech Side's Delegation and Hácha.
They will have their own head-aching discussions, but since they have no cards to play against us directly and cannot fully trust France, their choice is already set.
"Good work.
How did it go?"
When I ca to my senses, I saw Claudia waiting for
by the car. Ah, when did she get here?
"Your expression isn't very goo-"
Her words were cut off as I pulled her into a sudden embrace.
I felt her warmth in my arms and spoke softly.
"I'm a bad guy."
Claudia hesitated for a mont, but soon began patting my back as she spoke.
"…It's evidence that you're taking responsibility for your people."
Having taken responsibility, I suppose I'll have to keep doing things like this.
But even then, she will be by my side. That felt like salvation to .
-
A few days after the negotiations with the Czechoslovak governnt-in-exile ended, as soon as February began, the Paul Reynaud Cabinet of France officially sent us an ultimatum.
Their demands were as follows:
1.
The complete liberation of Czechoslovakia
2. An unconditional end to the war with Poland and Italy, returning to the territory before the start of the war The ssage was that they could no longer tolerate Germany's military expansion, and if the above terms were not implented within 48 hours, they could push ahead with military action to protect Poland based on their guarantee of independen-
ce.
In response to France's demand to aninglessly end the defensive war where even the Prince had died fighting against the invasion of Italy and Poland, and to spit out Czechia as well, old animosity toward France rose up like a wildfi-
re across all of Germany.
Britain was inwardly displeased that France had taken such unilateral action, but they too were wary of Germany becoming too powerful and would have wanted to avoid an escalation of the war.
British Pri Minister Halifax arranged for a conference, taking the stance that 'since France has already gone and done it, we have no choice' but for Britain to diate.
Everything the German Fourth Empire had built up after finishing off Hitler was now put to the test.
-
February 2, 1940
Munich, 7th Military District, Southern Germany The conference venue is Munich. From Britain and France's perspective, I don't know if it's to wash away their sha, but for the Czechoslovak governnt-in-exile, it must be a very unpleasant location.
But for the Great Powers who had concluded the Munich Agreent while completely excluding Czechoslovakia even when it was intact, there was, of course, no respect to be shown to a governnt-in-exile without a country.
The politicians of the French Radical Party, in particular, looked like they were determined to wash away their disgrace this ti, their eyes gleaming.
The British delegation was Pri Minister "Lord Halifax" Edward Wood and Foreign Secretary Alexander Cadogan.
The French delegation was Pri Minister Paul Reynaud and Foreign Secretary ??douard Daladier.
The German delegation was my father, , and Foreign Secretary Weizs??cker.
And finally, Edvard Bene??, the representative of the Czechoslovak governnt-in-exile, all were gathered in the conference hall.
"It has been a while, Vice Minister. You're looking well."
"Haha, it's been a while, Forr Chancellor. You're the Minister of Foreign Affairs now."
??douard Daladier, who had resigned from his post as Chancellor after I thoroughly screwed him over at the conference held after the suppression of the Military Governnt's coup d'état, had a vein popping on his thick neck, but he soon shook my hand with a grin and spoke softly.
"It will be different this ti."
"My, I'm looking forward to it."
After the delegations from each country exchanged greetings mixed with a war of nerves, the self-proclaid diator, British Pri Minister Halifax, opened his mouth.
"Then… hoping we can conclude a second agreent for our ti, let us begin the conference."
A rotten smile naturally ford on my face.
The Munich Agreent.
At the very place where the agreent called the Betrayal of the West or the Munich Coercive Treaty was concluded, completely excluding the party concerned, Czechoslovakia, the sa countries have gathered again to hold a conference for a Second Munich Agreent.
If a being called God truly exists, he has the worst taste.
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