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OFFICIALLY NOT CUTE ANYMORE - CHAMBERLAIN
AND HITLER,
HERE IN 1938
Action Rather Than Speech
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Neville Chamberlain.
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Chamberlain's Action Rather Than
Speech address.
It follows the full text transcript of
Neville Chamberlain's Action Rather Than Speech
address, delivered to the House of Commons, London, UK -
September 1, 1939.
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I do not propose
to say many word tonight. |
The time has come
when action rather than speech is required.
Eighteen months
ago in this House I prayed that the
responsibility might not fall upon me to ask
this country to accept the awful arbitrament of
war. I fear that I may not be able to avoid that
responsibility. But, at any rate, I cannot wish
for conditions in which such a burden should
fall upon me in which I should feel clearer than
I do to-day as to where my duty lies. No man can
say that the Government could have done more to
try to keep open the way for an honorable and
equitable settlement of the dispute between
Germany and Poland. Nor have we neglected any
means of making it crystal clear to the German
Government that if they insisted on using force
again in the manner in which they had used it in
the past we were resolved to oppose them by
force.
Now that all the
relevant documents are being made public we
shall stand at the bar of history knowing that
the responsibility for this terrible catastrophe
lies on the shoulders of one man - the German
Chancellor, who has not hesitated to plunge the
world into misery in order to serve his own
senseless ambitions.
I would like to thank the House for the
forbearance which they have shown on two recent
occasions for not demanding from me information
which they recognized I could not give while
these negotiations were still in progress. I
have now had all the correspondence with the
German Government put into the form of a White
Paper. On account of mechanical difficulties I
am afraid there are still but a few copies
available, but I understand that they will be
coming in in relays while the House is sitting.
I do no think it
necessary for me to refer in detail now to these
documents, which are already past history. They
make it perfectly clear that our object has been
to try and bring about discussions of the
Polish-German dispute between the two countries
themselves on terms of equality, the settlement
to be one which safeguards the independence of
Poland and of which the due observance would be
secured by international guarantees. There is
just one passage from a recent communication,
which is dated the 30th August, which I should
like to quote, because it show how easily the
final clash might have been avoided had there
been the least desire on the part of the German
Government to arrive at a peaceful settlement.
In this document we said:
"His Majesty's Government fully recognize the
need for speed in the initiation of discussions
and they share the apprehensions of the
Chancellor arising from the proximity of two
mobilized armies standing face to face. They
would accordingly most strongly urge that both
parties should undertake that during the
negotiations no aggressive military movements
should take place. His Majesty's Government feel
confident that they could obtain such an
undertaking from the Polish Government if the
German Government would give similar
assurances."
That telegram, which was repeated in Poland,
brought an instantaneous reply from the Polish
Government, dated the 31st August, in which they
said: -
"The Polish Government are also prepared on a
reciprocal basis to give a formal guarantee in
the event of negotiations taking place that
Polish troops will not violate the frontiers of
the German Reich provided a corresponding
guarantee is given regarding the non-violation
of the frontiers of Poland by troops of the
German Reich."
We never had a reply from the German Government
to that suggestion, one which, if it had been
followed, might have saved the catastrophe which
took place this morning. In the German broadcast
last night, which recited the 16 points of the
proposals which they have put forward, there
occurred this sentence: -
"In these circumstances the Reich Government
considers its proposals rejected."
I must examine that statement. I must tell the
House what are the circumstances. To begin with
let me say that the text of these proposals has
never been communicated by Germany to Poland at
all. The history of the matter is this. On
Tuesday, the 29th August, in replying to a Note
which we had sent to them, the German Government
said, among other things, that they would
immediately draw up proposals for a solution
acceptable to themselves and "...will, if
possible, place these at the disposal of the
British Government before the arrival of the
Polish negotiator."
It will be seen by
examination of the White Paper that the German
Government had stated that they counted upon the
arrival of a plenipotentiary from Poland in
Berlin on the 30th that is to say, on the
following day. In the meantime, of course, we
were awaiting these proposals. The next evening,
when our Ambassador saw Herr von Ribbentrop, the
German Foreign Secretary, he urged upon the
latter that when these proposals were ready -
for we had heard no more about them - he should
invite the Polish Ambassador to call and should
hand him the proposals for transmission to his
Government. Thereupon, reports our Ambassador,
in the most violent terms Herr von Ribbentrop
said he would never ask the Ambassador to visit
him. He hinted that if the Polish Ambassador
asked him for an interview it might be
different.
The House will see that this was on Wednesday
night, which according to the German Statement
of last night, is now claimed to be the final
date after which no negotiation with Poland was
acceptable. It is plain, therefore, that Germany
claims to treat Poland as in the wrong because
she had not by Wednesday night entered upon
discussions with Germany about a set of
proposals of which she had never heard.
Now what of ourselves? On that Wednesday night,
at the interview to which I have just referred,
Herr von Ribbentrop produced a lengthy document
which he read out in German aloud, at top speed.
Naturally, after this reading our Ambassador
asked for a copy of the document, but the reply
was that it was now too late, as the Polish
representative had not arrived in Berlin by
midnight. And so, Sir, we never got a copy of
those proposals, and the first time we heard
them - WE heard them - was on the broadcast last
night. Well, Sir, those are the circumstances in
which the German Government said that they would
consider that their negotiations were rejected.
Is it not clear that their conception of a
negotiation was that on almost instantaneous
demand a Polish plenipotentiary should go to
Berlin - where others had been before him - and
should there receive a statement of demands to
be accepted in their entirety or refused?
I am not
pronouncing any opinion upon the terms
themselves, for I do not feel called upon to do
so. The proper course, in our view - in the view
of all of us - was that these proposals should
have been put before the Poles, who should have
been given time to consider them and to say
whether, in their opinion, they did or did not
infringe those vital interests of Poland which
Germany had assured us on a previous occasion
she intended to respect. Only last night the
Polish Ambassador did see the German Foreign
Secretary, Herr von Ribbentrop. Once again he
expressed to him what, indeed, the Polish
Government had already said publicly, that they
were willing to negotiate with Germany about
their disputes on an equal basis. What was the
reply of the German Government? The reply was
that without another word the German troops
crossed the Polish frontier this morning at dawn
and are since reported to be bombing open towns.
In these circumstances there is only one course
open to us. His Majesty's Ambassador in Berlin
and the French Ambassador have been instructed
to hand to the German Government the following
document: -
"Early this morning the German Chancellor issued
a proclamation to the German Army which
indicated that he was about to attack Poland.
Information which has reached His Majesty's
Government in the United Kingdom and the French
Government indicates that attacks upon Polish
towns are proceeding. In these circumstances it
appears to the Governments of the United Kingdom
and France that by their action the German
Government have created conditions, namely, an
aggressive act of force against Poland
threatening the independence of Poland, which
call for the implementation by the Government of
the United Kingdom and France of the undertaking
to Poland to come to her assistance. I am
accordingly to inform your Excellency that
unless the German Government are prepared to
give His Majesty's Government satisfactory
assurances that the German Government have
suspended all aggressive action against Poland
and are prepared promptly to withdraw their
forces from Polish territory, His Majesty's
Government in the United Kingdom will without
hesitation fulfill their obligations to Poland."
If a reply to this
last warning is unfavorable, and I do not
suggest that it is likely to be otherwise, His
Majesty's Ambassador is instructed to ask for
his passports. In that case we are ready.
Yesterday, we took further steps towards the
completion of our defensive preparation. This
morning we ordered complete mobilization of the
whole of the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air
Force. We have also taken an number of other
measures, both at home and abroad, which the
House will not perhaps expect me to specify in
detail. Briefly, they represent the final steps
in accordance with pre-arranged plans. These
last can be put into force rapidly, and are of
such a nature that they can be deferred until
war seems inevitable. Steps have also been taken
under the powers conferred by the House last
week to safeguard the position in regard to
stocks of commodities of various kinds.
The thoughts of many of us must at this moment
inevitably be turning back to 1914, and to a
comparison of our position now with that which
existed then. How do we stand this time? The
answer is that all three Services are ready, and
that the situation in all directions is far more
favorable and reassuring than in 1914, while
behind the fighting Services we have built up a
vast organization of Civil Defense under our
scheme of Air Raid Precautions.
As regards the
immediate man-power requirements, the Royal
Navy, the Army and the Air Force are in the
fortunate position of having almost as many men
as they can conveniently handle at this moment.
There are, however, certain categories of
service in which men are immediately required,
both for Military and Civil Defense. These will
be announced in detail through the Press and the
B.B.C. The main and most satisfactory point to
observe is that there is today no need to make
an appeal in a general way for recruits such as
was issued by Lord Kitchener 25 years ago. That
appeal has been anticipated by many months, and
the men are already available.
So much for the immediate present. Now we must
look to the future. It is essential in the face
of the tremendous task which confronts us, more
especially in view of our pat experiences in
this matter, to organize our man-power this time
upon as methodical, equitable and economical a
basis as possible. We, therefore, propose
immediately to introduce legislation directed to
that end. A Bill will be laid before you which
for all practical purposes will amount to an
expansion of the Military Training Act. Under
its operation all fit men between the ages of 18
and 41 will be rendered liable to military
service if and when called upon. It is not
intended at the outset that any considerable
number of men other than those already liable
shall be called up, and steps will be taken to
ensure that the man-power essentially required
by industry shall not be taken away.
There is one other allusion which I should like
to make before I end my speech, and that is to
record my satisfaction of His Majesty's
Government, that throughout these last days of
crisis Signor Mussolini also has been doing his
best to reach a solution.
It now only remains for us to set our teeth and
to enter upon this struggle, which we ourselves
earnestly endeavored to avoid, with
determination to see it through to the end. We
shall enter it with a clear conscience, with the
support of the Dominions and the British Empire,
and the moral approval of the greater part of
the world. We have no quarrel with the German
people, except that they allow themselves to be
governed by a Nazi Government. As long as that
Government exists and pursues the methods it has
so persistently followed during the last two
years, there will be no peace in Europe. We
shall merely pass from one crisis to another,
and see one country after another attacked by
methods which have now become familiar to us in
their sickening technique.
We are resolved
that these methods must come to an end. If out
of the struggle we again re-establish in the
world the rules of good faith and the
renunciation of force, why, then even the
sacrifices that will be entailed upon us will
find their fullest justification.
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