Appeasement – Part One – The Bitter Cup

15 snips

May 7, 2025

Explore the intriguing saga of appeasement that shaped Europe’s fate in the 1930s. Discover how noble intentions of peace evolved into a disastrous foreign policy under leaders like Neville Chamberlain. Delve into critical misjudgments by world leaders, the complex motivations behind appeasement, and how it fueled Hitler’s ambitions. Learn about the shifting tides of public sentiment in Britain, the ill-fated alliances, and the profound lessons that resonate even today. This captivating discussion unpacks the delicate balance between hope and reality in diplomacy.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Positive Appeasement Shifts Negatively

Post-WWI, appeasement was initially about fairness and peace to prevent another conflict.
It transformed negatively once Hitler rose to power and his true intentions became clear.

INSIGHT

Underestimating Hitler's Threat

Some early observers thought Hitler was a moderate or could be controlled.
Many underestimated his dangerous agenda despite clear oppressive actions like Dachau.

INSIGHT

Misjudging Chamberlain's Strength

Neville Chamberlain was not weak but politically dominant and stubborn.
His business mindset caused him to misjudge Hitler and foreign policy complexities.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

Facing Unpleasant Facts

George Orwell

George Packer

A book about the Glamour Boys

null

Chris Bryant

The house that Hitler built

Stephen H. Roberts

The Mist Procession

null

Lord Vansittart

Theodore Savage

Cicely Hamilton

The People of the Ruins

Edward Shanks

Journey's End

A. T. Butler

The 30s

1930-1940 in Great Britain

Malcolm Muggeridge

Fascism

Dorian Lynskey

Ian Dunt

Warnings and Predictions

null

Viscount Rothermere

Everything Was Go

null

Dorian Lynskey

The Remains of the Day

Kazuo Ishiguro

The Remains of the Day is a novel told through the first-person narration of Stevens, a long-serving butler at Darlington Hall. In the summer of 1956, Stevens embarks on a six-day motoring trip through the West Country, which becomes a journey into his past. The novel explores Stevens' memories of his service during and after World War II, his relationship with the former housekeeper Miss Kenton, and the decline of the English aristocracy. It delves into themes of regret, repression, and the consequences of dedicating one's life to professional duty at the expense of personal happiness. The story is a poignant reflection on the passage of time, the reliability of memory, and the human cost of maintaining a rigid professional persona[1][3][5].

Goodbye To All That

Robert Graves

Good-Bye to All That is a candid and critical memoir that explores Robert Graves' early life, his experiences as a soldier in World War I, and his post-war struggles. The book provides a raw portrayal of trench warfare and the psychological impact of the war on soldiers. It also delves into Graves' growing disillusionment with English society and his eventual departure from England.

The Origins of the Second World War

A. J. P. Taylor

In this influential book, A.J.P. Taylor examines the international politics and foreign policy that led to the outbreak of World War II. Taylor argues that Hitler was an opportunist without a thorough plan, and that the diplomatic mistakes of both the Allied and Axis powers contributed significantly to the war. He challenges the traditional 'Nuremberg Thesis' that Hitler was the sole culprit, instead highlighting the complexities and responsibilities of various nations and their leaders during the interwar period.

All Quiet on the Western Front

Erich Maria Remarque

The novel is narrated by Paul Bäumer, a young German soldier who enlists in the army along with his classmates. It vividly depicts the horrors of trench warfare, the disillusionment with patriotic ideals, and the psychological toll of war on the soldiers. The book follows Paul's experiences from the brutal training to the front lines, where he witnesses the death of his friends and grapples with the meaninglessness of war. The novel is a powerful anti-war statement, highlighting the futility and devastating consequences of war on individuals and society.

How Westminster Works ... and Why It Doesn't

Ian Dunt

Guilty men

Frank Owen

Written in 1940, 'Guilty Men' is a scathing indictment of the British government's policy of appeasement towards Nazi Germany. The book, authored by Michael Foot, Frank Owen, and Peter Howard under the pseudonym 'Cato', targets 15 public figures, including former Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, for their roles in the policy that led to significant unpreparedness for war. The authors criticize the government's failures, particularly at Dunkirk, and the lack of investment in armaments and food supply. Despite initial resistance from major booksellers, the book became highly influential and contributed to the lasting damage to Chamberlain's reputation[1][3][4].

1984

None

George Orwell

Published in 1949, '1984' is a cautionary tale by George Orwell that explores the dangers of totalitarianism. The novel is set in a dystopian future where the world is divided into three super-states, with the protagonist Winston Smith living in Oceania, ruled by the mysterious and omnipotent leader Big Brother. Winston works at the Ministry of Truth, where he rewrites historical records to conform to the Party's ever-changing narrative. He begins an illicit love affair with Julia and starts to rebel against the Party, but they are eventually caught and subjected to brutal torture and indoctrination. The novel highlights themes of government surveillance, manipulation of language and history, and the suppression of individual freedom and independent thought.

Welcome back to Origin Story. This week we turn to the story of the appeasement of Hitler’s Germany during the 1930s. With appeasement in the news again in relation to Ukraine, understanding the mistakes of 90 years ago is urgently necessary. How did noble impulses like optimism, fairness and the desire for peace lead to history’s most infamous foreign policy disaster?

During the 15 years following the First World War, horror of conflict and a growing consensus that the Treaty of Versailles had immiserated Germany made appeasement a positive effort to ensure peace in Europe. Even Winston Churchill was on board. But the arrival of Hitler put paid to that. The question now became: how could a militarily weak Britain rein in an unpredictable dictator, not to mention Italy and Japan? And what did Hitler really want?

We move from the desperate fudging of Ramsay MacDonald and Stanley Baldwin to the evangelical appeasement of Neville Chamberlain, and from crisis to crisis: Manchuria, Abyssinia, the Rhineland, the Anschluss. We meet the most fervent appeasers and their most furious opponents. As Chamberlain’s government begins to crack, Hitler sets his sights on Czechoslovakia…

How did appeasement transform from a benign peace-making strategy into a moral and diplomatic disaster? Why is Chamberlain’s reputation as a weak, indecisive leader so misleading? How did Hitler manage to fool so many powerful people? When could Britain and France have stopped him in his tracks? And what combination of good intentions, bad judgements and apocalyptic delusions led to catastrophe?

• Support Origin Story on Patreon

• Get the Origin Story books on Fascism, Centrism and Conspiracy Theory

Reading list

• Anonymous, ‘A New Dawn’, The Times (1 October 1938)

• W.H. Auden, ‘September 1, 1939’ (1939)

• Frederick T. Birchall, ‘Olympics Leave Glow of Pride in the Reich’, New York Times (16 August 1936)

• Tim Bouverie, Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to

War (2019)

• Cato (Michael Foot, Peter Howard and Frank Owen), Guilty Men (1940)

• Ian Dunt and Dorian Lynskey, Fascism: The Story of an Idea (2024)

• Martin Gilbert, The Roots of Appeasement (1966)

• Richard Griffiths, Fellow Travellers of the Right: British Enthusiasts for Nazi Germany, 1933-9 (1980)

• Cicely Hamilton, Theodore Savage: A Story of the Past or the Future (1922)

• Lucy Hughes-Hallett, ‘How the appeasement of Hitler played into his hands’, New Statesman (2019)

• Kazuo Ishiguro, The Remains of the Day (1989)

• Ian Kershaw, Making Friends with Hitler: Lord Londonderry and Britain’s Road to War (2004)• James Levy, Appeasement and Rearmament: Britain 1936-1939 (Rowman & Littlefield, 2006)

• Frank McDonough, Neville Chamberlain, Appeasement and the British Road to War (1998)

• Malcolm Muggeridge, The Thirties: 1930-1940 in Great Britain (1940)

• George Orwell, Facing Unpleasant Facts: 1937-1939, edited by Peter Davison (1998)

• ‘Policy of His Majesty’s Government’, day three of House of Commons debate on Munich, Hansard (5 October 1938)

• Martin Pugh, ‘Hurrah for the Blackshirts!’: Fascists and Fascism in Britain Between the Wars (2005)

• Stephen H. Roberts, The House That Hitler Built (1937)

• Viscount Rothermere, Warnings and Predictions (1939)

• A.J.P. Taylor, The Origins of the Second World War (1961)

• Things to Come, written by H.G. Wells and directed by William Cameron Menzies (1936)

• Neville Thompson, The Anti-Appeasers (1971)

• Lord Vansittart, The Mist Procession (1958)

Written and presented by Dorian Lynskey and Ian Dunt. Produced by Simon Williams. Music by Jade Bailey. Art by Jim Parrett. Logo by Mischa Welsh. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Origin Story is a Podmasters production

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices