Pacifism and Failure to Keep the Peace

Treaties, although imperfect, are the glue that holds the world together. The more countries that adhere to a treaty the more beneficial it is. But occasionally a rogue head of state comes along and prefers to ignore a treaty rather than bargain with other members of the treaty to make the treaty more to his liking. Adolf Hitler was such a head of state. He violated the Paris Peace Treaty of 1919 rather than work to change it as had one of his precedessors, Gustav Stresemann. Hitler believed that France, Britain and the United States -- the so-called victors of World War One -- would do nothing about it. Had they been willing to use force against Hitler in 1936 at most it would have produced a minor skirmish and would have prevented the most horrendous war of all time that began in 1939.

Narrative:
Passivity and Aggression in Europe, to 1936