15 Jan 1935 Jahr - Expand German territory (saar 1935, rhineland 1936) (HFP)

Beschreibung:

Saar 1935:
- Background info = The Saar was a part of Germany that was taken and placed under the control of the LON. It contained many rich mines of coal, full of minerals, and German people. Under the TOV, the LON would have the Saar for 15 years, then the land would have a plebiscite in which it could choose to either go back to Germany, return to the LON, or be given to France.

When the plebiscite was held, Hitler sent Joseph Goebbels who mounted a massive campaign of propaganda within the vote; and, he also sent Nazi soldiers in for a 'trouble-free plebiscite', this caused pressure to the people voted, and in the end, Hitler won to 90% votes. All of this was legal under the TOV. This was a huge win for Hitler, and it also showed the West that he was serious about breaking the TOV.

Rhineland 1936:
- Background info = The Rhineland was a large area that formed the border of Germany and France, the Rhineland became demilitarized after the TOV.

In March 1936, Hitler took his first big risk by moving troops into the Rhineland, the demilitarization of the Rhineland was under the terms of the TOV and was made demilitarized to protect France from Germany if it were to attack. It had also been accepted in the Locarno treaty in 1925. This was a huge risk, if Hitler was forced to withdraw, it would have been humiliating and would have lost the support of the German army.

France and the USSR had just signed a treaty to protect each other in case of German attack (mutual assistance pact), Hitler used this agreement to his advantage by saying it put Germany under threat and that he had the right to place troops in his front. And, Hitler knew many people in Britain felt that Germany had the right to do so since they believed the TOV was too strict.

As the troops moved into the Rhineland, Hitler had to consider the fact that they had a rule that stated that if the French acted against them, the Germans had to leave the Rhineland. The German army was also no match for the French army, it lacked essential equipment and air support. To Hitler's luck, the Abyssinian crisis was going on at the same time, which meant that the LON was not focused on what he was doing. The LON condemned his actions, but couldn't do anything else. Even France didn't know what to do, but they also didn't know how bad the German army was; in the end, France said it wouldn't act without British support, and Hitler was able to remilitarize the Rhineland.

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