Goatfury Writes

Goatfury Writes

Share this post

Goatfury Writes
Goatfury Writes
Faustian Bargains

Faustian Bargains

Andrew Smith's avatar
Andrew Smith
Sep 24, 2023
∙ Paid
21

Share this post

Goatfury Writes
Goatfury Writes
Faustian Bargains
6
3
Share

“Peace for our time.”

It was September, 1938. Britain and Nazi Germany had just signed an agreement designed to prevent war.

The horrors of World War I were still fresh in the collective memory of a generation. The trenches, the gas, the unrelenting machine gun fire—these were nightmares Europe was desperate to avoid repeating. As such, the nations of Europe, particularly Britain and France, adopted a policy of appeasement, a strategy of making political or material concessions to an aggressive power in order to avoid conflict.

The Munich Agreement permitted Nazi Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland in western Czechoslovakia. Leaders believed that by ceding this territory to Hitler, his ambitions would be sated and a broader conflict could be averted.

History may not repeat, but it certainly does rhyme quite often.

Unfortunately, this policy was built on a fundamental misjudgment of Hitler's intentions. Rather than interpreting appeasement as a gesture of peace, the Nazi regime saw it …

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to Goatfury Writes to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Andrew Smith
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share