France and the Nazi Threat: The Collapse of French Diplomacy 1932-1939 (104 page)

  
89
.
    
See the interesting book by *Kreis, Georg,
Auf den Spuren von La Charité. Die schweizerische Armeeführung im Spannungsfeld des deutsch-französischen Gegensatzes 1936
–
1941
, 1976.

  
90
.
    
SHA, 22 April 1939.

  
91
.
    
The only official link the Belgians agreed to was Colonel Laurent, military attaché in Brussels. See Le Goyet, op. cit., pp. 223–224.

  
92
.
    
SHA, Transcript of the meeting of the chiefs of the general staff, 16 June 1939.

  
93
.
    
SHA, Transcript, Franco-British conversations of 13 July 1939. It should be noted that the British were then ready to accept Gamelin as commander in chief. Hore-Belisha told Ironside 7 July (*
Ironside Diaries
, pp. 76–77).

  
94
.
    
SHA, Letter from Neville Chamberlain to Daladier, 26 July 1939.

  
95
.
    
SHA, Opinion of the EMA regarding Chamberlain’s proposal, 28 July 1939.

  
96
.
    
SHA, Transcript of the meeting of the chiefs of the general staff, 1 August 1939.

  
97
.
    
SHA, Letter from Daladier to Chamberlain, 3 August 1939.

Chapter XV

T
OWARD THE
I
NESCAPABLE
C
ONCLUSION

    
1
.
    
Molotov will vaguely deny it in the course of a speech on 31 August. Payart, was reporting this did not believe it.. On the other hand the Polish ambassador felt confident. See MAE, T. 992–995, Payart, 1 September 1939.

    
2
.
    
Anatole de Monzie entitled the chapter of
Ci-devant
regarding the period between 1 August and 17 October 1939: “Spéculation sur le bluff” [Speculation on the Bluff], pp. 133–177.

    
3
.
    
DDI
, 8, XIII. The book was prepared by the great historian Mario Toscano.

    
4
.
    
MAE, T. 3317–3320, François-Poncet, 18 August 1939. Ciano was unable to see him immediately.

    
5
.
    
DDI, 8, XIII, no. 136. See also the previously quoted telegram from François-Poncet and T. 3374–3377, 22 August. We should point out that it would be same for Spain that gave assurances of its neutrality. See MAE, T. 376–378, Léger to Pétain, 2 September 1939.

    
6
.
    
DEI, 8, XIII, no. 69.

    
7
.
    
Michel, Henri, T. quoted.

    
8
.
    
Noël,
L’agression allemande contre la Pologne
, op. cit., p. 385–393.

    
9
.
    
MAE, T. 1223–1227 and 1230, Noël, 22 August 1939 (copy of the Daladier Papers) and Noël, op. cit., pp. 404–405.

  
10
.
    
Noël, op. cit., p. 410.

  
11
.
    
MAE, T. 1255, Noël, 24 August 1939, 6 p.m.

  
12
.
    
MAE, T. 1308, Noël, 28 August 1939, 1:50 a.m.

  
13
.
    
SHA, Rapport 163, General Musse to Daladier, 24 August 1939.

  
14
.
    
MAE, T. 1258–1259, Noël, 24 August 1939, 6 p.m.

  
15
.
    
SHA, T. 622/S, Palasse to Daladier, 23 August 1939.

  
16
.
    
Carnets secrets de Jean Zay
, op. cit., p. 70, 27 August 1939.

  
17
.
    
Carnets secrets de Jean Zay
, pp. 60–64, Mardi 22 August.

  
18
.
    
Stehlin, op. cit., p. 165.

  
19
.
    
Monzie, op. cit., p. 139.

  
20
.
    
On this point, Gamelin and Bonnet disagree. A few years later the disagreement will turn into a violent dispute about the past. Bonnet,
Défense de la paix
, II, op. cit., pp. 297–309; Gamelin,
Servir
, III, op. cit., p. 301.

  
21
.
    
Carnets secrets de Jean Zay
, op. cit., p. 66-67; Monzie, op. cit., pp. 139–140.

  
22
.
    
Carnets secrets de Jean Zay
, op. cit., p. 69; Monzie, op. cit., p. 141.

  
23
.
    
Coulondre, op. cit., p. 287.

  
24
.
    
Coulondre, op. cit., p. 288–289. See his phone telegram in LJ no 242, 25 August 1939.

  
25
.
    
MAE, T. 1288–1289, 1295, 1301, Noël, 26 August 1939.

  
26
.
    
MAE, T. 2767–2769, Corbin, 27 August 1939.

  
27
.
    
MAE, T. 2398–2399, Coulondre, 27 August 1939.

  
28
.
    
LJ no. 253.

  
29
.
    
Coulondre, op. cit., p. 290–291. His telegram on the issue LJ, no 261, 27 August 1939.

  
30
.
    
LJ, no. 267, 27 August 1939.

  
31
.
    
Carnets secrets de Jean Zay
, op. cit., p. 70, 27 August. The offers of mediation coming either from the Pope, and the King of the Belgians with the “Oslo group” may be considered very secondary. The unofficial round trips by the Swede Birger Dahlerus from Berlin to London appear of doubtful importance and in any case do not involve France.

  
32
.
    
This was indeed Coulondre’s view. See MAE, T. 2454, “Extrême Urgence,” by telephone at 1:40 a.m. on 30 August.

  
33
.
    
Account by Coulondre in MAE, T. 2492, Coulondre, 1 September 1939.

  
34
.
    
Stehlin, op. cit., p. 176.

  
35
.
    
Coulondre, op. cit., p. 298.

  
36
.
    
Ciano,
Journal
, op. cit., pp. 141–143; MAE, T. 3508, François-Poncet, 31 August. 1939, 1:10 p.m. received at 2 p.m.

  
37
.
    
MAE, T. 3510, François-Poncet, 1 August. 1:05 p.m.

  
38
.
    
Series 8, XIII.

  
39
.
    
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 405 and most of all 425, Guariglia to Ciano, 29 August. 1939.

  
40
.
    
MAE, T. 739–742, Bonnet to François-Poncet, 29 August. 1939.

  
41
.
    
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 320, Guariglia to Ciano, 26 August. 1939.

  
42
.
    
Monzie, op. cit., pp. 145–146.

  
43
.
    
Ci-devant
, p. 146.

  
44
.
    
Carnets secrets
…, pp. 80–81. At that point there was said to be a sharp incident between Bonnet and Daladier. According to Monzie, the incident was not that sharp and was because of two different messages coming in from Corbin one after the other.

  
45
.
    
Monzie, op. cit., p. 147.

  
46
.
    
Monzie, op. cit., pp. 148–149.

  
47
.
    
LJ
, nos. 322 and 323.

  
48
.
    
An additional protocol that was intended to reinforce the military agreement of May (see above Chapter XIV), was signed on 4 September 1939. See on this subject the study by *Batowski, Henryk, “Les traits d’alliance polono-britannique et polono-français de 1939,” La Pologne et les affaires occidentals, 1973, no. 1, pp. 89–108.

  
49
.
    
Taylor (A.J.P.),
The Origins of the Second World War
, op. cit., and *Taylor, A.J.P.,
English History, 1914
–
1945
, pp. 450–452.

  
50
.
    
*Parker, R.A.C., “
The British Government and the Coming of War with Germany, 1939
,” in Foot, M.R.D., ed.,
Historical Essays in Honour and Memory of J.R.. Western
, London, 1973, p. 14.

  
51
.
    
See *Alphand, Hervé,
L’étonnement d’être. Journal, 1939
–
1973
, Paris, 1977, p. 65. We know that Daladier will get rid of Bonnet on 13 September 1939, becoming Foreign Minister himself.

  
52
.
    
Monzie, op. cit., pp. 148–150; Guariglia, Raffaele,
La diplomatie difficile. Mémoires. 1922
–
1946
, op. cit., pp. 123–125.

  
53
.
    
See
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 534, Guariglia to Ciano, 1 September, 11:20 a.m. A series of other telegrams follows naturally. The account of those events “that quickly became retrospective” in a dispatch of 2 September no. 608 Guariglia to Ciano.

  
54
.
    
See
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 537;
LJ
, no. 328.

  
55
.
    
MAE, T. 3529, François-Poncet, 1 September, 2:30 p.m., received at 4:30 p.m. (but by telephone before 3 p.m.) and
LJ
, no. 332.

  
56
.
    
Ciano,
Journal
, op. cit., p. 144–146.

  
57
.
    
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 548, Percy Lorraine to Ciano, 1 September 1939. The chronology used places this meeting at noon. The
DDI
mention the evening as the time the telegram was handed over (p. 338, note).

  
58
.
    
MAE, Hoppenot Papers, chronology undoubtedly kept by the Minister’s Cabinet. Useful to find out about telephone calls that normally precede telegrams.

  
59
.
    
MAE, Hoppenot Papers, Chronologie. See MAE, T. 3557, François-Poncet, 2 September 1939, 7:25 p.m., received at 10 p.m.; see
LJ
, no. 346.

  
60
.
    
See
LJ
, no. 338, Bonnet to Noël; no. 343, Noël, 9:31 p.m. (received on the 2nd at 3 p.m.).

  
61
.
    
Monzie, op. cit., p. 153.

  
62
.
    
MAE, Hoppenot Papers, Chronology.

  
63
.
    
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 543, Guariglia to Ciano, 1 September 1939, 3:10 p.m.

  
64
.
    
MAE, Hoppenot Papers, Chronology.

  
65
.
    
MAE, Hoppenot Papers, Chronology.

  
66
.
    
LJ
, no. 337.

  
67
.
    
Coulondre, op. cit., p. 308.

  
68
.
    
MAE, T. 2498, Coulondre, 1 September 1938, telephoned in at 11 p.m.; see
LJ
, no. 344.

  
69
.
    
MAE, T. 1945–1946, Bonnet to Corbin, 1 September 1939, 6:15 p.m.

  
70
.
    
We have a long 19-page report of this day written a few days later (on 7 September) by Ambassador Corbin. See also on the British side *Harvey, John, ed.,
Diplomatic Diaries of Oliver Harvey 1937
–
1940
, pp. 312–316.

  
71
.
    
DDI
, 8, XIII, no. 571.

  
72
.
    
MAE, Hoppenot Papers, Letter from Lukasziewicz to Daladier, 2 September 1939. See in MAE, Corbin report, the visit to Halifax by the Polish ambassador to London. Halifax, agreed on the emergency. See Lukasziewicz, op. cit., pp. 273–278.