The far-away country was of course Czechoslovakia, and Chamberlain was speaking on his return from Berlin in an attempt to dissuade Hitler from invading the Sudetenland. This quote is often taken to illustrate Chamberlain's naivete in his dealings with Hitler. However, as BBC GCSE Bitesize points out:
"There is often no right or wrong answer to questions about appeasement, which is very much a matter of opinion. However, when you consider what is known for sure about Chamberlain's position, remember:
| • | Britain's armed forces could not have helped Czechoslovakia. Notice how Chamberlain calls Czechoslovakia "a faraway country" (point 4 in list of reasons for appeasement). |
| • | Chamberlain remembered the slaughter of the First World War. This is the main point of the quote, especially "I am myself a man of peace to the depths of my soul; armed conflict between nations is a nightmare to me... War is a fearful thing". |
| • | It could be argued that he was empathising with the reluctance of the British people to go to war, when he called digging trenches and trying on gas masks "horrible, fantastic, incredible" and said: "... we must be very clear before we embark on it, that it is really the great issues that are at stake". |
"However, there is NO evidence that Chamberlain thought Hitler was reasonable, or that he wanted a strong Germany, or that he admired Hitler. In fact, the tone towards Hitler is hostile: "... we may sympathise with a small nation confronted by a big and powerful neighbour".
© Haydn Thompson 2017