German ultimatum to Lithuania

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East Prussia after the ultimatum came into force, East Prussia is highlighted in pink, Memelland in blue

The German ultimatum to Lithuania in 1939 was an oral ultimatum from the National Socialist Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop to the then Lithuanian Foreign Minister Juozas Urbšys , which was issued on March 20, 1939.

Summary

The German Reich demanded the cession of Memelland , which had been placed under the League of Nations in the Treaty of Versailles and occupied by Lithuania in 1923, and threatened the invasion of the Wehrmacht in Lithuania if the ultimatum was rejected. After years of increasing tensions between the two states and increased National Socialist propaganda in the Memelland, the demand was expected in the course of National Socialist expansion. The ultimatum was issued five days after Czechoslovakia was broken up. The four signatories of the Memel Convention of 1924, which enshrined the status quo on the territorial issue, offered no help, with France and Great Britain not wanting a war on this issue, while the Japanese and Italian empires openly supported the German Empire. Lithuania was forced to accept the ultimatum on March 22, 1939. For the German Reich, the reclamation of the Memelland was the last territorial gain before the outbreak of the Second World War . For Lithuania it meant a severe weakening of the economy and morale, for Europe a further escalation of the pre-war tensions.

Dispute over the Memelland

Memel (today Klaipėda ) was an important seaport in East Prussia and, like the entire Memelland, was revoked from the German Reich in Article 28 of the Versailles Treaty and placed under Allied administration in accordance with Article 99. France took over the civil administration of the area, while Lithuania continued to strive to acquire it, as there was a significant Lithuanian minority (see Lithuania Minor ) and the port of Memel gave Lithuania better access to the Baltic Sea.

Poland also claimed the territory. Since the Allies hesitated for a long time to make a decision, and it looked as if the Memelland would remain a free state similar to the Free City of Danzig , the Lithuanian state took the initiative and organized the Memel Uprising in January 1923, with the German Reich and the Soviet Union supported Lithuania. The region was connected to Lithuania as an autonomous area with its own state parliament. The Memelland had an approximate size of 2,400 km² and around 140,000 inhabitants.

In the 1920s, Lithuania and the Weimar Republic enjoyed a good relationship, as both states were anti-Polish. In January 1928, after long and difficult negotiations, the German Reich and Lithuania concluded a border treaty that left the Memelland with Lithuania. After the Nazis came to power in March 1933, tensions resumed, culminating in February 1934 when the Lithuanian government arrested dozens of pro-Nazi activists. In response to these arrests and the subsequent trials, the German Reich imposed a boycott on Lithuanian agricultural products. This boycott caused an economic crisis in Suvalkija in southern Lithuania, where farmers organized violent uprisings. After the referendum in the Saar region , the prisoners were finally amnestied. As a result of these amnesties, the reputation of the Lithuanian state sank both in and outside the Memel region, which allowed the German Empire to further increase its influence in the Memel region.

Peak of tension

In the spring of 1938 Adolf Hitler attached the greatest importance to the incorporation of the Memelland after the incorporation of the Sudetenland . When Poland gave Lithuania its ultimatum in March 1938, the German Reich openly announced that in the event of war the Wehrmacht would invade Memelland and most of western Lithuania. A week after Lithuania accepted the Polish ultimatum, Germany presented an eleven-point memorandum demanding freedom of action for pro-German-minded activists in the Memel region and the alleviation of Lithuanian influence. The points were deliberately formulated imprecisely in order to be able to easily accuse Lithuania of a break. The Lithuanian state decided to postpone the matter, hoping that the international situation would improve and that German-speaking citizens would have no reason to complain.

This tactic proved unsuccessful. Nazi propaganda and protests against Lithuanian practices were widespread, even among the Lithuanian population, and the local administration proved unable to stop them. Due to German pressure, the Lithuanian state was forced to lift the state of emergency and press censorship on November 1st, 1938 . In the state elections in Memelland in December, the pro-German parties received 87% of the vote and 25 of the 29 seats. Ernst Neumann , the main defendant in the 1934 trials, was released from prison in February and became the leader of the pro-German movement. In December 1938 he was received by Adolf Hitler , who assured him that the Memel question would be resolved by March or April 1939. Neumann and other pro-German activists invoked the right of self-determination of the German population and demanded that the government start negotiations on the status of the Memelland. It was expected that when it met on March 25, 1939, the Landtag of Memel would vote in favor of annexation to the German Reich. The official German channels did not comment on the matter. Apparently it was assumed that Lithuania would give up the disputed area of ​​its own accord and that a public statement could disrupt sensitive talks with Poland about an anti-communist alliance against the Soviet Union.

The ultimatum

Rumors reached the Lithuanian government that the Nazi state was pursuing specific plans to take over Memel Land. On March 12, Foreign Minister Urbšys represented Lithuania at the coronation of Pope Pius XII. On his way back to Berlin , he hoped to bring clarity to the rumored situation. On March 20, Joachim von Ribbentrop agreed to meet the Lithuanian foreign minister, but the diplomat Kazys Škirpa was asked to wait in another room. The conversation lasted about 40 minutes. Ribbentrop demanded the return of the Memelland and threatened military action. Urbšys passed this verbal ultimatum on to the Lithuanian government. Since the ultimatum was never written down and had no formal deadline, some historians downplayed the importance of the ultimatum, describing it as a set of demands rather than an ultimatum. Nevertheless, the Nazi state made it clear that in the event of resistance, military force would be used and Lithuania was warned not to seek foreign aid. While the German Reich did not set a final deadline, it called for a swift decision, making it clear that any clashes or German losses would result in a response from the German military .

Lithuania secretly informed the signatories of the Memel Convention from 1924 about the demands, since the state could technically not distribute the Memel land without the approval of the signatories. The Kingdom of Italy under Benito Mussolini and the Japanese Empire supported the German Empire in this matter, while the United Kingdom and France expressed sympathy but offered no material help. They continued to follow the concept of the appeasement policy . The United Kingdom treated the matter like the Sudeten crisis and made no effort to assist Lithuania or any other Baltic states in the event of a German attack. While the Soviet Union was in principle on the side of the Lithuanian state, it did not want to run the risk of worsening relations with the Nazi state because it was considering an alliance with the German Reich. Without any international material support, Lithuania had to accept the ultimatum. Lithuanian diplomacy identified the concession as a necessary evil that allowed Lithuania to remain independent and hoped it was merely a temporary withdrawal.

Contract signing

At 1:00 a.m. on March 23, 1939, Urbšys and Ribbentrop signed a treaty which included that Lithuania effectively surrendered Memelland to the German Reich on March 22.

article 1
The Memel area, which was separated from Germany by the Treaty of Versailles, will be reunited with the German Empire with effect from today.
Article 2
The Memel area will be evacuated immediately by the Lithuanian military and police forces. The Lithuanian Government will ensure that the area is left in an orderly condition upon evacuation. If necessary, both parties will appoint commissioners to hand over the administrations that are not in the hands of the autonomous authorities of the Memel region.
The regulation of the other issues arising from the change of state sovereignty, in particular economic and financial issues, civil servant issues and issues of nationality, is subject to a special agreement.
Article 3
In order to meet the economic needs of Lithuania, a free zone for Lithuania will be established in Memel. The details will be specifically regulated according to the guidelines in the annex attached to this contract.
Article 4
In order to confirm their decision to ensure that relations between Germany and Lithuania develop on a friendly basis, both parties undertake not to use violence against one another or to support the use of violence against one of the two parties by a third party.
Article 5
This contract comes into force upon signature.
The mutually authorized representatives have signed this contract as a document.
Done in duplicate, in German and Lithuanian.

consequences

Before the treaty was signed, German soldiers had already occupied the port of Memel. Adolf Hitler himself landed on board the armored ship Deutschland in the port of Memel and gave a short speech on the Theaterplatz. The squadron that went to Memel consisted of the armored ship Admiral Graf Spee and the light cruisers Nuremberg , Leipzig and Cologne . These ships were accompanied by two flotilla destroyers , three torpedo boat flotillas and a tender flotilla. At that time the Lithuanian Navy owned only one ship, the 560-tonne mine- layer Prezidentas Smetona , the former M 59 minesweeper of the Imperial Navy. As the German Empire celebrated the regain of Memel Land, European politicians were concerned that the Free City of Danzig would be Hitler's next destination.

Industry in Memelland (1939)
Industry Production
(in 1000 litas) 		Production (% of total national product
)
Peat cutting 1.272 13.3
Metal and machinery 2,377 10.6
Chemicals 7,747 36.6
Leather and fur 764 4.2
textiles 28.257 44.2
Wood 20,899 53.9
Paper and prints 20.744 57.6
agricultural products 27,250 21.5
dress 1.495 6.6
Electricity and gas 4.938 28.6

The unconditional acceptance of two ultimatums in a period of just over a year was a major factor in the dissatisfaction of the authoritarian rule of Lithuanian President Antanas Smetona . The German ultimatum caused a political crisis: the passive cabinet of Vladas Mironas was replaced by a cabinet led by General Jonas Černius . For the first time since the 1926 Lithuanian coup , the government also consisted of members of the opposition: Leonas Bistras of the Lithuanian Christian Democrats was appointed Minister of Education. Furthermore, Jurgis Krikščiūnas from the Lithuanian Peasant People's Union took the position of Minister of Agriculture.

Since all other parties had been banned in Lithuania, Bistras and Krikščiūnas were officially presented as independent private citizens. The cabinet was also expanded to include four generals. Even so, not even the looming international crisis moved Lithuanian politicians to an agreement as they continued to argue over politically irrelevant issues.

The loss of the only major Baltic port was a severe blow to the Lithuanian economy, as between 70 and 80% of foreign trade was carried out through Memel. Memel Land, which only accounts for around 5% of the entire Lithuanian territory, was home to a third of all industry at the time. With the loss of the port, the state also lost large investments that had expanded the port's infrastructure. Around 10,000 refugees, most of them Jews , left the region and looked for shelter and help from the government.

The citizens of Lithuania doubted the fate of their country, and in the months of March – April 1939 they withdrew almost 20% of the total deposits. After the loss of the Memelland, Lithuania came under the German sphere of influence , especially in the economic sense. At the end of 1939 Germany accounted for 75% of exports and 86% of imports. The German Reich and the Soviet Union concluded the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939 , in which Eastern Europe was divided into a German and a Soviet zone of influence, with Lithuania at the beginning belonging to the German Reich. On the part of the Nazi state, there were proposals for a German-Lithuanian military alliance against Poland. There was a promise to return the region around Vilnius to Lithuania again, as it had previously been Polish. Nevertheless, the Lithuanian state rejected this proposal and adhered to the strict policy of neutrality.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Barry Howard Steiner: Collective Preventive Diplomacy: A Study in International Conflict Management . SUNY Press, 2004, ISBN 0-7914-5987-X , pp. 74-75 .
  2. ^ Andreas Gonschior: The Memel area at a glance. In: Elections in the Weimar Republic. Retrieved March 24, 2008 .
  3. ↑ Alfonsas Eidintas, Vytautas Žalys, Alfred Erich Senn: Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918-1940 . Edvardas Tuskenis. St. Martin's Press , New York 1999, ISBN 0-312-22458-3 , pp. 158 .
  4. ↑ Alfonsas Eidintas: Lietuvos Respublikos prezidentai . Šviesa, Vilnius 1991, ISBN 5-430-01059-6 , p. 125, 128 .
  5. ↑ Alfonsas Eidintas, Vytautas Žalys, Alfred Erich Senn: Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918-1940 . Edvardas Tuskenis. St. Martin's Press, New York 1999, ISBN 0-312-22458-3 , pp. 123 .
  6. ↑ a b c d e f g h Alfonsas Eidintas, Vytautas Žalys, Alfred Erich Senn: Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918–1940 . Edvardas Tuskenis. St. Martin's Press, New York 1999, ISBN 0-312-22458-3 , pp. 161-166 .
  7. ^ John Hiden , Thomas Lane: The Baltic and the Outbreak of the Second World War . Cambridge University Press, 1992, ISBN 0-521-53120-9 , pp. 53 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  8. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Juozas Skirius: Gimtoji istorija. Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės . Elektroninės Leidybos namai, Vilnius 2002, ISBN 9986-9216-9-4 , Klaipėdos krašto aneksija 1939–1940 m. ( online [accessed March 14, 2008]).
  9. ^ Nazis in Memel Got 87% of the Ballots . In: New York Times . December 16, 1938, p. 19.
  10. ↑ a b c Albertas Gerutis: Lithuania: 700 Years . 6th edition. Manyland Books, New York 1984, ISBN 0-87141-028-1 , Independent Lithuania, pp. 247-249 (Translated by Algirdas Budreckis 75-80057 in the LCC ).
  11. ↑ Lithuania is Warned by Memel Germans . In: New York Times . March 16, 1939, p. 14.
  12. ↑ Poland is Worried by Memel Threat . In: New York Times . March 18, 1939, p. 5.
  13. ^ John Hiden, Thomas Lane: The Baltic and the Outbreak of the Second World War . Cambridge University Press , 1992, ISBN 0-521-53120-9 , pp. 55–56 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
  14. ^ Lithuania Agrees to Yield Memel to Reich After Berlin Asks Speed ​​to Avoid "Clashes" . In: New York Times . March 22, 1939, p. 2.
  15. ^ John Hiden, Thomas Lane: The Baltic and the Outbreak of the Second World War . Cambridge University Press , 1992, ISBN 0-521-53120-9 , pp. 31–32 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  16. ^ The reunification of the Memel area with the German Reich - Treaty on reunification with the German Reich of March 22, 1939. (PDF; 404 KB) In: RGBl. 1939, II, p. 608. Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, December 30, 2005, accessed on December 9, 2019 .
  17. ↑ a b Otto D. Tolischus: Flotilla Bound for Memel . In: New York Times . March 23, 1939, pp. 1, 6.
  18. ↑ Associated Press: Lithuania's 1-Ship Navy, Minus Port, Disappears . In: New York Times . March 23, 1939, p. 5.
  19. ↑ a b c Leonas Sabaliūnas: Lithuania in Crisis: Nationalism to Communism 1939-1940 . Indiana University Press, 1972, ISBN 0-253-33600-7 , pp. 116-119 .
  20. ↑ a b Rūstis Kamuntavičius, Vaida Kamuntavičienė, Remigijus Civinskas, Kastytis Antanaitis: Lietuvos istorija 11-12 klasėms . Vaga, Vilnius 2001, ISBN 5-415-01502-7 , p. 396-397 .
  21. ^ Walter C. Clemens: The Baltic Transformed: Complexity Theory and European Security . Rowman & Littlefield, 2001, ISBN 0-8476-9859-9 , pp. 6 ( limited preview in Google Book search).