Explained: The Munich Agreement and the road to World War II, 80 years ago

Great Britain and France, which had assured help to Poland, declared war on Germany and its allies two days later, on September 3.

world war II, munich agreement, german troops in poland, german troops world war II, explained news, indian express — Bomb damage in London during World War II (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

On this day 80 years ago — September 1, 1939 — German troops marched into Poland, triggering the beginning of World War II, the deadliest military conflict in the history of mankind, involving an estimated 100 million people from 30 countries. Great Britain and France, which had assured help to Poland, declared war on Germany and its allies two days later, on September 3. The beginning of the War exposed to the world the folly of the Munich Agreement that was signed less than a year previously — a deal that has been seen as a disastrous act of appeasement of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime, and historical evidence that expansionist totalitarianism cannot be dealt with through placation.