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Appeasement
One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes.Even as the Nazis reintroduced military conscription, built the first concentration camps, and demanded that the Sudetenland be ceded to Germany, most of the free world turned a blind eye to Hitler's desire for European domination. Neutrality and isolationism were the preferred politics of the time.
- Eleanor Roosevelt
The United States and Great Britain were especially determined the look the other way with Germany. The United States became much more isolationist in this time frame, as it was dealing with the after-effects of the Great Depression and did not want to participate in another World War. Great Britain's Neville Chamberlain was also focused on avoiding another World War. Many European nations were also dealing with heavy physical destruction and economic damage from World War I, and didn't have a desire to be involved with other country's issues.
A final note to consider is that the Treaty of Versailles had thoroughly humiliated Germany by reducing its military to minuscule numbers and enforcing heavy reparations (causing an economic crisis). The political leaders were attempting to let Germany recover from its humiliation, although this blind-sided them to what Hitler's plan of action truly was.
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