19th July 1939
Karlsbad

Karlsbad

Karlovy Vary (German: Karlsbad, formerly also spelled Carlsbad in English) is a spa city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 49,000 inhabitants. It is located at the confluence of the Ohře and Teplá rivers.

According to the 1930 census, the city was home to 23,901 inhabitants – 20,856 were ethnic Germans, 1,446 were Czechoslovaks (Czechs or Slovaks), 243 were Jews, 19 were Hungarias and 12 were Poles.

In 1938, the city was annexed by Nazi Germany according to the terms of the Munich Agreement and administered as part of the Reichsgau Sudetenland.

Hitler's speech of the 4th October 1938

Germans! Volksgenossen! People of Karlsbad!

Twenty years ago, you were so unfortunate as to set out on a path which led you on to what appeared to be a hopeless future. I set out on my path back then, too: I believed in the resurrection of Germany, in the restitution of my Volk and in the greatness of the coming German Reich. You remained faithful to your Deutschtum throughout the years as I remained faithful to my belief! And today we both find ourselves living in that German Reich I had envisioned then and in which I believed. This Reich has become reality, and it will remain so eternally. Just as you must take care of that Greater German Reich which we share, and the citizens of which you have now become, this Germany will take care of you! Seventy-five million other Germans reciprocate your feelings of love and dedication, of loyalty and willingness to sacrifice. It was a difficult decision that led me here. This decision was backed by the will to resort to force, if need be, in order to free you. We are all the more happy and grateful that this last and most difficult step needed not be taken in order for us to secure our rights. We are proud to take over this country with all its natural beauty. We are determined to immediately begin with improvements here as well, to improve what needs improvement, to build up what can be built up, and to let the wounds of the past heal. I did not know which paths would lead me here. But that I would stand here one day, that I knew! As I stand before you now, you will not only thank me but I wish to thank you as well for your loyalty, faithfulness, and your willingness to sacrifice. Just as you are proud of this Greater German Reich whose leader I am, so this Germany takes great pride in you Sudeten Germans. At this hour, we can but think of our eternal German Volk and our Greater German Reich! Deutschland-Sieg Heil!

During World War II, the Germans established a Gestapo prison here. After the war, in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement and Beneš decrees, most German inhabitants were expelled.

Source: Wikipedia

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