MARCH 1939
March 15: The German Army invades Czechoslovakia. The Pope publicly denounces the invasion. In America, President Roosevelt also condemns the invasion. Neville Chamberlain gives a speech in Birmingham saying that Britain will oppose German plans to dominate the world.
March 21: Hitler turns his sights on Poland, demanding the return of the Free City of Danzig.
March 31: The UK pledges support for Poland's independence.
APRIL 1939
Attempts by the Vatican to undermine German-Italian axis by playing on Mussolini's fears of German territorial intentions do not bring any desired fruits. While Mussolini has some fears about German ambitions, he does not have the power to break away from Hitler, and his anti-Clericalism makes it difficult for the Church to influence the dictator.
April 3: Hitler orders the German military to start planning for war with Poland.
April 7: Mussolini does not invade Albania. Italian troops are still loyal to the King, who, at the behest of the Pope, has expressed his wishes for peace in Europe, and so Mussolini's orders would not have been obeyed, De Vecci tells him, if they conflicted with those of the king. And De Vecci tells him that, as before in the days of the March on Rome, he will not act against the King.
Mussolini vents his anger by having his thugs burn down a Catholic newspaper office. He can do nothing more for the Italian public is ecstatic with their King. While they have lost some of their admiration for him when he remained silent in the past and took the crown of Ethiopia, his refusal to be Mussolini's servant has changed the public perception.
April 10: In response to the increasing danger on the continent, the Pope sends a secret emissary to Paris for a meeting with the French president and government to discuss military aid to Poland. The french government at first refuses to consider the idea, claiming that it has already made such loans to Poland in 1937.
April 17: France agrees to extend a 1 billion frank loan to Poland for the purchase of military equipment and supplies. The first shipment of brand new 30 heavy 155 mm artillery pieces is to leave in May for the Romania port of Constanta.
April 18: The Soviet Union proposes a triple alliance with UK and France. Both countries accept. A secret clause in the agreement obliges Britain to not declare war on Soviet Union should it invade Poland.
April 28: Hitler renounces German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact.
MAY 1939
May 6: Carl Friedrich Goerdeler tells the British government that a secret pact between the Soviets and the Nazis is planned with the goal of dividing eastern Europe between them. He also suggests that the state of the German economy is abysmal, threatening the survival of Hitler. If a strong show of support is made for Poland, Hitler will not invade the country.
Under the impression that he is not getting through, Goerdeler travels to Rome to meet with the Pope. He tells the Pope what he told the British government.
May 11: The French cargo ships begin to arrive in the Romanian port of Constanta with arms for Poland.
May 13: Hitler accuses France of trying to spark a continental war by sending arms to Poland.
May 14: After Goerdeler leaves the Vatican, the Church hierarchy is in conflict over Church policy—some suggest that the course of the Pope will bring ruin on the Church. But the Pope reminds the Cardinals that the Church has always been political. Moreover, while he is a Pole, and he certainly does not want Hitler to attack Poland, his only goal is peace in Europe. And the freedom of the German Church from the horrors of Hitler's dictatorship. We have made concessions to him and he has betrayed our trust, tells the Cardinals. Politicians have also made concessions to him, and this has only emboldened him. But he won't make concessions any more. You don't make concessions to the Devil--he tells the Cardinals that he is convinced that if they do not adapt a firmer stance, the suffering of the German Church will only grow. His critics are convinced, or , at least, cannot openly defy a man who is only pursuing what he believes will maintain peace on the continent and attempting to obtain the freedom of the German Church by creating conditions in Germany ripe for fall of Hitler.
The Pope is told by his German advisers that Gerdeler's information about the state of the German economy creates a window of opportunity for causing a fall of Hitler—if the Vatican can convince France and England to make a significant show of military support for Poland, Hitler will not be able to invade right away. But the wait will only exacerbate the economic problems at home and these will soon take precedence for him and may even embroil him completely. It is a gamble but it may just work.
May 22: Pact of Steel is signed. Hitler announces that this is a defensive measure in response to the French arms shipments to Poland.