March 10, 1940

Sumner Welles makes a "peace proposal".

On this day, U.S. Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles, after a meeting with Adolf Hitler in Berlin, visits London to discuss a peacemaking proposal with Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain to prevent a widening of the European war.

Welles left Berlin and arrived in London on March 10. He briefed British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain on Hitler's intransigence, arguing that the only hope for a lasting peace was the progressive disarmament of the belligerents, primarily Germany. Chamberlain's foreign ministers were less than impressed with the suggestion, believing that even a "disarmed" Germany could still invade a smaller, weaker nation. In short, Welles' trip accomplished nothing.


This Day in History 1940: Sumner Welles makes a "peace proposal"

Welles Report, 1940: Sumner Welles was Assistant and under secretary ofstate, and ambassador to Cuba-(2 parts). - Part I Index

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