Hossbach Memorandum

The Hossbach Memorandum was the summary of a meeting on November 5, 1937 between German dictator Adolf Hitler and his military and foreign policy leadership where Hitler's future expansionist policies were outlined. The meeting marked a turning point in Hitler's foreign policies, which then began to radicalize. It outlined Hitler's plans for expansion in Europe. According to the Memorandum, Hitler did not want war in 1939 with Britain and France. What he wanted was small wars of plunder to help support Germany's struggling economy (although the Nazis never let on about their financial problems). Hitler wanted a full-scale European war with Britain and France between 1941-1944/5. The memorandum was named for the keeper of the minutes of the meeting, Hitler's military adjutant, Colonel Count Friedrich Hossbach. Besides Colonel Hossbach and Hitler, those attending the meeting were the Reich Foreign Minister Baron Konstantin von Neurath, the Reich War Minister Field Marshal Werner von Blomberg, the Army Commander General Werner von Fritsch, the Kriegsmarine Commander Admiral Erich Raeder and the Luftwaffe Commander Hermann Göring.