The German Zone of Protection in Slovakia, or the Protective Zone (german: Schutzzone) was an area established in the western parts of the

First Slovak Republic First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

after the dissolution and division of Czechoslovakia by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

during 1939. The special status of the zone was already created in the initial German-Slovak treaty of 23 March 1939, which defined the protective relationship between Germany and the Slovak State.A. von Plato,A. Leh,C. Thonfeld (ed) (2010). ''Hitler's Slaves: Life Stories of Forced Labourers in Nazi-Occupied Europe'', Berghahn Books, , p. 70 The zone was codified by the German-Slovak treaty of August 28, 1939, which was signed in Bratislava (german: Pressburg). The treaty gave German

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

sole economic and political authority in the designated area in the form of a military occupation, which was demarcated by the ridges of the Little and

White Carpathians The White Carpathians ( cs, Bílé Karpaty; sk, Biele Karpaty; german: Weiße Karpaten; hu, Fehér-Kárpátok) are a mountain range on the border of the Czech Republic and Slovakia, part of the Carpathians. They are part of the Slovak-Moravian ...

and the Javorníky Mountains. The zone had the purpose of securing Germany the right to invade Poland from Slovak territory.A. T. Komjáthy (1993), ''Give peace one more chance!: revision of the 1946 Peace Treaty of Paris'', University Press of America, , p. 62 The Germans however kept the control over the Schutzzone throughout the whole war, because several weapon factories and important ex-Czechoslovak depots of arms were placed here.

Online Resources

*Original agreement (in German) http://wwii.germandocsinrussia.org/de/nodes/2158-akte-20-schutzzonenvertrag-zwischen-deutschland-und-slowakei-vom-12-august-1939-vereinbarung#page/3/mode/inspect/zoom/7

References

{{Authority control States and territories established in 1939 Eastern European theatre of World War II 1939 establishments in Slovakia Military history of Czechoslovakia during World War II World War II occupied territories Germany–Slovakia relations Former protectorates