Full title: The Geneva Convention (1922) and Anti-Jewish Persecution in German Upper Silesia (1933). A Little-Known Aspect of Minority Protection within the Versailles Order

Author: Dr. Kinga Czechowska

Abstract/summary:

In 1919 Poland was the first country to sign a minority treaty, on basis of which a new system of minority protection was established by the League of Nations. When in 1922 the Geneva Convention was signed, the minority protection system was introduced to Upper Silesia. The situation of Polish and German minorities in respective parts of the region was one of many problems that needed to be solved at the time. The rights of Jewish minority were protected as well, but this was not the main concern as there was no „Jewish question” in Upper Silesia.

The situation changed when Hitler came to power in 1933. The anti-Jewish persecution started in German Upper Silesia and the first antisemitic legislation was introduced. Meanwhile, the Polish-German relations were quite tense, as for years German diplomats had been pursuing their revisionist policy against Poland. In spring 1933 Polish diplomats were probably the first to see that Upper Silesia was the only part of Germany with established minority protection system. As Hitler’s anti-Jewish policy was illegal in light of the Geneva Convention, it gave a unique opportunity to defend the rights of German Jewry in the international arena.

In this paper, I will try to discuss how minority protection established in 1922 unexpectedly came to be used in 1933 in regard to the Jewish minority. What diplomatic actions were taken to bring this problem for discussion in the League of Nations’ forum? Did the highly praised protection of the Geneva Convention prove to be indeed effective when most needed? What impact did it have on the situation of Jews in the Third Reich in the years to follow? Last but not least, were there any political repercussions for Hitler’s Germany?