What was the importance of Rhineland during World War 2?

Nazi leader Adolf Hitler violates the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact by sending German military forces into the Rhineland, a demilitarized zone along the Rhine River in western Germany. read more

It wasn't particularly important, it was just an area, belonging to Germany that after the first world war, the treaty of Versailles made a demilitarized zone, meaning none of the armed forces could enter it, (a kind of buffer zone to deter any aggressive behaviour), but of course that was what Hitler, or at least the German army did in 1936. read more

Several of the volumes of the U.S. Army in World War II series are critical in examining the Rhineland Campaign. Forrest C. Pogue, The Supreme Command (1954), provides an excellent general overview of the campaign's operations and a thorough account of the coalition issues faced by General Eisenhower. read more