Why Die for Danzig?

Why Die for Danzig? (French: Pourquoi mourir pour Dan(t)zig?, Polish: Dlaczego musimy umierać za Gdańsk?) is an anti-war French political slogan created on the eve of World War II.

The phrase originated in the title of an article ("Mourir pour Dantzig?") by the French Neo-Socialist writer Marcel Déat, published on May 4, 1939 in the Parisian newspaper L'Œuvre^[] The article concerned one of the Nazi German ultimatums to the Second Polish Republic, regarding the demand to transfer control of the Free City of Danzig (Gdańsk) to Germany. In the article, Déat argued in favor of the appeasement policy. He asserted that France had no interest in defending Poland, and that German Chancellor Adolf Hitler would be satisfied after receiving the territory he (rightfully, according to Déat) demanded. He accused the Poles of warmongering and dragging Europe into a war. Déat argued that Frenchmen should not be called to die paying for irresponsible Polish politicking, and expressed doubts about whether Poland would be able to fight for any significant amount of time. "To fight alongside our Polish friends for the common defense of our territories, of our property, of our liberties," wrote Déat, "this is a perspective that one can courageously envisage, if it should contribute to maintaining the peace. But to die for Danzig, no!" ("Mais mourir pour Dantzig, non !")

Opinions on the significance and the impact of the slogan differ. The article and several similar pieces were noticed by diplomats and government officials, French and foreign, and elicited press releases from Prime Minister Édouard Daladier and Foreign Minister Georges Bonnet, who noted that this sentiment did not represent the majority views of either the French public and the French government, and reaffirmed their support for the Polish-French alliance.

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