Comprising all German territory west of the Rhine river and the 30 mile strip east of the river (included Cologne, Duesseldorf and Bonn), the Rhineland was demilitarised since the Versailles Treaty. On March 7, 1936 Hitler ordered German troops to re-occupy the zone on the base of Franco-Soviet Pact that violated the Locarno Treaty. The passive reaction of the European powers made this aggressive act fait accompli.
