Peace for our time

For other uses, see Peace in Our Time.

Neville Chamberlain showing the Anglo-German Declaration (the resolution) to commit to peaceful methods signed by both Hitler and himself, at Heston Aerodrome, on his return from Munich on 30 September 1938
Chamberlain's return to the UK after Munich
Neville Chamberlain speaks to the crowd upon arrival at Heston Aerodrome, 30 September 1938.
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"Peace for our time" was a declaration made by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain in his 30 September 1938 remarks in London concerning the Munich Agreement and the subsequent Anglo-German Declaration.[1] The phrase echoed Benjamin Disraeli, who, upon returning from the Congress of Berlin in 1878, had stated, "Lord Salisbury and myself have brought you back peace — but a peace I hope with honour." The phrase is primarily remembered for its bitter ironic value since less than a year after the agreement, Germany's invasion of Poland began World War II.

It is often misquoted as "peace in our time", a phrase already familiar to the British public by its longstanding appearance in the Book of Common Prayer. A passage in that book translated from the 7th-century hymn "Da pacem Domine" reads, "Give peace in our time, O Lord; because there is none other that fighteth for us, but only thou, O God."[2] The phrase also appears in the English hymn "God the Omnipotent!" at the end of the refrain: "...give to us peace in our time, O Lord!" It is not known how deliberate Chamberlain's use of such a similar phrase was.

  1. ^ "Neville Chamberlain". Number 10. Archived from the original on 12 September 2008. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  2. ^ "The Order for Morning Prayer". Book of Common Prayer. Church of England. 1662.