It is hard to escape the legacy of the Punch Magazine. From 1841 to 2002, the magazine cast a satirical eye on life in Britain. It charted the interests, concerns and frustrations of the country and today it stands as an invaluable resource not just as cartoon art and satire, but as primary source material for social historians.

This is an original cartoon from Punch magazine, by Bernard Partridge and published June 1, 1938, original, pulled from the magazine, not a modern reproduction.  Full size:  8  x 10 1/2 inches, including broad borders; pictured image is slightly cropped. Condition: a superb copy, bright and clean; verso is blank. May be framed

G.R.P. The Prime Minister (to M. Daladier). "We'd best stand by for a bit - you can never be sure that it won't start again."

--British Prime Minister Chamberlain as firefighter stands by with French Prime Minister Edouard Daladier at the rubble of the Czechoslovak Problem.

--G. R. P. = Global Response Pistol [?]

The May Crisis was a brief episode of international tension in 1938 caused by reports of German troop movements against Czechoslovakia that appeared to signal the imminent outbreak of war in Europe. Although the state of high anxiety soon subsided when no actual military concentrations were detected, the consequences of the crisis were far-reaching. With international tension already high in Central Europe following the German annexation of Austria in March 1938 and continuing unrest in the German-speaking border regions of Czechoslovakia, known as the Sudetenland, reports of substantial military concentrations in areas close to Czechoslovakia on 19 May 1938 gave rise to fears of an imminent German attack. Alarmed by the developing situation, the governments of France and Britain warned Germany that they would come to Czechoslovakia's aid in the event of an attack. The German-government denied that potentially aggressive troop movements had taken place, and in the absence of any real evidence of military activity, the atmosphere of acute crisis had passed by 23 May. The appearance of decisive French and British diplomatic action in Berlin ran contrary to their general policy of appeasement towards Nazi Germany but, ultimately, served only to reinforce that policy. In the wake of the crisis, France and particularly Britain, fearful of war with Germany, intensified their pressure on the Czechoslovak authorities for concessions to the Sudeten German Party (SdP), which, under instructions from Nazi Germany, was promoting unrest in the Sudetenland.

Punch, a magazine of humor and satire, ran from 1841-2002. A very British institution renowned internationally for its wit and irreverence, it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration.