(This is a short version. The original extensive one appears on the Web site in the German version).

Until the year 1918, Bruenn belonged to Austria, which was a Monarchy, consisting of several different nationalities. During this period, the Slavs, and especially the Czechs, experienced a growing nationalism due to the oppression they felt from the Austrian government as they attempted to pursue their independence and ultimately their own state.
Curse, but also motive was the nationalism at the end of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th century. It was also in Bruenn, where Germans and Czechs had lived for centuries together, sometimes peacefully, other times not so well,- the reason, why they disunited.
The increasing level of industry brought about an increased demand for workers. The majority of these workers came from the Czech population, which settled in the outskirts of Bruenn. The city center was primarily German. The fact, that the Czechs were employed at a greater percentage than the Germans ,caused additional tensions between the two groups.
Both, the Czech and German languages, were spoken in Bruenn and there were many families of mixed nationalities. It was therefore difficult to comprehend, why they became alienated.. The politicians tried to regulate the situation and created the "Agreement of Bruenn" (Maehrischer Ausgleich), but is was never implemented. The culture was bilingual and in most households, both languages were spoken. This mixture of German and Czech became a local slang.
The end of WWI brought the Czechs their own state and with the inclusion of the Slovaks, it became known as Czechoslovakia. Prag was the capital. The victorious nations agreed to the formation of this country, not knowing that the Czechs had largely understated the numbers of Germans in the border regions, which was actually 3.5 million. This population was never asked, if they want to belong to this new state.
>From the beginning, the Czechs had decided to create a National Czech state and even considered then, to resettle all or some of the Germans. The Slovaks also became a minority. The rights of the minorities were handled in a loose manner. The regime tried very hard to make the pure German territories Slavic and they were not concerned with the tremendous expense or consequences, related to that action.
The increasing disadvantages for the Germans and the prevention of their active participation in politics resulted in a growing discontent for the state. The German minority was forced into the same situation the Czechs had found themselves at the end of the Austrian Monarchy.
In 1938, with tensions growing steadily, England sent a special diplomat (Lord Runciman) to the region to assess the situation. His recommendation was, to annex the pure German territories to Germany and Austria. Great Britain, France and Italy agreed to this proposal with the formation of the "Munich Agreement", without any input of the Czech government.
Lastly, it should be mentioned, that the political revolution of 1938 and 1939 was conducted less warlike, but in a more peaceful and compromising manner. In Bruenn, the largest city of Moravia, tolerance was practiced to a greater extent, than in Bohemia. It was therefore difficult to understand, why such excesses as described in "The Death March of Bruenn" took place there.