In March 1939, after the breakup of Czechoslovakia, Hácha was the nominal president of the newly proclaimed German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.

After the secession of Slovakia and Ruthenia in March 1939, British Ambassador to Czechoslovakia Basil Newton advised President Hácha to meet Hitler.

[4] When Hácha first arrived in Berlin, he first met with the German Foreign Minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop prior to meeting with Hitler.

Von Ribbentrop testified at the Nuremberg trials that during this meeting Hácha had told him that "he wanted to place the fate of the Czech State in the Führer's hands.

[1] Hitler then gave the Czech President two options: cooperate with Germany, in which case the "entry of German troops would take place in a tolerable manner" and "permit Czechoslovakia a generous life of her own, autonomy and a degree of national freedom..." or face a scenario in which "resistance would be broken by force of arms, using all means.

[9] According to Joachim Fest, Hácha suffered a heart attack induced by Göring's threat to bomb the capital and by four o'clock he contacted Prague, effectively "signing Czechoslovakia away" to Germany.

[13]However, Hitler's interpreter Paul Schmidt, who was present during the meeting, in his memoirs denied such turbulent scenes ever taking place with the Czechoslovak President.

[14] Jewish-American historian Jean Ancel noted that Schmidt's memoirs are not a reliable source of information as he consistently downplayed and ignored the criminal policies of the Nazi regime as well as his own role in them.

[15] After the occupation of the remnants of Czechoslovakia on 16 March,[16] Hácha retained his office as President, but was forced to swear an oath to Hitler, who appointed Konstantin von Neurath as Protector of Bohemia and Moravia.

[19] Hácha's situation changed on 29 September 1941, when Reinhard Heydrich was appointed Deputy Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, as Neurath had been considered not harsh enough by Hitler.