U know what today is? 57th Anni of July 20th plot.

Fifty-seven years ago today, a group of German officers including Colonel Count Klaus Schenck von Stauffenburg, almost succeeded in killing Hitler.

Had that succeeeded, one has to wonder what could have been?

[ 21 July 2001: Message edited by: C.Evans ]

 

Good memory I completey forgot aboat that.

 

I think the most the Germans could really have achieved was to end the war without an actual invasion of Germany.
The second front had already been established, Germany was being pounded by bombing day and night, and let's not forget those millions of Ivans charging hard toward Berlin...
The removal of Hitler at this late date just wasn't enough to alter the outcome of the war.
Merely the level of destruction in the defeated Germany.
The only "loose cannon" in the equation is the USSR, since they might see the disarmament of Germany as a Godsend to their plan to invade & dominate Eastern Europe.
Would they halt their attack if Germany offered surrender by - let's say Autumn of '44?
Could Hitler's death[i/] have brought about the break in the alliance he had hoped would occur?
The Soviets were, one may say, intent on a very different manner of post-war future for Europe than the Western powers sought...

 

Thanks for the compliment, but I got lucky, and saw someone mention it on another forum.

I will respond to Killjoys posting tomorrow as the library is about to close.

 

Had Hitler died from the bomb blast, I do think the Germans would have stqarted to sue for peace.

Alot of the men that were and wopuld be wasted in those insane "Fortress Cities" would have been spared and is possible they would have lasted much longer than they did, and given Ivan an even bloodier nose.

I do think that since the Soviets were steamrolling along, I think they still would have done their best to take over as many European countries as possible before the cessation of hostilities.

At that stage of the war, nope, the Ivans would not halt their attacks on Germany, they had a score to settle, and they wanted blood.

I doubt Hitlers death would have any effect on breaking the alliance, as there was so much infighting going on anyway, and most between Patton and Monty

Bingo, you answered your own question/statement with your last answer.

 

I believe it would have been inevitable that Germany would have sued for peace if Hitler had died in the July bomb plot.
It was clear to all, including Hitler, that after Stalingrad Germany could not win. The Russians were steamrollering through eastern Europe, the Western Allies had landed in Normandy and had reached Rome. I am quite sure that Goering, still in line to become Fuhrer if Hitler had died and th Nazi party continued in power, would have looked for a negotiated peace. If the generals had taken over completely, removing the Nazi party from the equation, then an attempt at a negotiated peace was even more probable. After all, that is whu they attempted the assassination in the first place. However, I do not belive that the Allies would have settled for anything less than unconditional surrender. This might have proven a stumbling block. But, I am also sure that Germany would have collapsed a lot faster if Hitler had died in 1944 and would probably have been over before Christmas 1944. There would almost certainly have been no Battle of the Bulge, as the generals would have preferred to concentrate their efforts on defending the Eastern front.

 

I agree with you, and another BIG stumbling block, would have been; The Waffen SS.

The Algemeine SS, Gestapo, and Waffen SS, and no telling what other organizations, would most likely have give them more trouble that they would wanted.

There is no telling what would have happened had the maniac died. I think this would make a great question to also ask in a different way, on the "what if" forum.