History --- What if.....?

Question

What if WW2 would have turned out differently and the
Germans were NOT defeted? What if Hitler did NOT
commit suicide but instead continued with his plan?
Just how far along might his ambitious goal of World
domination have made it to, if this alternate version of
history had happened?

Answer 1

There are tonnes of treatments on this subject, including "The Man in the High Castle", "Fatherland", and "1945". Also, there are many possible points of divergence available, ranging from a successful Operation Sea Lion to a successful Operation Barbarossa to not declaring war with the U.S. after Pearl Harbour.

However, the question deals with the likely aftermath of a successful Third Reich. I suspect that the novel "Fatherland" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatherland_%28novel%29 ) might be the most accurate, with the East (Poland, the Ukraine, and much of Russia) being formally annexed into the German state while the West (U.K and France) would be subordinate to a German economic and political hegemony yet technically independent. Very likely the madness of the Holocaust would continue in occupied territories until Jews and other "undesirables" were effective exterminated.

It's difficult to predict how North America might be. "Fatherland" and "1945" posit the U.S. as in a Cold War with Germany, while "The Man in the High Castle" has the continental U.S. under split-occupation by Japan and Germany. I suppose that it would depend on technical advances in nuclear fission and jets/rocketry. It would also depend on how successful Germany's victory in Europe is and what the politics of the U.S. are.

Very likely Hitler would not have committed suicide. He would either still be around for a decade or two or had been assassinated (as what attempted on a few occasions). His suicide was simply capitulation to the advancing Red Army on Berlin.

Other than that, there are too many variables to consider. Hope that helps.

Answer 2

Many historians will tell you that if you look at the military and economic statistics for Germany and the Soviet Union, a German victory in World War II was impossible. I think there is one way Hitler could have pulled it off, though.

It would have been possible for Germany to defeat the Soviet Union if and only if Stalin had been assassinated (either by a German agent or by a Russian traitor) and replaced by a less determined (and less evil) leader in 1941 or early '42. The Red Army suffered huge losses in the initial stages of Barbarossa, and the civilian population fared even worse. The only reason the Soviets stopped the German advance was because Stalin didn't care how many Russian soldiers or civilians died in the process, and the Russians were more afraid of Stalin than they were of Hitler. A weaker (or less crazy) leader might have negotiated a treaty and handed over a big chunk of Soviet territory in exchange for peace.

Had this happened, HItler would have had more troops to devote to defending Italy and the Atlantic Wall. The Americans and British probably would not have even attempted an invasion of Fortress Europe.

The US would likely guarantee the safety of Britain, though some fighting might have occured in the British colonies and middle east. The US would have defeated Japan even sooner, as we would have had more resources to devote to the Pacific war without the massive D-Day buildup. The US also would have invented the atomic bomb first. The Manhattan Project was years ahead of German efforts. However, Germany had some of the best physicists and engineers in the world, and they likely would have perfected their own bomb by '46 or '47. This would have led to an alternate Cold War with the US and Germany as superpowers.

To answer your question, Hitler could have effectively conquered all of continental Europe. (thank God it didn't happen!)

Answer 3

That would actually be incredibly scary, but with Germany's supplies and materials going down the drain, it was least likely they would've won anyway, even if Stalin was suddenly murdered and the Red Army had no strategy.

If it DID happen, there would be no small Slavic countries like Yugoslavia, Bosnia & Herzogovina, etc. Hitler would've named them something else and just grouped them together, like he had wanted for the Germans in Czechoslovakia, Austria, and Poland.

Czech Republic and Poland wouldn't exist today either, probably not Lithuania and the other small countries east of Poland. They would most likely be a part of Germany, so Germany would be incredibly huge.

Britain wouldn't have as much power as it has today, who knows, maybe the U.S. won't, either. Germany would be the lead in imports and exports, not the U.S. The U.S. would've probably been taken over too.

Many people would be speaking German right now.

Many possibilities, but thank GOD it didn't happen.

Answer 4

If he hadn't committed suicide? Nothing would have changed except the Soviets would have captured and killed him. Now the better question would be what if he would have never tried to invade the Soviet Union and had continued to work with Stalin. We would be screwed. Believe what you want but the Soviets had more to do with the Allies winning then anyone else. Had the U.S. joined and had to fight the Soviets and Germans it would have overwhelmed us as well. I'm not even including the Empire of Japan and Italy. Now you include the Empire of Japan, as they wouldn't just ignore the U.S., you realize how much trouble we would have been in. At that point I think it would be a matter of where the Soviets stopped Japan.

Answer 5

If you'd like to read a great novel about this subject try "The Man in the High Castle" by Phillip Dick

"The Man in the High Castle is a 1962 alternate history novel by science fiction writer Philip K. Dick. The novel is set in the former United States, in 1962, fifteen years after the Axis Powers defeated the Allies in World War II and the U.S. surrendered to Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan.
While not the first piece of alternate history fiction, the novel helped to define this type of story as a serious literary genre. It won the prestigious Hugo Award and helped make Dick well-known in science fiction circles. It is one of Dick's most tightly-structured and character-focused novels — he spent most of his life writing to pay bills, and so wrote quickly."

You can go to the first link below for a plot summary.

The 2nd link will take you to Amazon, where you can buy it, if you wish.

Answer 6

They would have developed nuclear weapons and claimed the world for their own.

The Russians already had the maps. It was just a matter of time....