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Volume 12Could assassinating Hitler have improved Germany’s chances in World War II?
Listener question & Gary’s response · Transcript passage
Matt Goulet Top asks, “Do you think if the Allies were successful in assassinating ? Hitler, it could have turned the war in Germany’s favor, given a more competent military leader could fill his place?”
It totally depends on when the assassination happened. The most serious attempt to kill Hitler was Operation Valkyrie, which took place in July 1944. The plotters behind the assassination didn’t plan to fight the war better. They wanted to come to terms with the Allies.
Honestly, I don’t think there is anything the Germans could have done once they invaded the Soviet Union. In the big picture, the resolution of the Second World War wasn’t a matter of decisions on the battlefield. A more competent ruler might have made the war go on longer, but I don’t think it would have changed the outcome.
Once the United States was in the war, the industrial advantage, coupled with the Soviet’s manpower and the British navy, put the Germans in a position they couldn’t win.
Based on available episode transcripts. Answers are attributed to their original episodes and may contain transcription errors or later-outdated information. Some older volumes have missing source material.