Another What If

[CCIP]

Originally Posted by Type941

i am very curious to hear about this theory that had Hitler been removed, the war would have lasted longer. Can someone elaborate on that? I have trouble believing it.

Well, I am not entirely familiar with the literature, but the assumption is that once Germany was caught in the war to the point of no return, they really had two options: unconditional surrender now, or unconditional surrender later. Even Doenitz didn't put an immediate stop to the war in his short time in power, because - like every other German leader - he was determined that if they were to surrender, they were to do so to the Western allies anywhere possible.

To put it simply, the Germans didn't want Soviets on their territory, and would do anything to keep them out. With Hitler (and Goering) out of the way, some of the mistakes of late-war management would be gone and Germany would be able to fight off longer, making the West more inclined to negotiate while keeping Soviet advances down anywhere possible. There was, I think, the expectation that after some time, they could even drive a wedge between the allies and make them fight each other. Without Hitler, that might have even meant that Germany would join the Allies vs. Stalin (far-fetched, I know, but that's a "what if" I could imagine).