Reasons for Germany's Defeat in WW2

Entry of the United States of America
1. Background
  1. [Late 1930s] The American position regarding Europe was isolationist (isolating one 's country from the affairs of another's). President Franklin D. Roosevelt was determined to keep out of war. In 1937, this sentiment was further seen to be clear through the passing of the Neutrality Act
  2. However, Roosevelt warned the public that USA would certainly be threatened by Germany, Japan, and Italy eventually. This was especially so after the countries signed the Anti-Comintern Pact in 1936-1937. He warned to aggressor nations, that countries that advocate war should be treated as threats to the public health, and should be excluded or isolated. Although wanting to prevent war, he feared that the USA would be involved in a war militarily eventually, and thus prepared for such a possibility
2. Original indirect involvement
  1. 'Cash and Carry' and 'Lend-Lease Act'
    1. In 1939, during a revision of the Neutrality Act of 1937, Roosevelt persuaded the American Congress to allow Britain and France to buy Arms from the USA on a 'cash and carry' (Britain and France may buy goods from USA if they paid in full and transported on their own basis. This allowed him to provide aid to the two countries while remaining neutral
    2. In 1941, Winston called for help due to Britain's exhausted resources. Roosevelt persuaded for Congress to pass the Lend-Lease Act that gave him authority to supply weapons, food, and equipment to any country whose defense he thought was vital to the national security of USA
  2. 'Arsenal of democracy'
    1. Roosevelt's argument for the USA was that the USA should be the 'arsenal of democracy' - which means that USA ought to actively support democratic nations (i.e. Britain and France) in fighting the Axis Power
    2. After the fall of France in June 1940, Britain was the only major Allied country in Europe not fallen to Germany. Roosevelt thus persuaded Congress to give 'all aid short of war' to increase USA's level of aid to Britain
  3. Other forms of aid
    1. The USA provided Britain and her allies with military supplies, and rapid rearmament
    2. Roosevelt also imposed economic sanctions on the Axis Power to deprive them of resources needed for their war effort
      1. When Japan wanted to expand its empire in the Far East, Roosevelt restricted supplies of important materials (i.e Japan) from 1940 onwards
3. On 7 December 1941, the Japanese attacked the American Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. On 8 December, Congress declared war on Japan. Due to the Tripartite Pact (between Italy, Germany, and Japan), Hitler also declared war on the USA
4. Contribution of vast resources and manpower
  1. The USA was the world's largest producer of goods at the time. It could convert its factories for military production at a faster rate than the Axis Powers. When USA formally entered the war, they sent large numbers of American military personnel. It boosted the military force and the industrial capacity of the Allied Powers
5. Collaboration with Allies on military strategies
  1. The American participation in the Allied military strategies was invaluable, helping the Allies achieve control of the air and the sea
  2. The control of the air and sea helped greatly in Allied tactical successes against Germany, such as the 'Operation Overlord', and the D-Day Landings
Germany's weaknesses and miscalculations
1. Ineffective command structure
  1. The German state and military command structure suffered from confusing system of overlapping authority
  2. Apart from Hitler, no one else had the power to make decisions. Hitler often went against the advice of his experienced generals - which proved to be mistakes such as those during the Battle of Britain and the invasion of the Soviet Union
2. Inappropriate use of resources and military funds
  1. For instance, Hitler demanded for the most updated weaponry but some of these types were mass-produced before being tested on the battlefield
  2. There was a lack of adequate personnel for armament production as women stayed at home instead of helping with the war efforts (due to Hitler's discriminating policies against women) and the factories were staffed by starving slave laborers
  3. To make matters worse, the involvement of USSR and USA greatly boosted the Allies' resources and military funds
3. Heavy reliance on petroleum
  1. Although Germany had very little natural petroleum reserves of its own, but it was the chief resource that powered its war machine. Germany relied on synthetic oil by liquefying coal, a resource that Germany had in abundance
  2. From 1943 onwards, German synthetic oil plants and oilfields were subjected to heavy Allied aerial bombing, led by the USA. Germany's oilfields in Nazi-occupied countries like Austria and Romania, were put out by the Soviet Red Army and the American Air Force. Thus, their war machine almost came to a halt
4. War on two fronts
  1. Hitler's greatest mistake was deciding to conduct a war on two fronts. While still on war with Britain in the Western Front, he chose to invade the Soviet Union, opening up the Eastern Front. Then, while he appeared to be gaining the upper hand against the USSR, he decides to declare war on USA.
  2. Hitler assumed that the USA would be primarily fighting Japan in the Pacific. However, Roosevelt concentrated his troops and efforts in North Africa and Europe. Hitler is now fighting a war on two fronts at the same time
Allied resistance
1. Reorganization of the Soviet Union
  1. The USSR helped to defeat about 80% of the German armed forces on the Eastern Front
  2. On 22 June 1941, Germany broke the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact and invaded the USSR. In response, the USSR formed a military alliance with Britain on 12 July 1941, and entered war on the side of Britain
  3. Although facing challenges and threat from the Germans initially, the USSR eventually gained the upper hand
  4. German tactical errors, strong resistance from Soviet troops, and the bitter Russian winters of 1941 and 1942 gave the USSR time to reorganize its army and rebuild its economy and military production. It then gained a greater advantage over Germany, especially after the American Land-Lease aid was extended to them
2. British resistance to German invasion
  1. Hitler never planed for a war with the British. When France fell in June 1940, he hoped that the British would discuss peace terms together. However, Churchill made it clear that he planned to fight the Germans to the finish
  2. Hitler realized that it would be hard to invade Britain with his usual Blitzkrieg, which depanded on the deployment of great numbers of land troops, which would not work well on the island nations of Britain. Thus, Germany would need to achieve its air and sea supremacy
  3. In 1940, Germany attacked Britain in the Battle of Britain. With strained sources, Britain was further weakened by Germany. Although the German tactics were successful, tactical changes by Hitler undermined German military effectiveness and gave the British time to recover. The constant German bombings strengthened the morale and resolve of the British instead of weakening it
3. Resistance movements
  1. Resistance movements in Nazi-occupied European countries worked dangerously, but provided vital information and behind-the-lines support to the Allies
  2. Until 1941, resistance was limited, as the Nazis' sudden invasion left most people too traumatized to contemplate resistance. This changed after Hitler invaded the USSR. The communists (used to working underground) became actively involved in resisting the Nazis. Many civilians who opposed the Nazis joined the communist resistance as they saw it as a successful resistance movement

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