World War II: Could Germany win?

[keith99]

I think we need to qualify what "win" means, here.

1: Total victory in the West, negotiated peace with UK, Soviet Union pushed back to the Urals, and a Neuropa under German leadership as one of the worlds superpowers?
- Totally possible. Listen to the generals, don't over-extend in the SU, and do things on a reasonable timetable, and Hitler'll get his victory.

2: Total world domination, invasion and occupation of Britain, advance into the Asian part of the SU ("meeting the Japanese half-way"), eventual invasion of America?
- Totally impossible. Not going to happen....at all.
I don't get why invading the is even mentioned as a possibility.You'll need a base of operations in order to launch a major invasion over sea, from where to send transports, base air support, etc. A logistical nightmare in any case. It was difficult for the US, when it had this base in the UK. It is going to be totally and utterly impossible for Germany to launch an invasion across the Atlantic. Not happening.

Totally agree. Now the details of option one might have been a bit sticky, but if Hitler went for a minimalist version, just getting back part of what was lost to France in WW I it might have been a solution even France would have gladly accepted.

Much of the West would have been quite happy for Germany to control much of Eastern Europe if it was clear the alternative was Russia controling it.