Recent content by Detlef

True. But Tirpitz was mainly used as a "battleship in being". Plus it wasn´t just the ship AA guns which defended the ship. There were also AA land defenses. However von Adler said that coastal battleships would make "control of the sea lanes a much more expensive calculation". And "without...

The "Braunschweig" class and "Deutschland" class pre-dreadnoughts were outdated even in WW1. Laid down between 1901 and 1905. Which means the design is even older. In the 1920s they have outdated main and secondary guns, outdated main turrets, secondary guns in outdated casemates, outdated fire...

Well I did notice that both the Swedish and Finnish coast have a lot more islands where a coastal battleship could hide. And Norway of course has its islands and fjords. The German Baltic coast sadly only has a few islands. Not to mention that Germany had a pretty good railway infrastructure...

Then you should read the Hoover reports to Truman of the "the President's Economic Mission to Germany and Austria". IIRC they estimated that 25% to 33% of all Germans would have to emigrate or starve if the Morgenthau plan would be implemented. Because with only the allowed light industries and...

IIRC the Versailles Treaty limited the smaller naval ships to 12 fleet torpedo boats of 800 tons and 12 torpedo boats of 200 tons (essentially fast attack craft). That´s not much of an escort. Especially since the first four (prototype) S-boats were only built in 1931/32. Coastal defense ships...

I´m not really an expert here but I´m not quite sure if any Roman Emperor (West or East) actually accepted papal supremacy? For the Roman Emperors, any Emperors, the religious leaders were supposed to follow the orders of the Emperor? "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are...

If I remember my history lessons correctly the initial reason behind making three bishoprics into electorates was that a bishop couldn´t have any legal heirs. And in the early years of the HRE the German King / Emperor pretty much choose the next bishops himself. Which meant that at least three...

That´s not quite true. Protestant Denmark, Protestant Sweden and Catholic France all supported the German Protestants. Of course they all expected land wins and profits for their own countries. Which they all got in 1648.

Well, I am a German. And even today - if you ask a German about WW1 - they will point to Verdun. I realize that English speaking people are focused on the battle of the Somme which involved the British forces. But for us - the Germans - the needless and stupid battle of Verdun was and is a...

Loyal to the state during times of war is something different to peace times?

I disagree. If the war ends in 1918 both the military and the civilians will have just experienced the "turnip winter". And even if the troops return in 1918 it will be too late for planting in 1918. So they´ll see another winter with reduced food. And Germany won´t have the gold for large scale...

They already saw that in 1912.

Ahem, the German army in 1917/18 is a mobilized conscript army of 4.5 million soldiers. Lots of war veterans. Lots of soldiers grumbling about REMFs. And if the war ends in 1918 both the army and the civilian population have experienced the "turnip winter". I really don´t see the common...

The more "constitutional monarchy" minded parties like the Social Democrats, Catholic Zentrum party and Progressive People´s Party already got a majority in the federal elections in 1912. And that was with the outdated election districts from the 1870s. If there is an electoral reform the SPD...

That already happened in the 1890s. General Leo von Caprivi. Federal Chancellor from 1890 to 1894. Not exactly a friend of the Junker class. And he worked just like any ordinary Chancellor who needed a majority in the Reichstag to do anything. And Germany becoming a version of Imperial Japan...