A Perfect Storm - WWII What If

What if Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin both died on October 7th, 1939? Who would replace them? How would this affect the war? How would the West react?
 
World peace:confused:

Nah just kidding. Civil war in Germany and power struggle in USSR. West sighs in relief and Churchill laughs so hard that he wets himself.
 
Patton has a stroke the same day. :winkytongue: Yamamoto retires to a chicken farm in Sacramento, knowing Japan is liable to do something incredibly stupid before too much longer. :winkytongue: His son becomes the first Nisei CNO. ;D Hannah Reicht is first person to exceed Mach 1, on 14 October 1942. In 1950, the 2d SJW ends. Hans-Joachim Marseilles is first man in orbit, 1951; Pres Dewey calls for an American on the Moon by 1960. 1968, Erich Hartmann is first man on the Moon. 1970, ROC is the largest economy on the planet.
 
An interesting scenario, really.

In Germany, there wouldn't be any shortage of successors to carry on the Fuehrer's policies: Goebbels, Goering, Himler, Heydrich. It probably goes to one or a combination of them, agreeing that the best thing for the Reich would be to cover up the death. OTOH, there is quite a bit of anti-Nazism in various places, and if they act fast, they might score a coup, or at least a civil war. The Allies would be relieved-they might even :)eek:) launch a major offensive against Germany. There probably wouldn't be a Fall of France.

In the USSR, there will probably be a short, decisive power struggle, with a semi-Stalinist like Kaganovich coming in.

The Poles are a wild card-they ight even be able to pull something off.
 
Himmler and Beria had the most realistic chances at this point. So what you've done is essentially replaced 2 paranoid and arrogant nutcases with 2 ruthless sociopaths. Churchill will probably be wetting himself for a whole other reason.
 
Himmler and Beria had the most realistic chances at this point. So what you've done is essentially replaced 2 paranoid and arrogant nutcases with 2 ruthless sociopaths. Churchill will probably be wetting himself for a whole other reason.

I'd buy both of those, but Himmler wasn't terribly popular among the Nazi Party hierarchy IIRC. He controls a lot of the police and paramilitaries, but is that enough? Goring was named the successor only a month before for just these circumstances, Heydrich might not like the idea of Himmler's elevation, Hess is still a wild card, and Goebbels is still floating around. Not a very tidy political picture...
 
I'd buy both of those, but Himmler wasn't terribly popular among the Nazi Party hierarchy IIRC. He controls a lot of the police and paramilitaries, but is that enough? Goring was named the successor only a month before for just these circumstances, Heydrich might not like the idea of Himmler's elevation, Hess is still a wild card, and Goebbels is still floating around. Not a very tidy political picture...

Cough*Multi-factioned Civil War*Cough
 
Himmler and Beria had the most realistic chances at this point. So what you've done is essentially replaced 2 paranoid and arrogant nutcases with 2 ruthless sociopaths. Churchill will probably be wetting himself for a whole other reason.

Not Himmler. By 1939 his position wasn't strong enough. Waffen-SS was just some divisions with second hand material and SS had to compete with a lot of other nazi organisations that SS later absorbed. Also, the German military were by 1939 more Preussian than Nazi.

My guess is Goering. Formal position, old military, old party member, long time as politician and by 1939 without any large failures. Maybe in an alliance with "moderate" Nazis, the military and some conservative parties.

I would guess that Germany after that lost its will to conquer, made a deal with Poland and France, made a deal with Stalins successor and degenerated into corruption and wealth for the leadership. Germany had reunited the german-speaking people, washed away the shame of Versailles treaty and made Germany strong again. That was what Hitler had promised - and after a gigantic state funeral they would be satisfied.
 
What about that strange practice they call "election"?
That's how Hitler come to power in '33

By 1939 pretty much any resemblance between Nazi Germany and a functioning democratic state is very specious. Nazis aren't going to allow real multiparty elections, although the turmoil might give the suppressed parties a chance to regroup. And the Nazis can't hold an election among themselves, since they probably don't trust each other or the apparatus to keep things "fair" (ie. slanted the right way) and nobody with any power base has a setup that will transition smoothly to elections.

No, any elections are more likely a sham once the winner has already been determined through internal machinations.

Where is the army in this, with hitler gone and a succession crisis brewing?
 
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