DBWI: Germany wasn't being partitioned after WW2

GenericAltHistorian

As you know, in the aftermath of WW2, the Allies have realized that a united and militaristic Germany would be a serious threat to Europe and the rest of the world, considering the atrocities committed by the Germans in the Holocaust. So they decided to partition Germany into five different countries, based on historical and geographical borders: Prussia, Rhineland, Bavaria, Saxony and Hesse. The partition was to completely eliminate the industry of Germany, thus eliminating Germany's possibility to wage another war.

So, what if, assuming Germany still loses WW2, the Allies decided to have mercy on the Germans, and let Germany remain a unified nation? Could a less "harsher" partition of Germany be possible? How would a unified German state develop economically and socially, and would it be able to become a regional power?
 

Tamara

I don’t think that there’s any way that it could be allowed to be a military power ever again. But it’s central position in Europe could could allow it to become a great economic power, sort of like OTL Czechoslovakia.
 
Atterdag

Atterdag

Even if it did unify I doubt it'd be a bigger regional power than say - Poland, it was completely shattered after the war. You'd need some kind of miracle for the German economy to recover.
 

Tamara

I once saw a timeline where the Soviet Union survives the war, and ends up gaining a ton of puppet states in Eastern Europe, including the Eastern half of Germany, with the rest becoming an American subsidized “west Germany” in opposition to the east. In that TL,
Germany becomes wealthy because of the USSR and the US investing in their halves to outdo each other, making Germany very powerful once it finally reunites. I would recommend checking it out: it’s very interesting, if a little implausible at times.
 
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Dolan

Dolan

Banned
Tamara said:
I once saw a timeline where the Soviet Union survives the war, and ends up gaining a ton of puppet states in Eastern Europe, including the Eastern half of Germany,
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Umm... What? Soviet Union... Survived?

They started the War alongside the Nazi Germany and Kuomintang China by Invading Poland and Finland, while China attacked French Indochina to distract the French long enough when Germany turned West and invaded France in a Blitzkrieg.

Sure, Mainland Europe seems about to end up partitioned between the Nazis and Soviets, with only British-Italy Alliance holding the German Juggernaut in The West, Turkey waging guerilla war in The South against Soviet Invasion, while tenous Japan holding combined Soviet Union and Chinese attempt to dominate The East.

It was only after United States decided to ditch Chinese lobby to help Japan (and entering the war on Allied side), that The Allies managed to turn the war against the Pact of Suns. Combined German-Soviet industry with Chinese manpower is definitely a nightmare to fight against back then.
 
Dolf

Dolf

A much smaller and certainly less on the own traditions considered German Diaspora.
Not to mention the German republican army and all the other fighters.
 
WaterproofPotatoes

WaterproofPotatoes

Dolan said:
Why did USSR fight against Germany when Fuhrer Ernst Rohm is pretty much ideological match and personal friend of Stalin?
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In that TL, Volksführer Röhm and the Strasserist Alte Kameraden were purged from the NSDAP by Hitler- who, while a decent speaker OTL, I doubt could have risen far beyond Deputy Minister of Propaganda. All that manic energy which just saw him get into a fistfight with Deputy Volksführer Julius Streicher over allegations that he had an affair with a relative and subsequently purged before his "suicide" OTL, actually got him the top position in that TL.

In that TL, Himmler's SS faction actually won instead of being purged in 1935, aided by a Göring who didn't become a laughingstock before eating himself to death before the morphine could catch up. Göbbels occupied much the same position as he did OTL, but it makes sense as the man was a toady to the last.

Fatso and the creepy chicken farmer as major players would have been almost amusing had they not been just as bad, if not worse than OTL's Nazis. OP did a great job of making them just as despicable, but in different ways, rather than Notzis like so many other TLs- the main difference is that they only paid lip service to the "socialism" aspect of the NSDAP name, and utilized cronyism rather than nationalization to control German industry.
 
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Dolan

Dolan

Banned
WaterproofPotatoes said:
the main difference is that they only paid lip service to the "socialism" aspect of the NSDAP name, and utilized cronyism rather than nationalization to control German industry.
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Ummm, so the Nazis ITTL are closer to Mussolini's Fascism than Stalin's National Communism?

Anyway, back to the point, no forced disbandment of Germany into five drastically different Kingdoms would meant they will have easier time reuniting and regaining their own power.

Bavaria has their old monarchy restored under the former Crown Prince, now King Ruppercht of Bavaria. Being the primary leader of German resistance against Naziism and, and his personal actions to save the Jews, King Ruppercht was almost expected to become the new Kaiser if Germany did not end up being partitioned five-ways, but he did agree that Germany must be partitioned in the first place for the Great Wars to never happened again. Now, Bavaria ends up as the center of arts and humanity studies, respected amongst Europe but didn't really wield any true military or economic clout.

Saxony (including old Hanoover land) was basically given to Prince George of Britain, who reigned as George II of Saxony, because the House Winsdor (Saxe-Corbug Gotha) is the closest Cadet Branch of House Wettin. They are now basically British dominion in all but name, due to Saxony Army Officers and Higher Ups being basically handpicked and rotated with the British Royal Army.

Rhineland is basically French-dominated Germany, and thus ends up having a Republican constitution written down for them. Being the smallest German 'Kingdoms', they have all the Rhineland Industries and mines, but those are too specialized and end up depending on France for Financial trades. Now, they could be directly annexed by France and nobody would think all the wiser.

Hesse is the central German Kingdom, nominally ruled by the Prince of Hesse, given back to Prince Philip, Landgrave of Hesse. Being the second smallest constituent of German successor Kingdoms, they are rather average in anything.

And lastly, the problem area, Prussia. Their western possessions end up given to Saxony and Bavaria, while Poland taking the rest of the east. The Allied tries to make sure that the Rump Republic of Prussia are throughly demilitarized and have their existing industries stripped down. They are the only German successor 'Kingdom' not permitted to have any kind of Army other than lightly armed Police Force, and there are laws forbidding Male Hohenzollerns to even set foot back on Prussia, just to be sure. They are now mostly made of farmlands, and under Polish domination, something that really makes you wonder what the Poles are thinking by decimating Prussia like that.
 

Nephi

Banned
Tamara said:
I once saw a timeline where the Soviet Union survives the war, and ends up gaining a ton of puppet states in Eastern Europe, including the Eastern half of Germany, with the rest becoming an American subsidized “west Germany” in opposition to the east. In that TL,
Germany becomes wealthy because of the USSR and the US investing in their halves to outdo each other, making Germany very powerful once it finally reunites. I would recommend checking it out: it’s very interesting, if a little implausible at times.
Click to expand...

I read that, but I had to stop reading when they got to this weirdly bordered Jewish state.
 
Dolan

Dolan

Banned
Nephi said:
I read that, but I had to stop reading whn they got to this weirdly bordered Jewish state.
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Yeah, just read that too... their knock-off version Kingdom of Jerusalem is definitely a weird one. An initially secular Republic that ends up becoming more and more religious while getting into prolonged, ASB level wars and hatred with their Palestinian Arab neighbor without an end in sight.

Sure, Holocaust happened at the same scale, but only Nazi German got blamed for that instead of equally footing the bill of guilt with Soviet Union.

The founders of Israel ITTL seems to be more idealistic than ours OTL, but somehow managed to get worse long-term result. Even if the motivation of Jews to get a nation of their own is the same

Sure, there were shitstorm coming when Victor Rothschild was almost declared as the King of Jerusalem back then in 1950, as the Orthodox Jews argues that the title "King of Jerusalem" should be reserved only to the Messiah. The dispute of Israel state, bkwever was then solved by Victor Rothschild crowned as secular Duke of Jaffa instead, and he only titled as Steward of Jerusalem, supposedly safekeeping the vacant Throne of Jerusalem for the future Messiah. Turning Kingdom of Jerusalem as yet another Kingdom without King... that basically should be called as Duchy of Jaffa.

The Palestinian Arabs are cool with democratic parlimentarian system under a Jewish monarch, however... So as long as the legal status of Jerusalem being in limbo, they are fine with being citizens of the Kingdom.
 
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