Japan invades Scandinavia,1942

The Japanese Government has always watched events on the Russian front closely.Although they had not invaded Siberia it had been a long held plan which the army had looked on with warmth however now in November 1941 it was clear to most military men across the world that Moscow would not fall and neither would the Soviet Union.Japans plan had always been to invade after the Germans had comfortably taken Moscow and crossed the Volga meanwhile they would set up their prosperity sphere and force the Americans as well as the old colonial powers into recognising their domination of Asia.

But Moscow had not fallen...

Their belief had always been that by the end of 1941 the USSR would be as good as wrapped up and that Britain would then follow in submitting to the Axis.But if the Soviets would hold over the winter then who knew how long the war would go on for?

Several studies by the IJA with accounts taken from border conflicts with the Soviets as well as thorough analysis of all Soviet military and economic details they could get.The picture soon became clear.America,Britain and the USSR would bleed Germany white it was an eventuality whether it would happen in 1942 or 1952 it didnt matter, Germany could not win which made the decision very clear to Japan...they needed new friends.

So whilst the Soviets and Japanese began to edit their Non-Aggression pact the IJN was redirected from Pearl Harbour and began to head west.....

******

I wasnt sure whether to put this in ASB or not but anyway ill try to update this regularly.


Enjoy :p
 
Last edited:
Yeah that's pretty much ASB. As the Japanese Navy would have to travel thousands of miles, being contested by the US and the British Navy in its home waters.

You might as well have Mexico trying to launch an invasion of the US anytime in the 20th century.
 
Yeah that's pretty much ASB. As the Japanese Navy would have to travel thousands of miles, being contested by the US and the British Navy in its home waters.

You might as well have Mexico trying to launch an invasion of the US anytime in the 20th century.

Theyre not at war with the Allies.


And im not really going all out on the overriding logic here :p
 
Interm November 1941-September 1942

Like Japanese reports had predicted the Wehrmacht's offensive had been stopped, German intelligence estimated that Soviet forces had no more reserves left and thus would be unable to stage a counteroffensive. This estimate proved wrong, as Stalin transferred fresh divisions from Siberia and the Far East, relying on the alliance proposals which the Japanese were sending. The Red Army had accumulated a 58-division reserve by early December, when the offensive proposed by Zhukov and Vasilevsky was finally approved by Stalin.On December 5, 1941, the counteroffensive started on the Kalinin Front. After two days of little progress, Soviet armies retook Krasnaya Polyana and several other cities in the immediate vicinity of Moscow.

The same day, Hitler signed his directive number 39, ordering the Wehrmacht to assume a defensive stance on the whole front. However, German troops were unable to organize a solid defense at their present locations and were forced to pull back to consolidate their lines. On December 14, Franz Halder and Günther von Kluge finally gave permission for a limited withdrawal to the west of the Oka river, without Hitler's approval. On December 20, 1941, during a meeting with German senior officers, Hitler cancelled the withdrawal and ordered his soldiers to defend every patch of ground, Guderian protested, pointing out that losses from cold were actually greater than combat losses and that winter equipment was held by traffic ties in Poland.

Nevertheless, Hitler insisted on defending the existing lines the Soviet offensive continued; in the north, Klin and Kalinin were liberated on December 15 and December 16, as the Kalinin Front drove west. The Soviet front commander, General Konev, attempted to envelop Army Group Center, but met strong opposition near Rzhev and was forced to halt, forming a salient that would last until 1943. In the south, the offensive went equally well, with Southwestern Front forces relieving Tula on December 16, 1941. The Luftwaffe was reinforced, as Hitler saw it as the only hope to "save" the situation. The German air arm was to help prevent a total collapse of Army Group Centre. Despite the Luftwaffe's best efforts Soviet air superiority had contributed enormously to the Red Army's victory at Moscow. Between the 17 December and 22 December the Luftwaffe destroyed 299 motor vehicles and 23 tanks around Tula, hampering the Red Army's pursuit of the German Army. In the center, however, progress was much slower, and Soviet troops liberated Naro-Fominsk only on December 26, Kaluga on December 28, and Maloyaroslavets on January 2, after ten days of violent action. Soviet reserves ran low, and the offensive halted on January 7, 1942, after having pushed the exhausted and freezing German armies back 100 to 250 km (60 to 150 mi) from Moscow. This victory provided an important boost for Soviet morale, with the Wehrmacht suffering its first defeat. Having failed to vanquish the Soviet Union in one quick strike, Germany now had to prepare for a prolonged struggle. Operation Barbarossa had failed.


*****


In December China officially declared war against Japan,after the National Revolutionary Army achieved another decisive victory against the Japanese army in Changsha, which earned the Chinese government much prestige from the Allies.


Chiang Kai-shek continued to receive supplies from the United States however, in contrast to the Arctic supply route to the Soviet Union that stayed open most of the war, sea routes to China and the Sino-Vietnamese Railway had been closed since 1940. Therefore after the closing of the Burma Road in 1942 foreign aid was largely limited to what could be flown in over The Hump. Most of China's own industry had already been captured or destroyed by Japan, and the Soviet Union refused to allow the U.S. to supply China through Kazakhstan into Xinjiang because of the new Soviet Japanese closeness as well as Xinjiang warlord Sheng Shicai turning anti-Soviet in 1942 with Chiang's approval.

*****

Roosevelt tried tenaciously in the first months of 1942,the continuing quasi-War in the Battle of the Atlantic helped his pleas.The sinking of the Medical Ship "Florence" in January and the USS Texas in March.Congrees finally agreed to a declaration of War in April after more evidence of the atrocious treatment of Jews and other miniorities.

*****

In North Africa the British launched Operation Crusader, in November 1941 and by January 1942 recaptured all of the territory recently acquired by the Germans and Italians. Once again, the front line was at El Agheila.

After receiving supplies and reinforcements from Tripoli, the Axis again attacked, defeating the Allies at Gazala in June and capturing Tobruk. The Axis forces drove the Eighth Army back past the border of Egypt where their advance was stopped in July only 90 miles (140 km) from Alexandria in the First Battle of El Alamein.

General Claude Auchinleck, who had personally assumed command of the Eighth Army following the defeat at Gazala, was sacked following the First Battle of El Alamein and was replaced by General Harold Alexander. Lieutenant-General William Gott was given command of the Eighth Army; however he was killed en route to taking up his command and was replaced by Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery.

The Axis forces made a new attempt to break through to Cairo at the end of June at Alam Halfa but were pushed back. After a period of build up and training, the Eighth launched a major offensive, decisively defeating the German-Italian army during the Second Battle of El Alamein in late October 1942.

*****

On 28 June 1942, the new German offensive in the South of Russia began. Everywhere the Soviet troops withdrew as the Wehrmacht forces advanced. By 5 July, forward elements of Fourth Panzer Army had reached the Don near Voronezh, and become embroiled in the battle to capture the city. The Red Army, by tying down Fourth Panzer Army, gained vital time to reinforce their defenses. As Wehrmacht pincers attempted to complete their encirclements, they found only stragglers and rear guards, which only served to convince Hitler the Red Army was down to the last of its reserves. However, the Red Army for the first time in the war were not fighting to hold untenable positions, but withdrawing in good order.


The success of the initial advance of Sixth Army was such Hitler now ordered Fourth Panzer Army south to assist First Panzer Army in forcing a crossing of the lower Don river. This sudden redeployment of an entire Army caused massive logistical problems, as the road network in this part of USSR was not well developed by German standards. The resulting traffic jams caused delays to both Army Group A and B's progress. It also removed vital tank support from Sixth Army, slowing its advance and giving the Red Army further time to consolidate their positions.

Army Group A recaptured Rostov on 23 July 1942. However, fighting a skillful rearguard action which embroiled the Germans in heavy urban fighting to take the city, the Red Army again evaded an encirclement. With the Don crossing secured and Sixth Army's advance flagging, Hitler sent the Fourth Panzer Army back to the Volga line.

In late July, Sixth Army resumed its offensive and by 10 August 1942 had largely cleared the Red Army from the west bank of the Don. However, Soviet resistance continued in some areas further delaying Army Group B's eastward offensive.

In contrast, Army Group A, after crossing the Don on 25 July, fanned out on a broad front. The German 17th Army (with elements of Eleventh Army) maneuvered west towards the Black Sea's eastern coast, while First Panzer Army attacked southeast, sweeping through Kuban largely abandoned by the Red Army. On 9 August First Panzer Army reached the foothills of the Caucausus range, having advanced more than 300 miles in less then two weeks.


Sixth Army crossed the river Don on 21 August, allowing Army Group B to establish a defensive line on the bend of the Don river using the Hungarian, Italian, and Romanian armies, and within 60 km of Stalingrad. With the city within reach of forward air bases, Luftwaffe bombers attacked the city killing over 40,000 people and turning much of the city into rubble. The ground attack on Stalingrad was two-pronged, with Sixth Army advancing from the north (Frolovo) while Fourth Panzer Army advanced from the south (Kotel'nikovo). Between these armies and in the area from River Don to River Volga, a salient had been created. Two Soviet Armies (62nd and 64th, each roughly equal to a German corps) were in the salient and on 29 August, Fourth Panzer Army conducted a major offensive through the southern base of the salient towards Stalingrad. The 6th Army was ordered to do the same, but a strong Soviet counterattack held up its advance for three vital days enabling the Soviet forces in the salient to escape encirclement and fall back towards Stalingrad once again.

By this time, Georgy Zhukov had assumed command of the Stalingrad defence as Stavka representative with authority to coordinate planning of all three Fronts in the area, and in early September, he mounted a series of offensives which further delayed Sixth Army's attempt to seize Stalingrad.

Meanwhile Soviet forces continued to be sent south to bolster the city's defenses and to stage on the east side of the Volga in preparation for a counter-offensive. By mid-September, Sixth Army, after neutralizing the limited local Soviet counterattacks, once again resumed the offensive towards the city. On 13 September the Germans reached Stalingrad's southern suburbs, beginning the epic Battle of Stalingrad.
 
Japan invades... Scandinavia?

Maybe they're trying to seize the North Pole and fly too far? They do seem to enjoy the idea of Santa Claus.

Or maybe they want to have an Asiatic-language-speaking, honorary-Aryan reunion with the Finns.
 
Japan invades... Scandinavia?

Maybe they're trying to seize the North Pole and fly too far? They do seem to enjoy the idea of Santa Claus.

Or maybe they want to have an Asiatic-language-speaking, honorary-Aryan reunion with the Finns.

Those were the biggest incentives yes :D
 
Top