The NAZI brass takes off after D-Day

What if, after D-Day, the NAZI leadership decided to take a bunch of gold and other valuables, and flee to unstable regions of the world, in the hopes that the Reich can rise again, and of course to save their own skins. How much trouble can they cause for the world? Will the German army let the allies take over as an alternative to the soviets taking over? What will the hunt for the leaders look like? Where will they go?
 
They aren't leaving until Hitler says they can leave, which won't happen until the Allies or the Soviets are in Berlin. Some (like Goebbels) are too loyal and fanatical to imagine a post-Third Reich world, and the others would be arrested and shot for trying to flee. And in the Darwinian hell that was the Third Reich there will be plenty of people willing to shoot them if it meant getting ahead.
 
They aren't leaving until Hitler says they can leave, which won't happen until the Allies or the Soviets are in Berlin. Some (like Goebbels) are too loyal and fanatical to imagine a post-Third Reich world, and the others would be arrested and shot for trying to flee. And in the Darwinian hell that was the Third Reich there will be plenty of people willing to shoot them if it meant getting ahead.

I admit, this is close to ASB territory, with Hitler being sane and all. But, assuming the decision is made by the Fuhrer himself, what will happen? Good points though, and it is probably for the best that someone brought this up right away.
 

CalBear

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I admit, this is close to ASB territory, with Hitler being sane and all. But, assuming the decision is made by the Fuhrer himself, what will happen? Good points though, and it is probably for the best that someone brought this up right away.

He wouldn't. Not a chance in Hell.
 
A Nazi leadership fleeing when France is still mostly occupied would be seen as a betrayal of Germany, and Hitler probably knew that enough to hang on in Berlin until the final moments. In the event they do bolt, I imagined that German resistance would either crumble instantly, or the July Coup plotters seize the chance to take control and mount a desperate defence, possibly trying to capture Hitler and Co. and use them as bargaining chips when negotiating with the Allies.

In all respects, however, Nazi Germany is effectively doomed. They can try to run somewhere, but there's next to no chance of a Nazi revival now, at least not with the return of a leadership that had shown cowardice this early. Whichever SS holdouts that remain would either make up any sort of excuse to maintain Hitler's status as their leader, or simply repudiate him and claim to follow 'true' National Socialism.
 
What if, after D-Day, the NAZI leadership decided to take a bunch of gold and other valuables, and flee to unstable regions of the world, in the hopes that the Reich can rise again, and of course to save their own skins. How much trouble can they cause for the world? Will the German army let the allies take over as an alternative to the soviets taking over? What will the hunt for the leaders look like? Where will they go?

Since other people have mostly tackled how unlikely this is, I'll go ahead and assume that a bunch do (it's not quite ASB, just very unlikely)

If they're smart, they'll probably try to escape to Switzerland and then fly to Spain, and thence steam to South America. Brazil, Argentina, and Chile all practice a very strict "anyone white is okay, especially if they have a bunch of gold" immigration policy, and OTL are noted for having absorbed more than a few fugitive Nazis. The amount of wealth they'll be able to bring is somewhat limited though.

And then? If they're smart, they keep their heads down. The US and UK probably won't bother hunting for very long, but will certainly demand extradition if anyone becomes too identifiable, and the Mossad and NKVD are likely going to keep up the hunt for a long, long time - especially if anyone is found. OTL, the the Soviets were satisfied with the Nuremberg trials, and the Mossad's search sort of petered out after the Eichmann trial become so highly politicized back home, but if there's a large number of people still out there...
 
To be more clear than I was in the original post, I meant some time between D-Day and the end of the war, probably at the last possible opportunity, although they can move gold to Switzerland or somewhere gradually if they have a year or so to do it.
 
To be more clear than I was in the original post, I meant some time between D-Day and the end of the war, probably at the last possible opportunity, although they can move gold to Switzerland or somewhere gradually if they have a year or so to do it.
Again the only real opportunity is in April/May 1945, with their best chance being after Hitler had given up. Before then any escape attempt would have been basically suicide, since the former Nazi magnate would be caught and executed. Even if they somehow managed to get out of Germany where are they going to go? Most of Europe was occupied by the Nazis or the other Axis powers, and the parts that weren't wouldn't be keen on accepting former Nazis (accepting one of Hitler's inner circle would be a good way to get both the Allies and Hitler to hate you).
 
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