WI Rupert, Crown Prince of Bavaria leader of germany

Mrstrategy

Banned
how would Germany be if Rupert, Crown Prince of Bavaria was appointed chancellor and not Hitler?
  • has military experience and a good reputation from WW1
  • is against Hitler
  • is pro-monarchy
 
In our time line, the secret to the success of National Socialism was its appeal to draw support from people who had previously voted for either right-wing ("nationalist") and left-wing ("socialist") parties. Had Rupprecht von Bayern become chancellor in 1933, he would have had an opportunity to deprive the National Socialists of a good number of their supporters.

At first, the National Socialists would probably respond to this by courting sympathetic senior veterans of the World War. However, as most of these were connected to either Rupprecht or Hindenburg (or both), I suspect that the best that the National Socialists could have done is to have their photos taken with Ludendorff. (Already several rounds short of a full magazine, Ludendorff was not the sort of fellow that the National Socialists wanted to put on a speakers' platform.)

The National Socialists might have done better with some of the younger "celebrity veterans." (They already had Hermann Goering.) However, I suspect that, when faced with a choice between Hitler and Rupprecht, most of these younger men would have chosen the latter. The same is true of those veterans who had published popular books. Hans Zöberlein, who had been an early convert to National Socialism, might have remained in the Hitler camp. Ernst Jünger and Walter Bloem, however, would probably have come out in favor of Rupprecht.

Having lost both the Veteranenkampf and much of their own right wing, the National Socialists would move to the left. Internally, the left-wing of the party, represented by people such as Ernst Röhm and the Strasser brothers, would gain power. Externally, the National Socialist German Workers Party might try to cooperate with other parties on the German left, particularly the Communists and the Social Democrats.

In government, Rupprecht is likely to have pursued the sort of authoritarian, corporatist, socially-conservative policies pursued by such contemporaries as Pilsudski, Smetona, and Dollfuss. These would have included policies aimed at preserving small businesses from competition from larger enterprises (such as department stores), support for family farms, and protective tariffs. In other words, Rupprecht would have sacrificed the possibility of economic growth on the altar of social stability.

In the realm of foreign policy, Rupprecht would have pursued a policy aimed at the gradual unraveling of the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles. Making use of his many international contacts, Rupprecht would have been able to reassure the victors of 1918 that a strong Germany need not be a threat to the peace of Europe. Indeed, in a world in which the Soviet Union was devoting enormous resources to building up its military power, Rupprecht would have been able to paint a picture of a Europe in which Germany served as one of the pillars of an anti-Soviet alliance.
 
Rupprecht was the former Crown Prince of Bavaria. During the First World War he had eventually commanded an army Group. He was widdely respected and liked by the officers of the Imperial German Army. But more than that he was well regarded by the soldiers of the army who knew that he took their welfare seriously. He had after the war led the forces in Bavaria that had crushed the leftist in Bavaria but he also hated the Nazis. While he was a conservative he opposed the extreme right wing. He was well regarded by the people of Bavaria and many believe that he could have successfully led its withdrawal from Germany. There is little doubt that if he had been called to become Chancellor he would have accepted. Unlike Kaiser Wilhelm he could have reached agreements with the victors of the last war. The threat of the Soviet Union might have been enough to allow him to rebuild Germany.
 
Rupprecht was the former Crown Prince of Bavaria. During the First World War he had eventually commanded an army Group. He was widdely respected and liked by the officers of the Imperial German Army. But more than that he was well regarded by the soldiers of the army who knew that he took their welfare seriously. He had after the war led the forces in Bavaria that had crushed the leftist in Bavaria but he also hated the Nazis. While he was a conservative he opposed the extreme right wing. He was well regarded by the people of Bavaria and many believe that he could have successfully led its withdrawal from Germany.


Is there the slightest evidence that he would have wanted to?

Bavaria had been part of the German Empire since he was two years old. He had grown up in it. Why should he embrace a separatism which would only leave all German states at the mercy of the victor powers?
 
An alt-Anschluss of Bavaria and Austria? A unified southern-German-catholic country to be a democratic bulwark against Prussian militarism and communism?
The map would still look bad, Prussian militarism is mostly just a propaganda lie, Prussian communism is doubtful and Prussia is still the majority of Germany in size and population they would steam roll Austria Bavaria
 
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Deleted member 94680

The map would still look bad, Prussian militarism is mostly just a propaganda lie, Prussian communism is doubtful and Prussia is still the majority of Germany in size and population they would steam roll Austria Bavaria

All maps can look bad it depends on the eyes viewing them. I understand Prussian militarism is 'mostly' a lie, it was meant to be the idea from the WAllies point of view. Communism was meant to be communism in general, but mainly Russian. Indeed, of all the states in Weimar Germany, it was probably Bavaria that had the largest communist population! Agreed Prussia is larger by far, but a bulwark doesn't have to do all the fighting by itself.
 
I think that it would be more likely that the former Bavarian Crown Prince would accept a call to lead the nation. He could not stand the forces of either the extreme left of of the extreme Right.He loath Hitler>
 
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