WI: The Nazis capture Josef Stalin

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I was curious what would happen if Stalin were captured by the Nazis, perhaps in the opening phase of Barbarossa.

This is perhaps not as unlikely as it would seem. Stalin refused to believe that Barbarossa was really happening, and suffered a mental breakdown with the thought of being arrested and executed for his failure on his mind.

So, perhaps in denial in the events and not in his right mind, Stalin visits the front--and get captured by advancing German forces. Perhaps unlikely, but I suspect plausible, given how resolved he was that there would be no war.

What do the Nazis do with Stalin in their hands? Were there any plans on what would be done in this situation? And how does this change the nature of the war on the Eastern Front?
 
The best possibility to capture Stalin is a succesful Operation Typhoon.
With the German Army encircle Moscow and Stalin refuse to be evacuated to outskirts, the Nazis would got him.

Maybe they'll do public execution of him as propaganda
 
If they capture him in '41 and the Germans win, I wonder if Hitler might try installing him as leader of a puppet Soviet Union? I doubt it would work, but...
 
How are they going too capture him? The man never went near the frontlines and the moment he hears the first German tanks are within Moscow city limits, he'll slip-off towards his armored train and wait for the Soviet counterattack (now more successful thanks too the Germans being even more stretched) to smash the German forces apart.
 

Wolfpaw

Banned
How are they going too capture him? The man never went near the frontlines and the moment he hears the first German tanks are within Moscow city limits, he'll slip-off towards his armored train and wait for the Soviet counterattack
There was no armored train waiting; Stalin made his decision to stay in the city while he was on the platform readying to board the last train out of Moscow.

It's disingenuous to cast Stalin as some sort of coward; he knew that he would survive or fall with Moscow, whether he stayed in the city or not.

If the Nazis somehow manage to get their hands on him, or even his body, then the Germans just got served the best propaganda victory there is to have on the Eastern Front. Moscow's fallen, the pope of communism is dead, Leningrad is besieged, the government's fled to Kuybyshev, the Soviets are in retreat all along the front...

It may be enough to behead the Soviet war effort, especially if the Politburo begins to fall apart (not a given, but definitely possible). Or if a general gets it in his head to launch a coup, which could very easily go badly wrong. In that case, the Germans get to enjoy a mindbogglingly horrific occupation of a guerrilla-saturated East for the duration of the war.

If the Soviets survive the loss of both Moscow and Stalin, Molotov will emerge as the boss. Expect "Stalin the Martyr" cults to start springing up as the war grinds on. There will probably be a big statue of him in Berlin once the Red Army gets there, right outside of the Reichstag.


 

RousseauX

Donor
I was curious what would happen if Stalin were captured by the Nazis, perhaps in the opening phase of Barbarossa.

This is perhaps not as unlikely as it would seem. Stalin refused to believe that Barbarossa was really happening, and suffered a mental breakdown with the thought of being arrested and executed for his failure on his mind.

So, perhaps in denial in the events and not in his right mind, Stalin visits the front--and get captured by advancing German forces. Perhaps unlikely, but I suspect plausible, given how resolved he was that there would be no war.

What do the Nazis do with Stalin in their hands? Were there any plans on what would be done in this situation? And how does this change the nature of the war on the Eastern Front?

Hitler actually very much respected Stalin, IIRC he said that if he were to capture FDR, Churchill and Stalin, he would have jailed/trialed FDR and Churchill while pack Stalin away to a spa somewhere.
 

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Hitler actually very much respected Stalin, IIRC he said that if he were to capture FDR, Churchill and Stalin, he would have jailed/trialed FDR and Churchill while pack Stalin away to a spa somewhere.
I don't think I've ever read that he respected Stalin. In the end he respected the Soviets for winning, but that was about it AFAIK.
 
If they capture him in '41 and the Germans win, I wonder if Hitler might try installing him as leader of a puppet Soviet Union? I doubt it would work, but...

Hitler not be so stupid. Probably Stalin is sent to Berlin and nazis show him to people and then execute him.

But this hardly yet ruin totally fighting moral of Soviets. But another thing who would succeed him. Or try Soviets organise rescue team?
 
I don't think I've ever read that he respected Stalin. In the end he respected the Soviets for winning, but that was about it AFAIK.
Hitler did have some respect for Stalin ( he admired his ruthlessness) at least more than he had for Churchill or Roosevelt.
He once told Mussolini that after Germany conquered the Soviet Union, he would put Stalin in charge of running it for him.

As for how Stalin might be captured, maybe he goes to inspect the fortifications being built on the Molotov line shortly before the launching of Barbarossa (not believing an attack is imminent) and is captured in the opening phase of the attack.

At this point in time I don't believe Hitler had a real blood lust hatred for Stalin (that came later in the war) yet, so its possible Hitler just has him imprisoned I suppose or maybe as LiB suggested and Hitler himself joked, he puts Stalin in charge of a puppet Russian state but personally I think Hitler would have Stalin executed, no torture or trial, just taken out and shot.
Then again Hitler was such a weird and unpredictable nut-job that he might just give Stalin a Villa in Bavaria and maybe visit him on occasions to talk shop and how to deal with underlings. :D
 
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If the Soviet forces survive the immediate loss, do they do better, or worse? Certainly they've lost a powerful public figure, but OTOH, Stalin's purges and his meddling did cost them a lot of good soldiers.
 
If the Soviet forces survive the immediate loss, do they do better, or worse? Certainly they've lost a powerful public figure, but OTOH, Stalin's purges and his meddling did cost them a lot of good soldiers.
I think they might do better without Stalin.
 
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