The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

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PassandReviewofWW2
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The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#1

Post by PassandReviewofWW2 » 19 Sep 2016, 18:42

The Sept 1, 1939 Feldzung in Poland represents the main flaw in Allied Defensive Planning , and that such planning in itself was a deterrent when instead it gave away Allied intention to confine themselves behind this false wall of security.

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Steve
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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#2

Post by Steve » 27 Sep 2016, 17:23

On 1 September 1939 a European war started not a world war. The guarantee given to Poland by the UK and France was expected to deter Hitler from going to war. That he would start a European war over Danzig and the corridor was thought unlikey. Britain and France wanted to prevent German domination of europe and the line was drawn at Poland. However, Poland was not part of allied long term strategic thinking which envisioned a war lasting several years. Poland was expected to fall within six months but it would give time for the allies to mobilise. The French had not built the Maginot line in order to launch an offensive from it into Germany.


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henryk
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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#3

Post by henryk » 27 Sep 2016, 19:44

Steve said:
On 1 September 1939 a European war started not a world war
But a World War on Sept 3 1939, when most of the British Commonwealth declared war.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declarati ... rld_War_II

pugsville
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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#4

Post by pugsville » 28 Sep 2016, 04:58

Collective Security, League of Nations , trade embargoes, hitting Italy and Japan for their aggression earlier in the 1930s would have totally changed the international environment,

Italy would have had no choice button cave in.

Japan they would not have worked without US support and may well lead to war sooner, but war with Just japan if US, Britain stood together early 1930s might well have been pretty manageable, US support is pretty problematic for a real trade embargo (oil) but doable.

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Steve
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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#5

Post by Steve » 28 Sep 2016, 14:36

de jure perhaps it was a world war but de facto it was initially a European war. Apart from commerce raiding nothing of any note happened outside Europe in 1939. If the Baltic states invade Russia tomorrow and Panama and Madagascar delace war on Russia is it then a world war? Perhaps it is.

The USA was not a member of the League of Nations. When it came to taking action against Germany in the 1930s only two countries of any importance were on the likely list, the UK and France. France would not act without UK support and the UK while worried about Germany did not regard what it was doing as anything unexpected. Sanctions against Germany may have caused another depression in Europe and poisoned relations with Hitler. From released papers we now know that the British secretly hoped for a Franco victory as they were worried about a communist Spain so no action on Italian intervention. Action over Abyssinia would have pushed Italy into the German camp causing problems for France and Britain in the Mediterranean so no action there. If the Japanese reacted violently against British and French colonial interests in the far east because of sanctions it would have been a major headache. Apart perhaps from the USA did anyone realy care what the Japanese were doing in China? If they had confined their activities to China perhaps they could have carried on for decades.

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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#6

Post by pugsville » 28 Sep 2016, 16:14

Actually the US cared a lot about what was happening in China. It's business interests were important. Which is why US could perhaps be willing to work with France and Britain.

Never Germany or Japan were ready for war in 1936. Germany was no threat at all and could be ignored. Italy would be swiftly crippled by sanctions and haven choice bit to fold. Germany have no airforce ,tanks or U boats. It had no prospect of making war effectively.

Japan did not have good aircraft or a carrier force. lacking resources a naval based distant blockade could have been quite effective.

I think as a strategy it would have been much much better than what they tried historically.

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henryk
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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#7

Post by henryk » 28 Sep 2016, 20:32

Steve wrote:de jure perhaps it was a world war but de facto it was initially a European war. Apart from commerce raiding nothing of any note happened outside Europe in 1939. If the Baltic states invade Russia tomorrow and Panama and Madagascar delace war on Russia is it then a world war? Perhaps it is.
I hope you are not equating the British Commonwealth with the Baltic States, Panama and Madagascar.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_ ... _II_(1939)
The turning point of the war: :P
December 1939
18: The first Canadian troops arrive in Europe.

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Steve
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Re: The Allies Strategy to Prevent World War 2

#8

Post by Steve » 29 Sep 2016, 22:57

Perhaps I did not make my point clear. Lots of countries sent troops to fight Iraq in the Gulf War of 1990 so should this war be classed as a world war?

Yes the USA did care about China but it did not do anything much until the late 1930s. It was the Japanese push into French Indo China that caused them to impose the sort of sanctions that would have crippled Japan.

Germany was not ready for war in 1936 but neither was the UK. Should France have confronted Hitler when he marched into the Rhineland in 1936? Yes, but that would have ensured bad relations between France and Germany when France was striving for good relations and no one knew what Hitler's ultimate ambitions were. The GDP of Germany in 1938 was not far short of the combined UK and French GDP which made applying sanctions against such a behemoth problematic and who was going to join in sanctions? Would the League of Nations have voted for sanctions because the UK and France wanted them giving as the reason a supposed future threat from Germany?

In 1935 Chamberlain had been in favour of imposing sanctions on Italy over its African aggression. In 1937 when Prime Minister he decided that sanctions would push Italy onto the side of a rapidly rearming Germany which was exactly the opposite of what the British were hoping for. Italy fought on the allied side in WW1.

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