The Rise of the Third Reich

Joseph Patrick Kennedy was sitting in a living room of the German Chancellery in Berlin at this time, waiting for the appearance of German Chancellor Adolf Hitler and Chief of General Staff Reichsmarschall Hessmann.

He was extremely confident about his trip to Berlin this time, because before he arrived in Berlin, he heard that the Russian Queen Olga would officially visit Berlin as the Queen - this seemed to mean that Germany's Eastern Policy was very important. It is possible to destroy the Soviet Union!

The consensus view of the U.S. Army and the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Germany's war policy is this: Germany is unable to fight wars in the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Plains of Eastern Europe at the same time, because the amount of oil currently controlled by Germany is not enough to maintain a war with the United States at the same time. The combat navy can destroy the Soviet Army's mechanized corps and the corresponding huge air power.

If Germany is determined to destroy the Soviet Union and restore the Russian Empire, then Germany's (European) maritime power can only take a defensive position in the Atlantic, and it may even reach a just peace with the United States.

In this way, it is possible for the United States to concentrate all its efforts on Japan and seize control of the Pacific Rim.

On the other hand, if Germany and the Soviet Union reach peace, then the United States is likely to face the dilemma of war on two fronts.

Therefore, after the outcome of the "Battle of Junction" was decided, experts from the U.S. military and the Soviet Union suggested that President Roosevelt negotiate peace with Germany without completely giving up the Soviet Union.

And "not completely giving up" means that the United States can retain the Lend-Lease Act and provide blood transfusions to the Soviet Union, while Germany can also provide blood transfusions to Japan through the European version of the Lend-Lease Act.

Since the United States has more oil and the Soviet Union is far more powerful than Japan, this policy of "not completely giving up" is beneficial to the United States.

However, in Kennedy's view, the so-called "incomplete abandonment" was just to take care of the interests of the United States' arms and industrial giants (these two types of people are now almost one).

Otherwise, Germany would "cut off food" to Japan, and the United States would "cut off supplies" to the Soviet Union, and the world war would end in 1943, or 44 at the latest. How could arms dealers make profits in the factories they had invested so much in before?

Ambassador Kennedy, who was denouncing the evil intentions of American capitalists in his mind and thinking about which arms company's stocks he should buy with a better chance of making money, suddenly heard the sound of leather boots hitting the granite floor. Then there were shouts of: "Hey, Hitler!"

The ambassador quickly stood up - he knew that German Chancellor Hitler was coming.

Also arriving with Hitler were Reichsmarschall Herschmann and Hess, who had been in charge of negotiations between Germany and Germany.

Although this meeting was informal, the simultaneous appearance of the two most powerful figures in Germany and even the European Community gave Kennedy, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland, a little more confidence.

Obviously, the Germans attach great importance to making peace with the United States. If he can promote the peace of virtue, his future political future will definitely be more than just an ambassador.

…

"No, no, no... We don't really want to make peace with the Nazis in Europe, let alone abandon the Soviet Union. President Roosevelt and most American politicians know the consequences of letting Germany completely dominate Europe, even if the United States Defeating Japan and dominating the Pacific is not enough to counter a European community that incorporates Russia.”

While Ambassador Kennedy was meeting with Hitler, Hessmann, Hess and others to discuss peace, the Kremlin also welcomed a guest from the United States - Presidential Envoy Harry Hopkins.

Hopkins' purpose was simple: to explain the United States' European policy and to cheer for the Soviet Union, which had just lost the war.

Oh, and threatening Stalin!

After Hopkins saw Stalin's English secretary Pavlov translate his words into Russian, he slowly added: "Of course, if you are prepared to make peace with Germany, then we have no reason to make peace with Germany. Germany will continue to fight...and we will no longer interfere in European affairs, and the Lend-Lease Act will be immediately abolished and never restored, regardless of whether Germany abides by the treaty it signed with you!"

This is a naked threat! And...the threat is quite reasonable!

Because the United States is in a very good position when it comes to betraying its friends. Although Germany was powerful, it did not have the power to cross the Atlantic and attack the United States mainland. Even the impregnable Caribbean Sea cannot be penetrated. The best situation is to suppress the United States in the Atlantic Ocean.

However, it is not easy to achieve this goal, because Germany's sea power in the Atlantic is actually based on the Ju288's high altitude, high speed, long range and the power of remotely controlled gliding bombs.

With the gradual improvement of the "disposable Spitfire", the United States now has the trump card to eliminate the Ju288's high-altitude and high-speed advantages. Unless it is within the combat radius of German jet aircraft (the advantages of jet aircraft at extremely high altitudes are simply not something that piston aircraft can contend with), the Ju288 is no longer a formidable weapon.

After eliminating the threat of Ju288 and various remote-controlled gliding bombs, the two sides will fight for aircraft carriers and battleships, and the United States has a great advantage. It's not that the U.S. shipbuilding industry can really overwhelm Europe, but that the United States has 260 million tons of oil, and Germany will only have 60 million tons of oil by 45 years, which is only a fraction of the United States.

And the little oil controlled by Germany still has to support the expenses of European countries, and it also has to maintain a huge mechanized force and air force on the Eastern Front. How much is left to use on the Atlantic?

Therefore, once the United States completely abandons the Soviet Union, it is very likely that Germany will turn around and destroy the Soviet Union.

In order to negotiate peace with Germany, the United States must abolish the Lend-Lease Act. Once this Act is abolished, it will be extremely difficult to pass it. Without the Lend-Lease Act, the Soviet Union would have no "free" American arms, food, and raw materials. If it loses left-bank Ukraine, how can the Soviet-German war be fought?

"But the Soviet Union is very difficult now!" Stalin frowned. He didn't know whether he was angry with the United States or worried about the future of the Soviet Union. "We are now fighting against the entire European Community alone, and there are traitors among us!"

"You are not fighting alone," Hopkins said. "You have us as friends. In order to support the resistance of the Soviet people, we will take the initiative in the Atlantic."

"Taking the initiative on the Atlantic Ocean?" Stalin snorted softly, "This is really great... You should have done this a long time ago."

"No, we can't take action too early," Hopkins shook his head, "because we need time to accumulate strength. Ships need to be built, personnel need to be trained, and carrier-based interceptors that can counter Germany's advanced high-altitude bombers need to be developed."

Of course, the U.S. Army in this era cannot be compared with Germany. Both campaign organization and tactical level are far behind. But the level of the U.S. Navy is not low, and it is definitely a difficult enemy to deal with. Although Japan was a bit confused at the beginning of the war, it later suffered a lot because it had the courage to aid Britain.

But since it lost the burden of the British mainland, the U.S. Navy's strategic freedom has greatly increased. There is no need to fight an uncertain war to aid Britain.

Moreover, without the two major strategic goals of aiding Britain and counterattacking Europe, almost 80% of the United States' terrifying war industry completely serves the navy. This allowed the United States to not only go all out to build aircraft carriers, but also have sufficient resources to speed up the construction of battleships and heavy cruisers.

According to the plan, the No. 3 and No. 4 ships of the Iowa-class battleships can begin sea trials in 1943, and the No. 5 and No. 6 ships will enter service in 1944.

The five Montana-class battleships that the Americans have high hopes for are now being built with the highest priority. They should all be able to serve within 1945!

In addition, six Alaska-class battlecruisers with a standard displacement of 27,000 tons are currently under construction at full speed. The first ship, the USS Alaska, will join the US Navy in 1943, and the fifth ship, the USS Guam, will join the US Navy in early 1944. navy.

In other words, by the beginning of 1944, the United States will have a total of 7 new battleships/battlecruisers: Washington, Iowa, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Missouri, Alaska and Guam. It will definitely become a combined European fleet. 's strong enemy.

Moreover, the U.S. Navy's current plan in the Atlantic is not to engage in a decisive battle with the European Combined Fleet.

"Are you preparing for a decisive fleet battle?" Stalin asked, "Do we need to dispatch the Soviet-class and Kronstadt-class to cooperate?"

The four Soviet-class ships and the two Kronshtadt-class ships have not yet sailed to the Pacific Ocean. According to the plan, they will take the Arctic Ocean route to the Pacific Ocean in the summer of 43.

"Comrade General Secretary," Hopkins smiled, "of course we hope to restore the Allied Atlantic Combined Fleet, but at present we will not fight the Americans. Because there is no guarantee of a decisive battle, our naval experts believe that we should fight the Germans Fight a war of attrition at sea.”

"A war of attrition at sea?" Stalin asked with interest, "What is consumed? Ships or human lives?"

"Consumption of fuel." Hopkins said, "According to the calculations of our naval experts, the Germans simply cannot provide the European Combined Fleet with fuel that can sustain high-intensity operations throughout the year. So we only need to draw the main force of the European Combined Fleet out of the port , let them keep spinning in the Atlantic Ocean, and we will achieve our goal. It is estimated that at the current scale, the main force of the European Combined Fleet will consume at least 20,000 tons of fuel on the Atlantic Ocean for a day, and the Germans will burn an additional 20,000 tons of fuel in the Atlantic Ocean. tons of oil, then their army on the Russian Great Plains will be short of 20,000 tons of oil!”