What Is Hitler's Interference In Military Affairs
2. Hitler's Interference In Military Affairs
Many blame Hitler's poor military decisions entirely for Germany's defeat, but it is not that simple. However, it is impossible to deny that his armies suffered greatly because of his meddling, so much so that several assassination attempts were made by his staff. Even when it was clear that the war was lost, Hitler chose to continue the war, determined to bring everyone else down with him. Instead of leaving the planning solely up to his very competent military leaders, he selfishly chose to interfere in nearly every military operation.
3. Poor Intelligence
Throughout the war, the Germans always seemed to be at a disadvantage when it came to knowing what the enemy was up to. The Germans simply had too many secrets given away and were duped too many times by Allied trickery to recover. Not only did the Allies have a greater reservoir of military intelligence, but many from Germans turned to the Allied side, they used their resources better. The Allies drew on vast amounts of German secrets through double agents, captured weaponry, and intercepted messages, all of which culminated in a devastating blow. Throughout the war, the Germans were surprised at how the Allies could have the upper hand …show more content…
so often, when often the reason was because the Allies knew what the Germans were going to do and how they were going to do it.
4. Overextension
This has been the downfall of many doomed empires, and the Third Reich was no exception. Within the first year of WWII, Hitler had much of Europe in his hands because of quick victories which led him to presume that he was invincible. Hitler continually pushed his luck too far and should have learned from the Battle of Britain that his war machine was not infalliable. Once he got deeper and deeper into Europe, supply lines began growing as his army was shrinking, and his overextension in Russia proved fatal.
5. Poor Military Production Early On
Although Germany had great industrial power, they failed to take full advantage of it until later in the war, when they were already on the ropes. Hitler scoffed at the American assembly line mentality and opted for quality, not quantity in his production, while laughing at the idea of using women and children for the war effort. The Americans and Soviets had the exact opposite strategy, choosing to throw as much men and material as possible at Hitler, and in the end the Allies' superior numbers led to their victory. After his disasterous losses in Russia, Hitler switched to mass production and standardization, but by then it was too late.
6. Failure To Take Britain Out Of The War In 1940
The first half of 1940 was a terrifying time for the Allies, especially the British, who had their back against the wall so early on. Hitler had most of the British forces trapped at Dunkirk and made the colossal mistake of letting 340,000 Allied soldiers escape, most of which would return to fight again. Instead of winning a Stalingrad-like victory at Dunkirk, he gave the Allies the breathing room they needed to regroup and a morale boost that carried them into their next big victory in the Battle of Britain. Hitler underestimated the RAF and overestimated the Luftwaffe , and for the second time he missed his chance to deliver a potentially fatal blow to the British, which would have severely curtailed the Allies' future attacks.
7. Counterproductive Military And Governmental Structure
The Third Reich has been called the most disorganized and unstructured government in any advanced society in modern times, and it seems to fit that bill. Although Hitler had absolute power, his "will" was so ambiguous that he had scores of people running the show, and often there were several people working uncoordinately on the same job or working against one another. This labyrinth of disarray and backbiting carried into the military, where Hitler also encouraged rivalry and animosity to weaken the power of everyone else working for him to secure his own power. He failed to realize that these structural weaknesses would only collapse around him later on in the war when people began to dispise him.
8. Nazi Ideology
Nazi official Hans Frank said it best by lamenting that empires built on democracy last for ages, but empires built on hate and violence are always short-lived.
The Nazis proved that maxim true by racially, politically and militarily setting themselves apart from the rest of humanity, which bred a world full of enemies that would have their revenge. Thus the Nazis' racist policies gave them the false impression that they were superior to everyone else, which set them up for defeat. By believing the Slavs were subhuman, he alienated potential allies, who first welcomed the Germans as liberators. By believing that the Russians were subhuman, they underestimated an enemy that could have very well defeated them without Western
help.
9. Failure To Take Advantage Of Nazi Technology
The Nazis had access to some of the most advanced weaponry in the world, but never made full use of it. They had the world's first guided missles, the V-1 & V-2 rockets, but Hitler only wanted to use them to terrorize London. They had the world's first jets, like the Me-262, but Hitler wanted to use them as bombers and not the superior fighters they were. They had the scientists who could have made a German atomic bomb, but it never happened. Time and time again the Germans seemed to have many military advantages (like their late-war assault rifle which the Soviets copied with their AK-47) but they either used them too late or in a wasteful manner.
10. Failure To Utilize Their Few Allies Properly
Many blame Hitler's poor military decisions entirely for Germany's defeat, but it is not that simple. However, it is impossible to deny that his armies suffered greatly because of his meddling, so much so that several assassination attempts were made by his staff. Even when it was clear that the war was lost, Hitler chose to continue the war, determined to bring everyone else down with him. Instead of leaving the planning solely up to his very competent military leaders, he selfishly chose to interfere in nearly every military operation.
3. Poor Intelligence
Throughout the war, the Germans always seemed to be at a disadvantage when it came to knowing what the enemy was up to. The Germans simply had too many secrets given away and were duped too many times by Allied trickery to recover. Not only did the Allies have a greater reservoir of military intelligence, but many from Germans turned to the Allied side, they used their resources better. The Allies drew on vast amounts of German secrets through double agents, captured weaponry, and intercepted messages, all of which culminated in a devastating blow. Throughout the war, the Germans were surprised at how the Allies could have the upper hand …show more content…
so often, when often the reason was because the Allies knew what the Germans were going to do and how they were going to do it.
4. Overextension
This has been the downfall of many doomed empires, and the Third Reich was no exception. Within the first year of WWII, Hitler had much of Europe in his hands because of quick victories which led him to presume that he was invincible. Hitler continually pushed his luck too far and should have learned from the Battle of Britain that his war machine was not infalliable. Once he got deeper and deeper into Europe, supply lines began growing as his army was shrinking, and his overextension in Russia proved fatal.
5. Poor Military Production Early On
Although Germany had great industrial power, they failed to take full advantage of it until later in the war, when they were already on the ropes. Hitler scoffed at the American assembly line mentality and opted for quality, not quantity in his production, while laughing at the idea of using women and children for the war effort. The Americans and Soviets had the exact opposite strategy, choosing to throw as much men and material as possible at Hitler, and in the end the Allies' superior numbers led to their victory. After his disasterous losses in Russia, Hitler switched to mass production and standardization, but by then it was too late.
6. Failure To Take Britain Out Of The War In 1940
The first half of 1940 was a terrifying time for the Allies, especially the British, who had their back against the wall so early on. Hitler had most of the British forces trapped at Dunkirk and made the colossal mistake of letting 340,000 Allied soldiers escape, most of which would return to fight again. Instead of winning a Stalingrad-like victory at Dunkirk, he gave the Allies the breathing room they needed to regroup and a morale boost that carried them into their next big victory in the Battle of Britain. Hitler underestimated the RAF and overestimated the Luftwaffe , and for the second time he missed his chance to deliver a potentially fatal blow to the British, which would have severely curtailed the Allies' future attacks.
7. Counterproductive Military And Governmental Structure
The Third Reich has been called the most disorganized and unstructured government in any advanced society in modern times, and it seems to fit that bill. Although Hitler had absolute power, his "will" was so ambiguous that he had scores of people running the show, and often there were several people working uncoordinately on the same job or working against one another. This labyrinth of disarray and backbiting carried into the military, where Hitler also encouraged rivalry and animosity to weaken the power of everyone else working for him to secure his own power. He failed to realize that these structural weaknesses would only collapse around him later on in the war when people began to dispise him.
8. Nazi Ideology
Nazi official Hans Frank said it best by lamenting that empires built on democracy last for ages, but empires built on hate and violence are always short-lived.
The Nazis proved that maxim true by racially, politically and militarily setting themselves apart from the rest of humanity, which bred a world full of enemies that would have their revenge. Thus the Nazis' racist policies gave them the false impression that they were superior to everyone else, which set them up for defeat. By believing the Slavs were subhuman, he alienated potential allies, who first welcomed the Germans as liberators. By believing that the Russians were subhuman, they underestimated an enemy that could have very well defeated them without Western
help.
9. Failure To Take Advantage Of Nazi Technology
The Nazis had access to some of the most advanced weaponry in the world, but never made full use of it. They had the world's first guided missles, the V-1 & V-2 rockets, but Hitler only wanted to use them to terrorize London. They had the world's first jets, like the Me-262, but Hitler wanted to use them as bombers and not the superior fighters they were. They had the scientists who could have made a German atomic bomb, but it never happened. Time and time again the Germans seemed to have many military advantages (like their late-war assault rifle which the Soviets copied with their AK-47) but they either used them too late or in a wasteful manner.
10. Failure To Utilize Their Few Allies Properly