How could WW2 have ended worse for Germany?
How could WW2 have ended worse for Germany? World War II could have ended even worse for Germany in several ways:
Complete Disintegration of Germany:
The Allies could have decided to permanently dissolve Germany as a unified state. Instead of dividing it into East and West Germany, the country could have been broken up into smaller, independent states, effectively removing any chance of reunification and significantly diminishing its geopolitical power.
Worse Territorial Losses:
Beyond the loss of territories like East Prussia, Silesia, and Pomerania, Germany could have faced even more severe dismemberment. For example, the Allies might have stripped more western territories or created buffer states to further diminish Germany’s land and influence.
Permanent Occupation:
Instead of ending occupation after a decade, the Allies could have chosen to permanently occupy and administer Germany, similar to how colonial territories were managed. This would have effectively removed German sovereignty and subjected the country to ongoing external control.
Harsher Economic Penalties:
The reparations imposed after World War I were severe and contributed to the rise of economic hardship and extremism in Germany. Post-World War II, instead of allowing for recovery through the Marshall Plan, the Allies could have imposed even more severe economic sanctions or reparations, preventing any meaningful economic recovery and leading to continued poverty and instability.
Massive Population Transfers and Ethnic Cleansing:
Millions of Germans were expelled from former German territories in Eastern Europe after the war. This could have been far worse if the Allies had decided on even more extensive forced population transfers or other measures to ensure that ethnic Germans were permanently displaced from large regions.
War Crimes Trials Expanded:
Beyond the major Nuremberg Trials, the Allies could have conducted more extensive trials targeting not just Nazi leaders but a broader swath of the German population. If they had implemented a more radical approach, large portions of the military and political elite could have faced imprisonment or execution.
Agricultural and Industrial Dismantling:
Under the Morgenthau Plan, there were proposals to deindustrialize Germany and turn it into an agrarian society. Had this plan been fully implemented, Germany’s industrial base would have been destroyed, resulting in a massive loss of economic capacity and permanently relegating the country to a much lower level of development.
Soviet Expansion to All of Germany:
If the Western Allies had failed to keep the Soviets out of West Germany, the entire country could have ended up under Soviet control, leading to a unified communist German state and potentially an even more repressive regime similar to East Germany but on a larger scale.
Vengeful Civil Unrest or Partitioning by Neighboring Countries:
Neighboring countries, like Poland and France, had deep grievances against Germany. If not for Allied restraint, these countries could have demanded harsher penalties, perhaps even annexing more territory or exacting retribution that could have led to severe humanitarian crises and further destabilization.
Mass Starvation:
Immediately after the war, there was a severe food shortage in Germany. If the Allies had not intervened with food aid and implemented rationing systems, this could have led to widespread famine, resulting in the deaths of millions more civilians.
These scenarios illustrate that, despite the immense suffering Germany experienced at the end of World War II, things could have been far worse if the Allies had taken a more punitive and uncompromising approach to their treatment of the defeated nation.
