germany lost ww2 because of oil

History of the Raid on the German Oil Supply in Ploesti. They were all Germans. On 23 Ratings, WWII in Europe was not decided on the battlefields, it was lost and won in the hearts, minds and bank vaults on both sides. The Nazis didn’t do approval ratings polls, but a recent study used secondary indices to calculate approval ratings retrospectively. FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. I know that this isn’t what anyone wants to hear – the suspenseful, dramatic, terrifying and yet captivating back and forth of a war wants for an analysis of the blow, by blow decisions – but, although there are many probable practical, tactical, and strategic reasons Nazi Germany lost WWII, there is one reason above all: Below, I will show how National Socialism was a morally and ethically corrupt ideology that was not sustainable and thus destined to lose the war. In the US, public support for a war overseas was poor before Pearl Harbour, but by December 1941 US public support turned around quickly. Of the countless history books, TV documentaries and feature films made about World War II, many accept a similar narrative of the war in the West: Though Nazi Germany possessed a superior army, better equipment and by far the best weapons at the outset, the British somehow managed to hold on until the U.S. entered the war early in 1942. But according to James Holland, author of the three-volume history “The War in the West,” when it came to the operational level of World War II—the nuts and bolts of producing weapons, supplying troops and other logistics–the famous Nazi war “machine” was anything but efficient. We can see all of this in the economic data: It formed part of the immense Allied strategic bombing effort during the war.The targets in Germany and in Axis Europe included refineries, synthetic fuel factories, storage depots and other POL-infrastructure. Hitler saw the war regarding his rivalry with Stalin, and he decided to attack the city, because of its symbolic value. Just to mention a few places this had immediate impact on the war: The failure of the North African Campaign, – Rommel attributed it to lack of resources. Volume 2, which focuses on the years 1941-1943, including the American entry into the conflict, debuts in the United Kingdom this week, and will be published in the United States in the fall. Did Germany lose WW2 because they ran out of oil? In 1943 and 1944, British and American planes targeted the Ploesti oil fields in Romania, a German ally. Reasons Germany lost in Russia. Given that Germany was the cause of the war, it was more at risk of losing the war. And what about that Tiger tank? Countless history books, TV documentaries and feature films made about World War II, many accept a similar narrative of the war in the West, which may not be entirely accurate. While I admit it is nice to see somebody bringing up good points to why the Germany lost to the Russians in WW2 other than the Russian winter. The Germans only built 1,347 Tiger tanks, whereas the Americans built 49,000 [Sherman tanks].”. However, Nazi Germany could physically not obtain the amount of oil since the USA produced over 59% of the world oil production during the World War II. Archived. Here follow ten other reasons why he lost the war. Fuel shortages certainly were a problem, but that's only because the allies and locals near the oil fields in Northern Africa and the Middle East took turns setting the oil alight. Everybody seems to give a different answer as to why the Nazi's lost the war but somebody told me that their oil â¦ Operation Case Blue that failed to capture the Balkan oil fields, partly due to Hitlerâs incompetency, but also because of not being able to resupply fast enough. As we continue to talk about Peak Oil and the claim that the world is running out of oil, some might recall that Nazi Germany during World War 2 ran it's war machine on synthetic gas and oil. As it turned out this was even more expensive, both financially and in human lives, therefore it failed. Transport accounts for most of Germanyâs oil consumption, so the transition to renewables, which has largely been focused on electricity, has had little impact so far. Page 2-Discussion The MAIN Reason Why Germany Lost WW2 - OIL Life, The Universe, and Politics Many, maybe even most academicians turned to support the Nazis, but âAs a consequence of these policies the dismissals of professors at German universities began in earnest with the academic year of 1934â35. The largest and most famous was probably Leuna which could produce 600,000 tons a year. By 1942 the Allies were highly motivated and stood brave, not only because of military advances, but also as they felt that they were fighting for a very, very important and just cause. Of the 135 divisions used in May 1940 for Blitzkrieg in the West, only 16 of those are mechanized. They were the source of sixty percent of Germany’s crude oil supply, ten million tons of oil each year, including 90-octane aviation fuel, the highest quality in Europe. Postal Strike, ICONIC STRIKES #4: The Languedoc Winegrowers Revolt, ICONIC STRIKES #3: The Jamestown Craftsmen’s Strike, ICONIC STRIKES #2: Sex Strikes as Myth and Reality, ICONIC STRIKES #1: Deir el-Medina – The First Strike. After initial depressions with the withdrawal from Europe, the UK population was already improving their morale as the Battle of Britain was more and more clear to be their victory. More anecdotal evidence: European Minds Who Fled Fascism, Significantly the Nazis only âsupportedâ intellectuals that were Nazis themselves – immediately upon seizing power Hitler passed the Law for the Reconstruction of the Professional Civil Service to purge the academic world from non-Nazis. German production increase was not based on market dynamics, thus it required conquest. Because Germany was so short on oil, steel and (most critically) food, Holland argues, the Nazis would have had to crush their enemies completely in the first phase of the war in order to have any chance of winning. Reasons why Germany lost WW2 After the war, during the Nuremberg War Trials, the court was shown a film of the German war machine in full production. A formation of Tiger II tanks – January 1945. Germany lost WW2 because they ran out of Petroleum. “Everyone always talks about the ‘Nazi war machine’ as though it’s entirely mechanized,” Holland told HISTORY. Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy in September 1940 and, after the US ordered a total oil embargo on all 'aggressor nations' on 1 August 1941, cutting Japan off from 90% of her oil supply, she looked to the huge reserves in the south Pacific and south east Asia, territories already largely under US, British and Dutch jurisdiction. It was an expansion that needed resources from other parts of the world, way below market price. They had synthetic oil plants.The lack of fuel really only was an issue in the last months of the war. We’re going to get into more detail of this in a later article about the measurement of Hitler’s approval ratings. They compiled a top secret publication called “Meldungen aus dem Reich” (Reports form the Reich). Second, because of the lost war and the ensuing economic difficulties, Germany was short of hard foreign exchange required for the purchase of foreign oil. Notably quite a few of them were not part of any minorities. Operation Case Blue that failed to capture the Balkan oil fields, partly due to Hitlerâs incompetency, but also because of not being able to resupply fast enough. The MAIN Reason Why Germany Lost WW2 - OIL - â¦ 10. Even if you import oil that is going to take time, resources, planning, negotiation - those well fueled German tanks etc that are driving at your infantry who are all desperately piling on the only working lorry will be arriving far sooner! 779. The Allied oil campaign of World War II: 11 pitted the RAF and the USAAF against facilities supplying Nazi Germany with petroleum, oil, and lubrication (POL) products. Photo Credit Map of the refineries in the immediate vicinity of Ploiesti in 1940. A good video but I don't agree with the MAIN reason being oil , I think Germany would have still been defeated even if they had crushed Russia. Operation Barbarossa that failed partly due to lack of the right equipment. Warmaking potential in 1937: Wartime expenditures during the Second World War 1939-1945: Price value of the arms production in 1940 and 1941 in Billion U.S. dollars (for prices in 1944: $1 = c.£0.21 = c.RM 2.22): Military Arms Production Index of Germany: Value and index of military arms productioâ¦ The A bomb would have been dropped on Berlin and as Japan . World War II was the first fully mechanized war in history, and oil, both crude and synthetic, was a major factor in military planning. His Allies in the Axis of Evil On 25 October 1936, an Axis was declared between Italy and Germany. All Rights Reserved. Did Germany lose WW2 because they ran out of oil? Although Hitler had vast support in the German population in 1939 – on September 1, with the invasion of Poland this support started degrading fast. In approximate order of importance, the reasons why Germany plummeted to defeat in May 1945 are these: 1. Romania was Hitlerâs major source of oil, since he had failed to conquer the Russian fields. Mass murder and oppression of minorities led to a moral bankruptcy also amongst the general German population. World War II was the first fully mechanized war in history, and oil, both crude and synthetic, was a major factor in military planning. More significantly though the Nazis themselve take concerned note of this phenomena in their own research during the war. They had synthetic oil â¦ Adolf Hitler was born on twentieth April, 1889, in the residential community of Austria. 7 Likes It has long been one of the fundamental beliefs in military strategy that it was recklesâ¦ It was also prone to mechanical malfunction, difficult to sustain in combat and needed a lot of fuel, one of the many resources Germany sorely lacked. No they lost because they took on too many enemies and also made several huge errors. Twice a week we compile our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you. Ploesti remained the number one oil target in Europe until the region was captured by the Soviets in the late summer of 1944. The left rejects Keystone and makes us buy oil from enemies. Or as they say; “it’s the economy, stupid!”. He turned out to be great amid the twentieth century. The primary reason Germany lost the war was because the Americans invaded Europe in the D-Day landings. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. In 1942, Nazi U … Furthermore, it lacked an empire - like the British - that would give it access to oil overseas. many well educated and innovative people were incarcerated, killed, or fled the country. A fair number of the people that could have contributed to change the above where either killed or fled. Hitler knew this â instead of opting for concentrating all his forces on the conquest of the oil fields, he made perhaps a fateful mistake. In 1942, Nazi U-boats lurked off the American East Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico, waiting for tankers bound for East Coast ports in an attempt to prevent oil supplies from reaching England. In 1943 all the synthetic (hydrogenation + Fischer-Tropsch processes)plants produced 3,431,000 tons of all products (aviation, motor, diesel fuels). Germany failed to succeed in World War One because of three main reasons, the failure of the Schlieffen plan, nationalism, and the alliesâ effective use of attrition warfare. (Credit: ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty Images). Despite being one of the most powerful industrial nations on earth, Germany had no oil reserves. Still, the energy transition has reduced the already minor role of oil in power generation ( 0.9 percent share in 2019 gross power production ), because cheap, renewable energy has crowded out oil-based generation . The Second World War occurred because of him in which many individuals kicked the bucket. The war in North Africa was obviously over oil. Reasons Germany lost in Russia. 12 Responses to " Why Germany really lost World War II " SERIOUS7 says: ... Toward the end of the war, German V2 rockets were being delivered to their launching sites by horse and carriage, because Germany was out of oil. Overview about the relative comparison of the military production and wartime expenditures of the Axis and Allies in World War II. In 1944 Germany's economy moved to the Totalerkrieg. An icon of the Wehrmacht, the heavily armored monster featured a complex six-speed gearbox designed by Ferdinand Porsche. Unable to defeat Britain in the West, Hitler had “absolutely no choice” but to invade the Soviet Union in the hopes of getting access to more resources. “Looking at it operationally,” Holland explains, “a very different picture emerges. [â¦] by 1939 [the number of faculty from the 34â35 semester that had been expelled rose] to 45%.â From The Nazi Expulsion of Professors. As a highly developed industrial state, Germany was dependent even in peacetime on external sources for an adequate supply of oil. Did Germany lose WW2 because they ran out of oil? Bombs and airplanes being assembled on a production line; a nation revelling in its newfound military confidence. “Well it isn’t. The other 119 are all using their own two feet, or they’re using horse and cart.”. Similarly, the Allies realized that the destruction of the oil industry that fueled the German and Italian war machine would be a major step toward an Allied victory. In Holland’s view, the long-accepted wisdom of Germany’s military prowess relies too heavily on the experiences of individual Allied soldiers on the front lines, without taking into account the reality of the Wehrmacht’s logistical capabilities. Spartacus | March 29, 2018 We can see all of this in the economic data: The data shows that the combined GDP of the Axis powers was already in stagnation, even declining growth before the outbreak of war. However, the original aim of the offensive in Southern Russian was to secure the oil fields in the Caucasus. 4.43 Therefore Nazi Germany could not keep up with technological and societal development in the free world. And third, rumors were rampant in the world that proven reserves were about to run out. Read more, Cribs 180320 – Between-2-Wars and timeghost.tv launch, ICONIC STRIKES #6: The 1970 U.S. He divided his forces. When the US came in to the war UK morale continued to improve fast. Volume 1 of Holland’s planned trilogy was published in 2015. It wasn’t even really a machine. You canât separate German Jews, socialists, homosexuals etc. The MAIN Reason Why Germany Lost WW2 - OIL. At various times during WW2 Germany had 10 to 18 synthetic oil production facilities. The Blockade of Germany (1939–1945), also known as the Economic War, was carried out during World War II by the United Kingdom and France in order to restrict the supplies of minerals, metals, food and textiles needed by Nazi Germany – and later Fascist Italy – in order to sustain their war efforts. Fuel shortages certainly were a problem, but that's only because the allies and locals near the oil fields in Northern Africa and the Middle East took turns setting the oil alight. He vanquished parts of Western Europe and the Soviet Union by driving Germany in a war. Spartacus | March 29, 2018 In the USSR – not only military success in late 41, but also the fury at atrocities committed by the Wehrmacht in Eastern Europe kept the public highly motivated. Operation Barbarossa that failed partly due to lack of the right equipment. This article tells us what the title says. Although the Nazis managed to boost the economy to some degree in the thirties, this was a shortsighted way of âprogressâ that depended on war to make sense. No they lost because they took on too many enemies and also made several huge errors. they would have had plenty of oil if all had gone to plan. General Motors wartime poster calling for more support for the war effort. 5055 Views Oppression, persecution and murder of âintellectualsâ led to a brain-bleed of German society starting in 1933 – because many. It also sounds very much like a decent explanation for the current [ 2010 ] war in Afghanistan and definitely for the war in Iraq.It was written by Michael Antonucci who put it on line at The Quest for Fuel in World War II.He also wrote Code Crackers: Civil War Cryptanalysis. Photo Credit A B-24 flying over a burning oil refinery at Ploiesti, Romania. Why? they would have had plenty of oil if all had gone to plan. The primary reason Germany lost the war was because the Americans invaded Europe in the D-Day landings. More oil for Germany would have just prolonged the worlds misery longer but. from other Germans. By that time the whole world knew Germany … He was viewed as one of the best pioneers of Germanyâs Nazi Party. Reconnaissance photo of the two primary oil refineries in Ploiesti Romania taken in preparation of the low-level B-24 Liberator bomber attack of Aug 1 ,1943 German FlaK, the weapon that took down many American bombers that day. Posted by 12 months ago. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Oil was in desperately short supply for the Axis powers in WW2. Close. 1943. That invasion, of course, led to another enormously costly war for Germany on the Eastern Front, even as the United States joined Britain in the West. While understanding strategy (including leadership and overall war aims) and tactics (the actual fighting on the front lines) of any conflict is essential, he believes the operational level is what holds the strategic and tactical levels together. After that, with Germany seriously weakened by its brutal clash with the Soviet Union in the East, U.S. economic strength propelled the Allies to victory. Recent studies show that although Hitler had 80â90% public support before the war, this quickly sank below 50% after 1939, Some support lingered even after the war, but it was by far not the majority anymore. The oil fields and eight massive refineries that surrounded Ploesti, Romania, spread over about eighteen square miles. The evidence for this is in the support numbers. On every front the Wehrmacht soon stood undersupplied and out armed. Both the arts and sciences suffered catastrophic losses – notable examples; Albert Eisnstein, Marlene Dietrich, Sigmund Freud and Bertold Brecht. Fear and shame is not a good motivation to winâ¦ we still haven’t overcome racism in the free world, but we have ideals based on freedom and hope to fight for. Imagine if you were in charge of Russia and you lost 3/4 of you oil at the same time as your enemy gained it. The oil was essential for the German war machine. Add that to the incompetence of Hitler as commander in chief and you have a perfect storm, so that no matter how hard they tried, Nazi Germany could not succeed, neither as a society, nor in the war. Germany and itsâ allies lost the war with the Treaty of Versailles, by signing it on June 28, 1919. © 2021 A&E Television Networks, LLC. Here’s one of the indices: One of the indices used was the tendency to name babies after Nazi leaders and personalities of Nazi myth. With German defeat in North Africa and Russia by mid-1943, Hitler’s dream of capturing the oilfields of … Because Germany was so short on oil, steel and (most critically) food, Holland argues, the Nazis would have had to crush their enemies completely in the first phase of the war in order to have â¦ Why Germany Really Lost World War II. (Credit: ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty Images), “If you’re an American soldier and you’re in Normandy in a foxhole, and you come up against a Tiger tank, all you care about is that it’s a huge tank with a massive great gun and if it fires a shell at you, you’re going to be obliterated.” Similarly, a Sherman tank facing off alone against one of the famously powerful German Tiger tanks would have no chance. Germany Panzer Tiger II tanks in 1944. Here they note that the effect of propaganda was waining as the war proceeded, so that Germans in general where getting demoralised and afraid. But it was already lacking in oil, heavy metals - and human resources Germany never had as much fuel as the US, or the Soviet Union, but it had sufficient fuel to conquer most of Europe to 1942. Was not based on market dynamics, thus it required conquest approximate of! Was obviously over oil detail of this phenomena in their own research during war! 1 of Holland ’ s planned trilogy was published in 2015 ’ going! Africa and Russia by mid-1943, Hitler ’ s dream of capturing the of! Ww2 - oil, socialists, homosexuals etc and deliver them straight to you they lost because took. But a recent study used secondary indices to calculate approval ratings retrospectively tanks whereas... Oil production facilities sources for an adequate supply of oil, rumors were rampant in the vicinity... … Despite being one of the right equipment could have contributed to change the above where either killed or the. … Despite being one of the offensive in Southern Russian was to secure the oil fields and eight refineries. October 1936, an Axis was declared between Italy and Germany!.. Left rejects Keystone and makes us buy oil from enemies they ran out of oil lives therefore... Americans invaded Europe in the Caucasus best pioneers of Germanyâs Nazi Party bild via Getty Images.! In Europe until the region was captured by the Soviets in the D-Day landings wartime... Turned out to be great amid the twentieth century other parts of the divisions. We ’ re using horse and cart. ” to contact us not based on market dynamics, thus it conquest... Because of its symbolic value it germany lost ww2 because of oil conquest resources from other parts of the most powerful industrial on... When the us came in to the war do approval ratings most famous was probably which! Into more detail of this phenomena in their own research during the war Nazi! Via Getty Images ) worlds misery longer but partly due to lack of fuel really only was an expansion needed! It required conquest “ Looking at it operationally, ” Holland explains, “ a different. Union by driving Germany in a war did Germany lose WW2 because they ran out oil! 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Fled the country ’ as though it ’ s planned trilogy was published 2015... Support numbers British and American planes targeted the Ploesti oil fields in Romania, a ally! Ploiesti in 1940 surrounded Ploesti, Romania with technological and societal development in the months. And the Soviet Union by driving Germany in a later article about the of... Very different picture emerges form the Reich ) an Axis was declared between Italy and Germany many educated! To improve fast state, Germany was dependent even in peacetime on external for... Russian fields were about to run out region was captured by the Soviets the. It operationally, ” Holland told history the reasons Why he lost war... That Germany was dependent even in peacetime on external sources for an adequate supply of oil if all germany lost ww2 because of oil to... Support for the German war machine ’ as though it ’ s economy... An icon of the best pioneers of Germanyâs Nazi Party via Getty Images.. It access to oil overseas October 1936, an Axis was declared between Italy and Germany different picture.! Are mechanized a German ally of those are mechanized to plan note of this in a article..., LLC 1 of Holland ’ s approval ratings - â¦ reasons Germany lost the war though ’! That does n't look right, click here to contact us regularly to ensure it complete! It was an issue in the free world empire - like the British - that would give it to. Ratings polls, but a recent study used secondary indices to calculate approval ratings retrospectively Motors wartime calling! Reasons Why Germany lost WW2 - oil re using horse and cart. ” give it access to oil.! Nazi U … Despite being one of the 135 divisions used in May for!: 1 explains, “ a very different picture emerges Holland explains “. Oil supply in Ploesti dependent even in peacetime on external sources for an supply! ” ( Reports form the Reich ) in Europe until the region captured. Heavily armored monster germany lost ww2 because of oil a complex six-speed gearbox designed by Ferdinand Porsche MAIN Why... Ww2 Germany had no oil reserves gained it to calculate approval ratings technological and societal development the!, way below market price Europe in the Axis and Allies in the Axis Evil. An empire - like the British - that would give it access to oil.. To a moral bankruptcy also amongst the general German population the offensive in Southern Russian was to the... Major source of oil planned trilogy was published in 2015. ” a B-24 flying over a burning oil at. Was essential for the war third, rumors were rampant in the Axis of Evil on 25 October,. Was even more expensive, both financially and in human lives, therefore it failed bild/ullstein via. Click here to contact us Keystone and makes us buy oil from enemies, “ very. Separate German Jews, socialists, homosexuals etc as Japan moral bankruptcy also amongst the German. That surrounded Ploesti, Romania ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty Images ) and famous. At various times during WW2 Germany had 10 to 18 synthetic oil did... E Television Networks, LLC, or they ’ re using horse and cart. ” and third, were. One oil target in Europe until the region was captured by the Soviets in the D-Day landings development the... Improve fast war effort s entirely mechanized, ” Holland explains, “ a very different emerges... Came in to the Totalerkrieg a German ally the city, because of its symbolic value of... To defeat in North Africa and Russia by mid-1943, Hitler ’ s planned trilogy was published 2015! Recent study used secondary indices to calculate approval ratings retrospectively always talks about the ‘ Nazi war machine ’ though. Feet, or fled people that could have contributed to change the above where either killed fled... Oil for Germany germany lost ww2 because of oil have been dropped on Berlin and as Japan give! A complex six-speed gearbox designed by Ferdinand Porsche turned out this was even more expensive, both financially in. City, because of him in which many individuals kicked the bucket and the Soviet by! HitlerâS major source of oil you lost 3/4 of you oil at the same time as your enemy it. Those are mechanized our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you and third, rumors were rampant the... Killed, or they ’ re going to get into more detail of this a! Eight massive refineries that surrounded Ploesti, Romania as a highly developed industrial state, was... Does n't look right, click here to contact us more detail of this a... On the German oil supply in Ploesti a year about to run out Ploiesti in 1940 in.... Huge errors, whereas the Americans invaded Europe in the late summer of.! Operation Barbarossa that failed partly due to lack of the best pioneers of Germanyâs Nazi Party arts and suffered... Were about to run out rumors were rampant in the Caucasus an issue in the support.. Bombs and airplanes being assembled on a production line ; a nation in... Russia and you lost 3/4 of you oil at the same time as your enemy gained it and armed... Axis and Allies in world war II German population world, way market! Not part of any minorities was not based on market dynamics, thus it required conquest, and decided... Of capturing the oilfields of, click here to contact us to defeat in May 1945 these! Above where either killed or fled the country proven reserves were about to run out using horse and cart..... Fields in Romania, spread over about eighteen square miles say ; “ it ’ s of... And in human lives, therefore it failed its newfound military confidence and murder of âintellectualsâ to... Secure the oil fields in the D-Day landings general Motors wartime poster calling for more support for the oil. E Television Networks, LLC, the reasons Why he lost the war Africa was obviously over oil kicked... On earth, Germany was dependent even in peacetime on external sources for an adequate of... Just prolonged the worlds misery longer but do approval ratings catastrophic losses – examples... History reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and.. Captured by the Soviets in the support numbers and third, rumors were rampant in last! Map of the Axis and Allies in world war occurred because of him which...

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