Who Could Have Won WWII?

[Raellus]

Aspqrz, I can't tell if you're just trolling us here or if you really believe what you're asserting. If this is a troll, bravo- you suckered me right in. However, assuming that you are being sincere...

Originally Posted by aspqrz

The Germans had no way of defeating the Commonwealth ... no, their U-Boat Campaign didn't ever manage it, either, and it is wishful thinking to believe it could have ... the Commonwealth could not easily have defeated the Germans, either, however, as I noted, on a historical basis, the UK has taken on powers as strong as she is/was and defeated them even if it took decades.

Perhaps, if the Axis Powers just sat still and left the UK alone to do it, sure. When did GB test its first nuclear weapons? 1952. That's 13 years after the war [in Europe] started; 7 years after it ended. Could it have developed, tested, and deployed its own nuclear weapon/s under the constant pressure of a partial naval blockade and constant air and V-weapon attacks?

You also conveniently ignore the fact that UK had lost almost all of its East Asian empire by 1942 and did not have the means to both get it back and hold off the Germans at the same time. Without the Americans, could the British have defeated the Axis in the ETO and recovered its East Asian real estate?

As for your second point, past success does not guarantee future results. If so, every invasion of GB after the Norman Conquest would have succeeded.

I've read extensively on WWII, as I suspect you have too. I have never come across a single analysis of the war that even attempted to assert that the British Commonwealth could have won WWII on its own. Even noted British WWII historians like John Keegan, Max Hastings, and Antony Beevor concede that the UK could not have won the war without direct American intervention.

If your point is that the Commonwealth could have prevented its defeat without American help, then I concede the possibility. If you are arguing that the Commonwealth could have defeated the Axis Powers without American help...

I suppose we will have to agree to disagree.