The Cause of Dawnfall for Nazi Germany

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A. Plan of Investigation Despite its defeat in World War II, many historians continue to debate the cause of downfall for Nazi Germany and argue that the factor at hand was the key to stopping a surely unstoppable force. While many say that the defeat is due primarily to poor strategy, was the limited development of advanced military technology by Nazi Germany the flaw that led to its defeat in World War II? In this investigation, the overall implications in limited development of technologically advanced weapons that were designed and planned to be massed produced in order to help Germany win the war in Europe will be assessed. This will analyze the potential capabilities of the Germans in the development of these weapons throughout World War II, the limitations placed on these weapon projects that inhibited their production and use during the war, as well as the change in the outcome these weapons could have offered based off of current day information from historians and military strategists. B. Summary of Evidence Artillery and Missiles Throughout the war, new designs and advanced military technology were highly sought after by Hitler to maintain military superiority over the Allies. To utilize the potential of its scientists, Hitler sought out German scientists to create effective missiles to bombard the British and Soviet forces from significant distances. “The first of these developments, the V1 “Buzzbomb” was created in early 1942. This was the first missile capable of hitting targets at long distances such as London and Moscow. However the effectiveness of these missiles was short-lived as methods were developed by the Allies were developed to handle these projectiles.” (Farrell 97) In late 1942, the growth of the r... ... middle of paper ... ...03. Print • Kay, Anthony and Smith, John. German Aircraft of the Second World War: Including Helicopters and Missiles. London. Putnam Aeronautical Books. 1972, Print • McNab, Chris. German Automatic Rifles 1941-45: Gew 41, Gew 43, FG 42 and StG 44. Oxford. Osprey Publishing. 2012. Print • Stevens, Henry. Hitler’s Suppressed and Still-Secret Weapons, Science and Technology. Kempton. Adventures Unlimited Press. 2007. Print • “Wunderwaffe” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 25 May 2013. Web. 20 Jan. 2013 http://en/wikipedia.org/wiki/Wunderwaffe • Rose, Paul Lawrence. Heisenberg and the Nazi Atomic Bomb Project: A Study of German Culture. Berkeley. University of California Press. 1998. Print • Smith, Jerry and Piccard, George. Secrets of the Holy Lance: The Spear of Destiny in History and Legend. Kempton. Adventures Unlimited Press. 2005. Print

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