Quote Originally Posted by TinCow View Post
Except for Poland? The Western Allies included the UK, and the UK had specifically gone to war to protect Poland. While the UK might have theoretically bowed out around the time of Dunkirk, leaving Poland under German occupation, there is no way they would have done so in July of 1944. After Overlord succeeded, an Allied victory was inevitable and the Allies knew it. It was just a question of time and cost. I simply do not see the UK allowing Germany to keep control of Poland in any peace agreement at that point in the war. Since the US would never have made a peace without the UK, I see no way for Germany to get out of the war in July of '44 and keep control of Poland.
The UK's brave stand for Poland was of course before the absolute humiliation of Dunkirk, the Blitz, and being kicked around the desert for years. Louis pretty much made the point that I would have. After 5 years, the British were more than happy to cede Poland to the Russians - one of the original invaders back in '39. I don't think they would have had a problem doing the same with Germany, especially if the nation was under new leadership.

Oh, and Overlord was far from decided in July of '44.


The chance of pulling some kind of German strategic victory out of a July '44 peace is a pipedream and nothing more.
Stranger things have happened. We shouldn't forget how strong the fear of communism was among the Western leadership, especially with Churchill. It is conceivable that if the Germans assassinated Hitler themselves, the emerging leadership could have been seen as a wholly different political animal by the West. And if the West threw their support behind Germany in its new found role as a defender instead of an aggressor, things would get very interesting indeed.