Myths of World War II

Myths of World War II

Hitler was good for German economy

He spent a lot. Then aggressive foreign policy yielded plunder and slave labor from conquered nations. Same policy led to unwinnable two-front war. During war Germany failed to fully mobilize economy until too late.

Fall of France

Myth that individual French soldiers fought poorly, that the Maginot Line was a terrible idea.

Maginot line was never meant to be the entire defense. It was supposed to conserve manpower at the most likely point of conflict so that this force could be used elsewhere. The Allies squandered their best formations sending them racing northwards to grab large pieces of Belgium and link up with the Dutch. When the panzers broke through the Ardennes, the classic response would have been an attack at the base of the salient with the mobile reserve. Churchill asked for this, "Ou est le mass de maneuvre?" The reply was, "Aucune." (There is none.)

More evidence of French tenacity can be found after Dunkirk when they inflicted substantial casualties on the Germans even when fighting at a disadvantage.

German tanks were superior

Early in the war the Panzers had better radios, command, and organization, but did not significantly outclass French and British tanks.

Mid to late war German tanks generally had better armor and guns, but were unreliable and broke down a lot. They also had terrible fuel economy, which exacerbated Germany's critical fuel shortage.

The Russian T-34 had a good suspension and mobility with modest weight and wide tracks. The American Sherman had similar mobility and both were mass produced and deployed in large numbers.

Tank vs. tank battles were infrequent. The myth that it would take many Shermans to take out a Tiger was irrelevant because that's not how they usually fought. Germans wasted resources trying to build supertanks like the Tiger II. Allies also had Sherman Firefly variant with upgraded gun that could more effectively fight Tiger.

Allied Shermans and T-34s were often available to support infantry when no German tanks could be found on the battlefield. They also enjoyed air support that could take out German tanks directly, or disable their support vehicles (fuel and ammunition trucks, infantry support, towing vehicles, trains etc.)

Calais vs. Normandy

Myth is that Calais is a better landing spot because it is closer to England but that the Allies picked Normandy because it was more lightly defended.

Fact is Churchill and others knew that most of the British ports faced south and were oriented towards Normandy. The air travel time to Calais was a few minutes faster but made a negligible difference.

Falaise Pocket

Myth is the Falaise pocket was a big missed opportunity. Had the British and Canadians attacked more aggressively from the north and had Bradley attacked farther from the south it would have closed and captured more Germans.

In reality, the encirclement was much wider than Falaise. Bradley sent Patton's third army and the free French ahead to Paris and they worked their way down the Seine. Almost all of the German heavy equipment was trapped west of the river. Montgomery's attacks at the British end of the pocket were pointless and only encouraged the Germans to try to retreat faster, which was the opposite of what was needed.

Eastern Front vs. Western Front

Myth is that the Soviet Union carried the Allies, that the Western Allies didn't do as much

Fact is it was a team effort. British and American navy and air forces were contributors. Soviet Union lost many men in hopeless cauldron battles that did little to further the Allied war effort. Germans lost bulk of planes, subs, and ships in the west. American trucks and other aid gave Soviets critical advantages. Soviets did not enter war against Japan until very close to the end.

Market Garden

Market Garden was a "bridge too far".

The specific bridge in question: Arnhem.

No. The whole point was to get across the Rhine and into open tank country in northern Germany.

Dueling scars

Many German officers were scarred from academic fencing, not battle. This includes Otto Skorzeny, the war criminal who rescued Mussolini.

See also

• Myths of World War I