You’ve written about the “first campaigns” of the war — Poland and the Phoney War. Norway seems to sit at the hinge point: it gave Hitler both iron ore and naval bases, which in turn made the Battle of the Atlantic deadlier. Do you see Norway as the campaign that made the U-boat war possible?
The Arctic convoys had to run under the shadow of occupied Norway — U-boats, the Tirpitz, Luftwaffe torpedo bombers. Do you think this theatre is the great overlooked strategic struggle of the war?
Churchill famously called Norway a “strategic distraction,” yet he poured resources into raids, commando operations, and tying down German troops there. Was Churchill right — did holding Norway become a kind of slow-motion Allied victory?
Could the Arctic convoys have survived at all if Norway had stayed neutral? Or would Germany simply have rolled over it later, once the iron-ore issue and U-boat bases became critical?
I am sorry for my own personal obsessions running rampant in the questions section, but one last one: Do you think Hitler over-committed to Norway — turning it into a fortress that drained German manpower that might have been decisive on the Eastern Front?
The last 15 years have seen the last of the war generation passing away. Do you think WWII memory is at risk of becoming too mythologized — too much “good war” narrative — as the last veterans pass away? Or... do we see the war becoming relativized into oblivion?
Are there lessons from Germay''s use of U boats and the British defence against them that could applied to the potential war between the US and China over Taiwan? Specifically, the historian Sarah Paine has mentioned that China will need to act quickly once it starts its invasion because the US and allies will attempt to blockade the Chinese from getting critical resources such as oil/gas and other imports in order to thwart the Chinese.
Can you explain the economic relationship between Germany and the Soviet Union? Is it true that the Soviet Union fed the German war machine prior to 1941 and if it wasn’t for the Soviets, the British blockade would have worked in preventing the war?
I heard that a German U-boat got discovered as a captain flushed the loo wrong causing sewage to return inside and force the crew to the surface near the British coast. Is this true and are there other ridiculous discovery/destruction stories of U-boats?
The Nazis getting nukes first has been a sci-fi premise, but other "bad guy" nations have since gotten that technological power, despite all the prohibitions and preventive efforts. Give us a glimpse at the history of now, from the future where all the bad guys have achieved and unleashed A.G.I. systems.
Einstein wrote, "WW4 will be fought with stick and stones" - how accurate do find this quip to be, given your awareness of how technological powers have been put to primary use in regional conflicts which have only increased in range and devastation, and the immense powers of A.I. systems (one actually called Skynet, and "Colossus - The Forbin Project" comes to mind).
You’ve written about the “first campaigns” of the war — Poland and the Phoney War. Norway seems to sit at the hinge point: it gave Hitler both iron ore and naval bases, which in turn made the Battle of the Atlantic deadlier. Do you see Norway as the campaign that made the U-boat war possible?
The Arctic convoys had to run under the shadow of occupied Norway — U-boats, the Tirpitz, Luftwaffe torpedo bombers. Do you think this theatre is the great overlooked strategic struggle of the war?
Churchill famously called Norway a “strategic distraction,” yet he poured resources into raids, commando operations, and tying down German troops there. Was Churchill right — did holding Norway become a kind of slow-motion Allied victory?
Could the Arctic convoys have survived at all if Norway had stayed neutral? Or would Germany simply have rolled over it later, once the iron-ore issue and U-boat bases became critical?
I am sorry for my own personal obsessions running rampant in the questions section, but one last one: Do you think Hitler over-committed to Norway — turning it into a fortress that drained German manpower that might have been decisive on the Eastern Front?
The last 15 years have seen the last of the war generation passing away. Do you think WWII memory is at risk of becoming too mythologized — too much “good war” narrative — as the last veterans pass away? Or... do we see the war becoming relativized into oblivion?
How would you say The Kriegsmarine was influenced by Clausewitz and what did it ignore of his doctrines?
Are there lessons from Germay''s use of U boats and the British defence against them that could applied to the potential war between the US and China over Taiwan? Specifically, the historian Sarah Paine has mentioned that China will need to act quickly once it starts its invasion because the US and allies will attempt to blockade the Chinese from getting critical resources such as oil/gas and other imports in order to thwart the Chinese.
For what reason did the German high command never realise that the enigma code had been cracked?
Can you explain the economic relationship between Germany and the Soviet Union? Is it true that the Soviet Union fed the German war machine prior to 1941 and if it wasn’t for the Soviets, the British blockade would have worked in preventing the war?
Was the outcome of WW2 a total betrayal of Poland? After all it was why we engaged in the first place?
Did we? Or was it that we did not want a powerful European state which couldn't be trusted to stick to its agreements?
I'd be interested to know how close the Germans got to success. Hopefully, that will come up in the main part of the interview.
Did the Nazi high command consider collaborating in weaponry technology exchanges with their pact allies and, if so, to what extent did this occur?
How do you think a large increase in U-boats over battleships like Bismarck and Tirpitz would have affected the effectiveness of the Kriegsmarine?
I heard that a German U-boat got discovered as a captain flushed the loo wrong causing sewage to return inside and force the crew to the surface near the British coast. Is this true and are there other ridiculous discovery/destruction stories of U-boats?
The Nazis getting nukes first has been a sci-fi premise, but other "bad guy" nations have since gotten that technological power, despite all the prohibitions and preventive efforts. Give us a glimpse at the history of now, from the future where all the bad guys have achieved and unleashed A.G.I. systems.
Einstein wrote, "WW4 will be fought with stick and stones" - how accurate do find this quip to be, given your awareness of how technological powers have been put to primary use in regional conflicts which have only increased in range and devastation, and the immense powers of A.I. systems (one actually called Skynet, and "Colossus - The Forbin Project" comes to mind).
Were there psychological filters for members of U boat crews? Was being assigned to a U boat seen as high status or a death sentence?