Sign up for a 14-day free trial and enjoy all the amazing features MyHeritage has to offer. If you decide to continue your subscription, you’ll get a 50% discount: bit.ly/TheArmchairHistorian_MH CORRECTION: While Pal Teleki was committed to Hungarian neutrality, it should be noted that Miklos Horthy was not - and, in fact, was an avid supporter of Hitler and Fascism. The pressures of Hungary's position and Horthy's fervent desire to establish an autocratic state saw Hungary become a fascist dictatorship on par with Nazi Germany. Sign up for Armchair History TV today! armchairhistory.tv/ Promo code: ARMCHAIRHISTORY for 50% OFF Merchandise available at store.armchairhistory.tv/ Check out the new Armchair History TV Mobile App too! apps.apple.com/us/app/armchair-history-tv/id1514643375 play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=tv.uscreen.armchairhistorytv Discord: discord.gg/zY5jzKp Twitter: twitter.com/ArmchairHist
Hello man I really loved this video thx but I have a good idea: the next video is something like AMERICAN TANKS VS GERMAN TANKS WHO WAS SUPERIOR? I would really love it thx
the germans had such a weird gang of allies that its hard to consider how the Axis survived for more than a year with 3 extremely racist leaders who all claimed their race is better than all others, not to include the tripartite pact as a whole, for example romania.
The Axis was largely an alliance of circumstance, they just shared common enemies (not always) but had pretty much no common goals which would consolidate their cooperation
"no common goals" like the allies then ? Of course not, no. The allies common goal was the destruction of Germany whilst the Axis common goal was the destruction of Russia. Japan would famously betray this goal in April 1941 with it's non-aggression pact which the Russians broke in 1945.
@@enklaev1933 They cooperated more effectively, that's for sure. America's lend lease program kept the Soviet Union in the war, just to make an example. Kruschev himself in his memoirs says the USSR would have probably lost the war without the material aid from its allies. Germany and Japan never cooperated to such an extent.
The axis alliance was a shaky one to say the least. If they would have won, there definitely would have been loads of internal conflicts afterwards between the members and probably a breakup
If the axis had won .. anyone who didn't have Hitler's blessing would have been stamped on hard, very hard .. internal conflicts no .. some sort of distribution of territory - yes .. look at what happened to Romania prior to 1941, Hungary and Bulgaria all got chunks and the Romanians had to suck it up ..
Here are the allies mentioned in this video (with their corresponding timestamps) Italy 2:47 Japan 7:11 Spain 10:46 Hungary 12:25 Romania 15:27 Iraq 19:06 Bulgaria 20:33 Finland 22:56 And please consider typing a reminder, if I am missing one. I will update this comment accordingly. Minor edit here. The allies I am referring to are the ones mentioned inside the video itself. (in the slide transferring bits)
The URSS, but sadly this video is a little bit of red washing. The URSS signed a treaty with the germans, divided Poland, then they asked to join the axis... hitler betrayed stalin.
One of Japans motivations for Joining the Tripartite pact was to get Germany to stop training and equipping the Chinese. Also The Japanese and Russians fought in the Late 1930s and Japan had no interest in fighting them again, lots of losses for little possible reward.
The connections among the Axis powers were strengthened by a full military and political alliance between Germany and Italy and by the Tripartite Pact, one year after Germany’s invasion of Poland and the beginning of World War II. During the war a number of other countries joined the Axis, induced by coercion or promises of territory or protection by the Axis powers. They included Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia (after Czechoslovakia had divided in 1939) in November 1940, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia in March 1941
The URSS asked to join the axis. URSS divided Poland with the nazis. URSS provided resources to the nazis. Maybe it's a mandela effect, but everybody is forgetting this and sayings the communists were enemies of the nazis before hitler betrayed stalin. Weird.
It would of been cool if he talked about iran (Yes I know that they were not officially part of the axis but they overthru their government and the guy who took over was pro axis. Then the British, Australians and Indians from the south. And the Soviets from the north invaded iran)
I really wish there were more documentaries focusing on Italy in world war 2. The Italians are seriously given far to little attention and analysis compared to the other major powers in the war. The Italians were more of a burden than an ally to Germany. But there are so many things that contributed to this that far to few know about. I’d love to learn more about Italian tanks and weapons used in the war. But it is difficult to find docs that address those things.
Italy joining the war is seen as a total mistake. joining even though they were in no shape at all and POSSIBLY had the worst military. they're always ignored in history because again they're seen as a mistake in ww2 and just useless. **Regia Marina** (Royal Navy) - the only one of italy's fighting service that was in modern like standards was but still, it lacked some stuff like decent cover from the *Regia Aeronautica* (air force) **Fiat CR.42" (Falco)** - the Air Force's front line fighter **Macchi C.202** - though, they were ridiculously under-armed and there were only few of them. **Carro Veloce CV-35** - an Italian tankette, saw service almost everywhere the Italians fought in on the war they were proved to be inadequate for modern warfare though. **Carro Armato M11/39** - main battle tank of italy. probably one of the worst tanks in any army to see service. **Cannone da 75/27 modello 06** - a field gun used by italy. ofc there's probably alot more but I'm just writing down the one's i remember. might need this for future references anyway.
@@mrbisshieGermany just didn’t thrive Italy time, Mussolini told Adolf that Italy would not be ready for war, but adolf kept his plans secret and went to war anyway
Actually no, the Germans were not obligated to declare war on the USA as the plans for the endeavor weren't shared with pact-members and was therefore a breach of the treaty. Hitler declared war on his own accord. He didn't have to.
@@DanielL9696 You're very correct about it, but the declaration of war can still be considered unwarranted from Germany. The US hadn't actually done anything other than continue trade with GB to antagonize Germany yet
yeah, and it was incredebly stupid. I doubt the US public, who were very much against war until pearl harbor, would have allowed the US to declare war on Germany when Japan was the big bad guy they were focused on. Would have given Hitler more time if he hadn't. Japan didn't declare war on the USSR either, which saved the USSR btw. Japan didn't want a 2 front war, and Hitler shouldn't have created an extra enemy too. Lucky for us today that he fucked up tho.
A friend of mine has a grandmother who is a Holocaust child survivor (originally from Bratislava). She remembered when she was 12 years old that her mother took a trip to Budapest to warn the Jewish community about the Nazis plan to invade Hungary (she was a member of one of the Slovak Jewish partisan groups). They rebuffed and laughed at her. This was in February 1944.
@@UmQasaann God bless Romania as a NATO and UE member and as an ally of THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA! Regarding that criminal that you call Comrade Nicolae Ceausescu I wish him a really hot accomodation in hell!
Regarding Romania, it should be mentioned that the alliance between the Iron Guard and Antonescu did not last long, and the Iron Guard tried to stage a revolt in early 1941 to take over completely, but they were defeated by the army and by Hitler showing his support for Antonescu. After that, Antonescu rules alone with the army as his only power base. It is also noteworthy that Romania was also forced to cede the Cadrilater to Bulgaria after they were guaranteed their territorial integrity by Germany. And that, after retaking Norther Transylvania from Hungary, the Romanian army was expelled and only the Soviet one occupied Norther Transylvania, as Stalin used that region for blackmailing Romania into installing a communist government.
Also how is was represented the "switching" is ridiculous. After changing team the soviet soldiers became calm. In reality the soviets took advantage to take as many prisoneers of war as they could, until September when the new Romanian governament signed peace with the soviets.
@@tiziogg6350 Exactly, in the short period of time after the coup d'etat of August 23rd 1944 and before the armistice between Romania and the Allies came into effect, the Red Army was still treating us like enemies and were taking lots of Romanian prisoners. Also, the German army was still in Romania and the Romanian army basically needed to avoid both the Germans and the Soviets in their own country...
M. Laser History recently made a great video on Horthy Miklos, the ruler of Hungary during most of WW2. I highly recommend it to those who want to know more about Hungary's situation and motivations leading up to and during the war.
Kingdom without a King, led by a regent who is an Admiral, in a country which no longer has a coastline let alone a navy, led by Reactionary officers like Horthy and Pal Pronay who were trying to live their WW1 days
Spain despite not having entered World War II forced to focus on recovering from a devastating 3 year civil war, sent the notorious Blue Division to the Leningrad Front, being recognized for their brave victory at the Battle of Krasny' Bor despite being massively outnumbered by the Soviets. Franz Halder, Chief of the General Staff of the German Army once said: "If you ever see a soldier, drunk, unshaven and in an unbuttoned tunic, do not rush to arrest him: he is most likely a Spanish hero" The Spanish volunteers were known on the front lines for their kindness by civilians, and for their brutality and unquestioning determination by the Germans, not only to mention that some Spaniards had some standoffs with the SS having seen their atrocities...
I never knew they were known for their kindness by civilians. I just knew that they were brutal and unforgiving when it came to battle. They hardly ever gave mercy to the enemy and never expected any mercy.
you leave out the part where some of the unit refused to leave after being recalled back to Spain, and fought all the way to Berlin. Thought i can’t imagine that lines up with your apparent view that they were just good guys fighting for country
One annoying thing I have is that, the Iberian Pact signed with Portugal also kept Spain out of the war was another big reason Spain refused to go to war against the allies
It was pretty similar. It was a territorial dispute. They thought we were taking their land. We took all of Mexico, and gave them back their current borders. Those in now U.S land were resentful, those in Mexico were happy to not lose their entire nation.
@@spiffygonzales5899 That is an incorrect view of history. I don't know where you pulled that from lol. Santa Anna's governance was harshly criticized after the war and he died of cataracts hated by his people
@@vercot7000 I was talking about the modern u.s with that last statement. We weren't wrong in the Mexican American war. Texas had already established its borders in the Texas revolution, Mexico was basically just trying to maintain as much power as possible with the U.S becoming a rising continental power while the u.s was upholding already determined borders
At 19:01 the guy who salutes the soldiers is Amin al Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Palestine and those aren't Iraqi soldiers, but Bosnian Muslim volunteers from the 13th Waffen SS Mountain Division "Handschar". They fought against Partisans in occupied Yugoslavia, but were very brutal towards local civilian population, mostly Serb. Also the Indepensent State of Croatia fought for Axis, and even sent 10,000 troops to fight in Stalingrad.
He was corrupted to loss his humanity and faith and commit atrocities in name of the fuhrer not God ...... We in Iraq might went to that direction once or twice and we might repeat it:(
@@DeKevers It doesn't really bring happiness to my life tho :( RN im being exploited basically and am stuck sharing the gospel. I want to be playing games right now. I would reconsider if i were you. I can help you understand the biblical texts and can help kickstart your relationship with God. The last 3000 years have been a testimony in favor of God's word (unless you want to believe that all governments and nations are conspiring together )
@@DeKevers Exploited by God. Bought a brand new PC and everything that could go wrong did go wrong. The CPU cooler on it is faulty and now it overheats, so I can't play games. My new headset stops working randomly and it is annoying and hard to play FPS games. I lost my license plus my car is having issues and I keep getting videos in my youtube recommended tab about God and how my time will be burned up. That i need to do something that will last, so now Im stuck ministering to people. it is not fun but in the end it will be worth it. "Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life will keep it for eternal life", "anyone that does not pick up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me" I can help you start a relationship with God.You would be surprised. I'm kind of passionate about it but it is challenging and im tired all the time
Something important that I think was missed in the video - Bulgaria did not declare war on the USSR, it kept neutral relations up until 1944, when on 4th of september the soviets declared war and thus basically installing the Fatherland front as de facto rulers. The Bulgarian government also protected it's jewish population although some anti-semitic laws were passed in an effect to please the Germans.
Bulgarians seem to forget they deported most of the Macedonian Jews to Treblinka. Small gestures here and there do not exempt them from being oppresors and collaborators with the Nazi regime. Even the actual bulgarian governments try to enforce the narrative of being "liberators" in their occupation of Macedonia.
Germany and Bulgaria signed the tripartite pact in 1941. It helped in the war with Greece and declared war on Britain and the United States, Bulgaria was an ally of the Third Reich, and at the end, when the USSR was near the border, it abruptly withdrew from the war As for the Jewish population, despite the fact that the percentage of surviving Jews in Bulgaria was one of the highest among the Axis countries, it is still an incredible number of deaths, out of 40,000 10,000 died, to say that these were several laws to please Germany would be a terrible disrespect to to all the dead
@@MaschenkoAN if you are referring to the 10000 Jews from Macedonia and Trace, then keep in mind that they did not have a Bulgarian passport so there was no way to spin things around legally and deny them to Germany. Keep in mind, Bulgaria was supposedly the occupier, despite the fact that a notable majority of the population identified as Bulgarian. Out of the 10,000-15,000 that were taken only around 100 survived. If you are talking about a different 10000 Jews, I need links and courses.
Good video, although Italy wasn't entirely pro-German until after the Ethiopian War. Germany actually also sent weapons to Ethiopia. There was a lot of disagreement on the question of Austria. Italy supported the Austro-fascist regimes in Austria prior to the Anschluss as they more closely resembled Italian fascism. It wasn't until after the Austrian Nazi party became powerful enough to threaten Schuschnigg and when Germany essentially held a plebiscite at gun point in Austria on the Anschluss that Italy acknowledged German hegemony in Austria. After this Mussolini became a more integrated Axis member. Before this though there was even talk of Mussolini courting the allies.
I'm only just learning this past week that Ethiopia had more impact on WW2 than what I learned in high school in Canada. I'm Ethiopian born and raised, my grandfather and his siblings fought in the 2nd Italo-Ethiopian war (they were conscripted). Anyways, in my Canadian school, they spent like 3 mins on this war and invasion, and just talked over it like it was just another event in the mid 1930s lol.
@@awfan221 than you are luckier than most of us. take the Russians e.g., all they learn in school is how the Soviets singlehandedly brought down the Nazis. all the West did was dithering, produce a bit of military hardware and maybe fight some Japanese somewhere somehow until the Soviets turned their attention to this theatre too
In the southern Karelia, Finland actually went beyond the 1940 Mannerheim line, they didnt defend on the line... And in the North they settled on river Syväri, which goes between lakes Ladoga and Ääninen.
Finland proceeded only to the old pre-war border in Karelian isthmus. They lost lots of land in Winter War 1939-40, and took it back in Continuation War. Finland never went beyond that towards Leningrad and never took part of the siege, despite Germany wanted Finns to do so. Mannerheim Line was inside Finnish borders, not at the border. North of Lake Ladoga Finns did proceed forward to rescue ethnic finnish towns from Stalins ethnic clensing. About 30.000 ethnic Finns in Karelia were killed and thousands more were sent to Gulaks.
What I meant, is that the Finns got to their old Treaty of Tartu border on 1st of september, and continued forward to the Soviet Stalin Line area for a week more. In other words they definetly didn't set on the exact "oldborder" line.
I’ve always been fascinated how despite their ideological similarities how badly the Axis Powers behaved as an alliance while the Western Allies and the Soviets (and the Republic of China) for all their ideological differences got along remarkably well.
@@Compucles hmm you're right on your point but I think OP is making a different point, the Axis as an alliance is not really good at getting along with their military coalition and common goals, they often ignored each other, German and Japan mostly. The Allies had a, paraphrasing OP here, remarkably well relationship in WW2, they complimented and often help each other, with US lend lease, shared British intelligence and Soviet commitment to the war the allies made a good coalition. I think this is OP was making a point. They had a common goal and they played part on their roles without much backstabbing or whining.
That's because Fascism is a naturally selfish and destructive ideology. Lots of Germans lived in Italian South Tyrol and one of Mussolini's biggest fears was that Hitler would invade to annex South Tyrol.
Knowledge you spread out is just astonishing. These kind of videos that explains it not by showing off the fact but even animating it to understand it imaginely have to be shared more and given more attention
You should keep in mind ww2 history writings are one of the most twisted, as its illegal by law to study ww2 in many countries in europe. Only the official version is accepted by law, and questioning it leads to life in prison. So I wouldnt teach this as gospel
The quality of your videos just keeping getting better and better. With this being the third ww2 video in a row, I realize this is one of the view historical topics that RUclips won’t suppress or at least not suppress as hard. I understand why you are doing it, I do not knock you for it at the slightest, I wish you all the best! Anyone who attacks you for it is not a true fan.
Zar Boris did it very smart. He never declared war on the Soviets, which meant they didn't have to pay reparations and didn't have to give up any lands and Bulgaria got to keep southern Dobrudzha
In my opinion,Romania is very underrated.They’ve done a lot of things being under resourced(like Odessa)and they gave Germany most of the oil they needed..
@@derlasercrafterwally4342 Bulgaria had other priorities back there - don't be invaded and we succeded. Bulgaria can't fight 3wars as a mega state. Good we joined to get back Dobruja tho. And you know you can't claim to be better than a country 10 times older than you.
This channel - every single time - manages to explain messy and complicated history and all the swirling driving factors in a clear and understandable way. I see that one of your videos has dropped and I make time, pour myself a cup of tea or and make time for it. Thank you!
Agreed. Gotta give kudos to Turkey. Although western armies were by then demobilised, and most men had no motivation to fight again, Britain,France, Italy and Greece together still had much more resources to work with and Turkey despite being disorganized at the start still managed to secure their country.
A lot of people make fun of Italy during WWII but imagine the devastation and how much more of a struggle it would be if they were as strong as Germany.
Yes if Italy wasn't useless then the Axis would have done better. Just like how if Germany didn't lose they could have won. There is a reason why Britain feared and tried to prevent an Italian-German alliance so much before the war. The Italian navy posed a real threat and very well could have wounded the Royal Navy in 1940, I can't remember which battle it was but basically the Italians were just too timid despite having numerical advantage, and were 2 other Battleships nearby called into the battle it could have been superiority.
Imagine if Italy had good tanks, or Romania for that matter. Or if Japan had oil. Or if Romania had Planes. Or if Bulgaria was anti sementic. Or if Romania had a na- yeah I'm romanian
Gordon Ramsey to Axis military doctrine: "THE FRESHEST DAMN THING IN THE ROOM IS WHAT THE GUY IN THE CORNER IS WATCHING." What the guy's watching: Like, seriously. These videos constantly shatter expectations in the most amazing ways. Good job, Griffin and team.
Had Japan and the Soviet Union found out of the oil and gas deposits in Siberia especially around Sakhalin(which Japan already partially controlled do you think the Northern Strategy would have won over the Southern Strategy leading to the highly possible Soviet collapse? I still think the immediate need for oil after the embargo of 1940 by the U.S. required the already built facilities in Indonesia.
The Japanese also saw a real opportunity in the rubber resources of the East Indies, both for their own use, and as a bargaining tool to get the USA to negotiate. They also needed more food production, and there really was none of that in Siberia...so there were always really big economic drivers to the southern strategy over the northern one. ✌
Well, the Battle of Khalkin Gol would either have to not happen or Japan wins. The embarrassment of that battle shifted the Imperial General Staff in favor of the Southern strategy
There was also the fact that the Navy was always in favor of the Southern route, since the Northern one very much diminished their role, in theory. When you add it all up, the Northern route was always a bit of a longshot...the Southern route always had a larger chance of being chosen. ✌
It really would depend which of the two factions between the Army or the Navy gets its way. The Southern Route was favored because the Northern Route is faltering bad...
@@shawnkucinski4336 Khalkin gol is often overstated as the battle actually had a mixed result. The original soviet claims of Japanese losses exceeded the amount of troops that Japan even deployed into the battle. Khalkin gol's significance is mainly bookmarking the end of the kwantung army's ability to stomp around north east asia relatively uncontested, as typically the soviets would back down during border "skirmishes". Nanshin ron had been extensively discussed as a serious strategy as early as 1931.
The Iraqis were supported by the Italians, not Germans, who threw their support in late after the Mufti and the Golden Square planned the whole thing from an Italian embassy
dear Armchair,I would like to say that you do some of the best content in youtube,and I would like to say that it would be immensely interesting if you covered the Hellenic War of Idepwndence
He won't touch that topic with a 10ft pole. Watch "The Weight of Chains" documentary on RUclips if you are interested in fall of Yugoslavia. Just keep in mind it was made by a Serbian and it's not neutral on the topic, but it's still worth watching.
@@pablobronstein1247 why would he not touch this topic? It's not only the Second World War he talks about. He even included some other wars from the last 3 decades.
@@xh321 Are you a Serb or Croat or something? Don't you know how much the balkans hate each other? No chance he does a vid cause every side will hate him for it
The Quote by Pál Teleki hit me like a wall of bricks. Never knew that's what happened in Hungary as it's it's one of the least covered Axis countries. God damn I can't imagine how he must have felt in those days after having to betray Yugoslavia.
In 1944 when the war seemed to be inevitably lost for Germany, Horthy wanted to secretly negotiate a peace treaty with the Allies behind the Germans back. However, the Germans immediately got word of it, deposed Horthy and put a Fascist puppet government in charge of Hungary, led by Arrow-Cross Party leader Ferenc Szálasi who followed Hitler's orders like a good little puppy. Szálasi's government lasted for six months. In April 1945 the Red Army occupied Hungary and got rid of the Germans and their lackies. Szálasi was later charged with war crimes and executed along with most of his goons. Horthy was exiled to Portugal where he spent his old days, wrote his memoires and died in 1957.
You should do a video about countries on the rest of world who stayed neutral in the face of immense pressure from the both Axis and Allies. Turkey is one example I can think of since I am from there. Nazis could have used land of Turkey to gain access to rich oil resources in the Caucasus and Middle east. Yet, Turkey remained neutral since WW1 had a terrible cost for the nation.
@@triangulum8869 I heard that Switzerland remained neutral in part due to their compulsory military service system. It is not cost-effective for Germany to occupy countries where every citizen can act as a resistance force. They'd rather let them 'occupy' themselves.🤣
@@flatorange4978 Also, the Swiss banks had their money. Meanwhile, Portugal and Sweden managed to remain neutral mainly due to geography. Portugal had the nominally neutral Spain blocking the path of any land invasion while a naval invasion wouldn't have been worth attempting. Meanwhile, Hitler had no reason to go after Sweden once he got all the North Sea access he needed from taking Denmark and Norway.
What is quite strange about the axis is that some of them had a bitter hatred towards eachother. For example, Romania had territorial disputes with both Hungary and Bulgaria yet all 3 of them where allies.
18:22 this is definitely a reference to one of the old COD Series i knew because of the Bullet Symbol and Map. ( the ones with the original Garand Ping's and old model of WW2 Price. ) Its also obvious since old COD is fps and this shows fps too and I honestly wanted to turn this into a joke going "Woah Sneak Peaked WW2 DLC of Fire And Maneuver in FPS!"
You skirted around a large initial ally of Germany, the USSR. Between WW1 and WW2, Germany was developing its tanks and military aircraft in the USSR. This was done to circumvent the terms of the treaty that ended WW1. The USSR also provided Germany with food, oil, and metals so that Germany could invade Poland, France, Denmark, The Netherlands, Norway, and attack the UK. No wonder Stalin didn't think that Germany would attack the Soviet Union, even though he was getting that warning from many sources.
In 1940, Stalin actually sent his foreign minister Vysacheslav Molotov to Berlin to negotiate the Soviet Union joining the Axis. But Hitler didn't trust Stalin, and he wanted Soviet territory for Germany(Lebensraum).
@@santisav2 Finland was clearly mentioned in this video. They were a "co-belligerent" during the Continuation War. However, they fought against Germany in the Lapland War. If the USSR hadn't attacked them in the Winter War, they would have likely been neutral like Sweden.
Very good animation and clear explanation as always, however I've noticed that you put the african campaign as something limiting and delaying operation Barbarossa, I honestly think that the invasion of the USSR was not the main objective of the Axis, the goal which was supposed to be achieved was the complete control of the Mediterraean, which is the reason why Mussolini didn't want Hitler to invade the soviets
The Axis Powers overall, sure, but Germany was hellbent on invading the Soviet Union. Nothing was going to stop them from declaring war; their ideologies despised each other.
Of course: Mussolini`s great dream, as expressed in the name of his ideology, was nothing less than the restoration of the Roman Empire: "Make Italy great again!" - Germany`s single overarching war goal, however, was "autarky", achieved by conquering huge parts of the Soviet Union. On a strategic level, Germany needed Italy as a "tool" to help with GB, and potentially France. So, to summarize: They had shared interests, but conflicting goals.
Yes, France and Belgium had very harsh quotas for the native populations and UK did some messed up things as well but none of them are comparable to what Nazi Germany did so I wouldn't agree with "worse than dictators".
Have you ever wondered why Australia and New Zealand have a white majority population? Maybe because the natives were wiped out of existence. However, this part of history is never focused on because the Britishers were the victors and the history is written by the victors. Germany had similar plans but never succeeded and are remembered for their crimes because they killed white Europeans and not the natives in some far off land who no one cares about. Even though I'll get cancelled for saying this but yes, the UK was indeed worse than both Germany and France. USA and Belgium stand second and third on the list.
@@BigBrotherTheWatcher1984 You're right. not sure if the Germans had plans to replace the native population of their colonies (i hope not) but considering the pan-Germanic ideal of the National Socialists, it is likely that they would unite the Germanic people of Europe and finally unite the Reich with Dantzig and East Prussia, which is something I consider fair.
@@anneslot7013 no... hungary had no real claim about transilvania ... urss ilegaly did a ultimatum on romania for basarabia ... Romania won transilvania after ww1
@@nicolaeadrian7882 You say that Hungary did not have legal restrictions on the territory, but you still blame the USSR, which did the same as Hungary...
Germany: Be my friend or I’ll make you my friend *points at Slovakia* Minor Axis members: Ok Minor Axis members when the Soviets advance into their country: Ight, imma head out
The Finnish populace was heavily against the genocide done by the German national socialists, only reason they were with them was to mainly survive against the Soviets, this is stuff once told to me by my father's uncle.
The Catholic Churches perspective of WWII. Curious about it since Italy was a part of the Axis powers and I don't recall ever learning about it in school.
Complementing Bulgaria, it is worth noting a few facts: 1. Bulgaria never declared war on the USSR, despite all the pressure from Germany. There is a version that this is why Hitler organized the poisoning of Boris III, who died suddenly immediately after returning from Berlin. 2. Bulgaria, despite German pressure, retained its Jewish population. Boris III refused to take repressive measures against any of his citizens. Although this protection did not apply to Jews in the occupied territories. 3. When the Red Army approached the border with Bulgaria, the Bulgarians simply laid down their weapons en masse - there were no military operations on the territory of Bulgaria, the Russians simply marched through the whole country, only occasionally meeting resistance from the Germans who did not have time to leave Bulgaria.
Can we please include that Bulgaria saved 1mil Jews and helped escape. We were bullied into joining the Germans, we had like 10 planes as a whole...we were more of ecnomical allies since we just finished fighting 2 Balkan wars, 1 Word War and were sick and tired...
I don't think calling Germany THE leader of the Axis Powers is appropriate, as it downplays Japan's influence in the war. It's like saying the US or USSR are the one leader of the Allies.
@@wagnercarvalho1854 that’s certainly true in 1939, but in WW2 as a whole? Certainly not. The Soviets outmatched the UK’s contribution in Europe and the Americans as well as the Chinese outmatched their contribution in the Pacific. Also the Comintern was an international organization, not a military coalition.
Fun fact: Ciano and Mussolini were so afraid of Hitler attacking poland that they asked him for 60 million tons of coal and 10 million tons of steel from Germany. It was estimated that to send all those materials to Italy, Hitler would have used 17000 trains.
It’s funny how Axis Belligerents such as Finland, Hungary, and Bulgaria weren’t necessarily full on Pro-Axis countries and were more like Allies of necessity.
It's funny how Finland didn't expel the Jews, and thus when they attacked USSR with Nazi-Germany, 200 000 German soldiers fought together with conscripted Finnish Jews.
@@generalpanzerfaust2387, well, Finland never officially signed the Tripartite Pact (and therefore joined the Axis), while Hungary and Bulgaria did. But those two really only joined the alliance because they wanted lands that their neighbors had seized from them in WW1 (and then some), and thought that German aid would be the best way to do that. Plus, the USSR existed, and both Horthy and Boris felt that allying with Nazi Germany was a far better deal than Soviet Russia.
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CORRECTION: While Pal Teleki was committed to Hungarian neutrality, it should be noted that Miklos Horthy was not - and, in fact, was an avid supporter of Hitler and Fascism. The pressures of Hungary's position and Horthy's fervent desire to establish an autocratic state saw Hungary become a fascist dictatorship on par with Nazi Germany.
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Hello man I really loved this video thx but I have a good idea: the next video is something like AMERICAN TANKS VS GERMAN TANKS WHO WAS SUPERIOR? I would really love it thx
E
the germans had such a weird gang of allies that its hard to consider how the Axis survived for more than a year with 3 extremely racist leaders who all claimed their race is better than all others, not to include the tripartite pact as a whole, for example romania.
It was like Competative gamer club only sticking together to fight extremly numerus cusuals
you have such a normie view of history
And the Allies werent extremly racist? You might need to learn more history...
@@omdx4643 he didn't anincuate that the allies weren't racist tho
Germany had the best army. I guess to go against is just a death sentence.
I swear, the animation on this channel has gotten SO good
(obligatory comment about the pokemon guy watching the history guy)
I agree there animation are really good
@@_dave4681 I feel attacked
@@_dave4681 I've done hundreds of videos on Paradox interactive games, of course I watch the history guy!
*Somethings wrong, I can feel it*
The Axis was largely an alliance of circumstance, they just shared common enemies (not always) but had pretty much no common goals which would consolidate their cooperation
They actually diablerized each other pretty frequently.
Most alliances are like that...
"no common goals"
like the allies then ?
Of course not, no. The allies common goal was the destruction of Germany whilst the Axis common goal was the destruction of Russia. Japan would famously betray this goal in April 1941 with it's non-aggression pact which the Russians broke in 1945.
@@enklaev1933 They cooperated more effectively, that's for sure. America's lend lease program kept the Soviet Union in the war, just to make an example. Kruschev himself in his memoirs says the USSR would have probably lost the war without the material aid from its allies. Germany and Japan never cooperated to such an extent.
@@jacopoabbruscato9271 kruschev is a nobody, he wasn't even a great leader, nobody cares what he thinks
The axis alliance was a shaky one to say the least. If they would have won, there definitely would have been loads of internal conflicts afterwards between the members and probably a breakup
So a Cold War between Germany and Japan is what was on the cards then
Meanwhile the Allies had capitalist America teamed up with socialist Russia. It was a weird war all around.
im pretty sure the romanians told hitler they were gonna take back transylvania from hungary after the war no matter what lmao
@@jmontign1 When don't they ever?.
If the axis had won .. anyone who didn't have Hitler's blessing would have been stamped on hard, very hard .. internal conflicts no .. some sort of distribution of territory - yes .. look at what happened to Romania prior to 1941, Hungary and Bulgaria all got chunks and the Romanians had to suck it up ..
Here are the allies mentioned in this video (with their corresponding timestamps)
Italy 2:47
Japan 7:11
Spain 10:46
Hungary 12:25
Romania 15:27
Iraq 19:06
Bulgaria 20:33
Finland 22:56
And please consider typing a reminder, if I am missing one. I will update this comment accordingly.
Minor edit here. The allies I am referring to are the ones mentioned inside the video itself. (in the slide transferring bits)
Romania isn't a thing huh
@@otakju.1430 I was in the middle of editing the comment when you replied. I am editing the comment as I go through it.
The URSS, but sadly this video is a little bit of red washing.
The URSS signed a treaty with the germans, divided Poland, then they asked to join the axis... hitler betrayed stalin.
Would Japan's puppet states also be considered allies of the Third Reich?
there also was an free indian legion under the leadership of subhash chandra bose
Germany:You guys are gonna help me to the end right?
Italy,Romania, Bulgaria:No we don't think so
Japan: I will!!!
One of Japans motivations for Joining the Tripartite pact was to get Germany to stop training and equipping the Chinese. Also The Japanese and Russians fought in the Late 1930s and Japan had no interest in fighting them again, lots of losses for little possible reward.
Wasnt Russia trash pre ww2
@@StrangeTamer178 still, the Revolutionary People's Mongol Army with Zhukov's commitment in his Army stopped the Japanese for a while in Kalhkin Hol.
@@diegoragot655 they reinforced other militaries to fight back against japan?
@@StrangeTamer178 each country has their spheres of influence. The J@ps had Mengkukuo, The R€ich had Reichskommisariats
@@diegoragot655 I just didn't think the Russian empire or soviet Russia cared about anyone else
The connections among the Axis powers were strengthened by a full military and political alliance between Germany and Italy and by the Tripartite Pact, one year after Germany’s invasion of Poland and the beginning of World War II. During the war a number of other countries joined the Axis,
induced by coercion or promises of territory or protection by the Axis powers. They included Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia (after Czechoslovakia had divided in 1939) in November 1940, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia in March 1941
Fun fact: Thailand is Only one nation didn't get occupied by Allied and we have nickname Oriental Italy
@scale you lose the internet. Put that luger up your bungholio and fire, the future generstions of humanity will thank us.
Yugoslavia did not join the axis.
@@scyphen. He probably meant Independent State of Croatia and Nedić's Serbia
The URSS asked to join the axis. URSS divided Poland with the nazis. URSS provided resources to the nazis.
Maybe it's a mandela effect, but everybody is forgetting this and sayings the communists were enemies of the nazis before hitler betrayed stalin. Weird.
2:46 Italy 🇮🇹; 7:11 Japan 🇯🇵; 10:52 Spain 🇪🇸; 12:25 Hungary 🇭🇺; 15:28 Romania 🇷🇴; 19:07 Iraq 🇮🇶; 20:32 Bulgaria 🇧🇬;22:55 Finland 🇫🇮
And all of them are doing great these days while Russia is a shithole and a fascist country.
Thanks I needed that
It would of been cool if he talked about iran (Yes I know that they were not officially part of the axis but they overthru their government and the guy who took over was pro axis. Then the British, Australians and Indians from the south. And the Soviets from the north invaded iran)
Walloon Legion 🇧🇪
Flemish Legion 🇧🇪
What about the USSR? :D
Your consistency and quality of content never disappoints!
Yo is this a bot?
@@gaboreszes4395 yeah just report it
@@ColonizedEthan bro how it’s verified and has some recent content
@@gaboreszes4395 no
@@thatoneperson134 they post the same comment every time
Does anyone else think the thumbnails of this channel are just gems?
Genes*
No
I really wish there were more documentaries focusing on Italy in world war 2. The Italians are seriously given far to little attention and analysis compared to the other major powers in the war. The Italians were more of a burden than an ally to Germany. But there are so many things that contributed to this that far to few know about.
I’d love to learn more about Italian tanks and weapons used in the war. But it is difficult to find docs that address those things.
Italy joining the war is seen as a total mistake. joining even though they were in no shape at all and POSSIBLY had the worst military. they're always ignored in history because again they're seen as a mistake in ww2 and just useless.
**Regia Marina** (Royal Navy) - the only one of italy's fighting service that was in modern like standards was but still, it lacked some stuff like decent cover from the *Regia Aeronautica* (air force)
**Fiat CR.42" (Falco)** - the Air Force's front line fighter
**Macchi C.202** - though, they were ridiculously under-armed and there were only few of them.
**Carro Veloce CV-35** - an Italian tankette, saw service almost everywhere the Italians fought in on the war they were proved to be inadequate for modern warfare though.
**Carro Armato M11/39** - main battle tank of italy. probably one of the worst tanks in any army to see service.
**Cannone da 75/27 modello 06** - a field gun used by italy.
ofc there's probably alot more but I'm just writing down the one's i remember. might need this for future references anyway.
Germany would have been better off if Italy remained neutral like Spain. lol
@@mrbisshieGermany just didn’t thrive Italy time, Mussolini told Adolf that Italy would not be ready for war, but adolf kept his plans secret and went to war anyway
Actually no, the Germans were not obligated to declare war on the USA as the plans for the endeavor weren't shared with pact-members and was therefore a breach of the treaty. Hitler declared war on his own accord. He didn't have to.
Hitler shot himself in the foot when he did that
At that point it was obvious US was on the allied side, the support they gave to UK must have frustrated the germans
@@DanielL9696 You're very correct about it, but the declaration of war can still be considered unwarranted from Germany. The US hadn't actually done anything other than continue trade with GB to antagonize Germany yet
yeah, and it was incredebly stupid. I doubt the US public, who were very much against war until pearl harbor, would have allowed the US to declare war on Germany when Japan was the big bad guy they were focused on. Would have given Hitler more time if he hadn't. Japan didn't declare war on the USSR either, which saved the USSR btw. Japan didn't want a 2 front war, and Hitler shouldn't have created an extra enemy too. Lucky for us today that he fucked up tho.
🤓
A friend of mine has a grandmother who is a Holocaust child survivor (originally from Bratislava). She remembered when she was 12 years old that her mother took a trip to Budapest to warn the Jewish community about the Nazis plan to invade Hungary (she was a member of one of the Slovak Jewish partisan groups). They rebuffed and laughed at her. This was in February 1944.
She must have been like 3 to 4 years old to be alive now.....
@@nexpro6118 what? I dont think you understand how old grandparents get
@@nexpro6118they never said she was alive now
As a Romanian I can't say more than THANK YOU for the correct content about my country!
@@bohashem921 Hi! I'm not your teacher but I'm glad to hear about it.
@@mihaimihai9254 God bless the RPR and long live Comrade Nicolae Ceaușescu! 🇨🇺❤🇷🇴 🛠
@@UmQasaann God bless Romania as a NATO and UE member and as an ally of THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA! Regarding that criminal that you call Comrade Nicolae Ceausescu I wish him a really hot accomodation in hell!
Stii istorie cat stiu eu fizica cuantica , daca asta e "correct content"
It's not close brother for the correct version of history about Romania.Better get a book and read about it.
Regarding Romania, it should be mentioned that the alliance between the Iron Guard and Antonescu did not last long, and the Iron Guard tried to stage a revolt in early 1941 to take over completely, but they were defeated by the army and by Hitler showing his support for Antonescu. After that, Antonescu rules alone with the army as his only power base. It is also noteworthy that Romania was also forced to cede the Cadrilater to Bulgaria after they were guaranteed their territorial integrity by Germany. And that, after retaking Norther Transylvania from Hungary, the Romanian army was expelled and only the Soviet one occupied Norther Transylvania, as Stalin used that region for blackmailing Romania into installing a communist government.
Indeed
Also how is was represented the "switching" is ridiculous.
After changing team the soviet soldiers became calm.
In reality the soviets took advantage to take as many prisoneers of war as they could, until September when the new Romanian governament signed peace with the soviets.
@@tiziogg6350 Exactly, in the short period of time after the coup d'etat of August 23rd 1944 and before the armistice between Romania and the Allies came into effect, the Red Army was still treating us like enemies and were taking lots of Romanian prisoners. Also, the German army was still in Romania and the Romanian army basically needed to avoid both the Germans and the Soviets in their own country...
@@hriscubogdan2292 A magyarok harcikedvének jót tett, hogy átálltatok az ellenséghez.
This is what happens when you think HoI4 is a historical source.
I would love one on the Portuguese Colonial War. It is such an underrated conflict that had a huge impact on Africa.
yes, it would be a great video
I like the idea. It should cover the connected conflicts too: e.g. the Angolan Civil War.
I love the little references this channel keeps putting out. From the CSGO menu style to the “peace out” meme. Keep it up.
M. Laser History recently made a great video on Horthy Miklos, the ruler of Hungary during most of WW2. I highly recommend it to those who want to know more about Hungary's situation and motivations leading up to and during the war.
Kingdom without a King, led by a regent who is an Admiral, in a country which no longer has a coastline let alone a navy, led by Reactionary officers like Horthy and Pal Pronay who were trying to live their WW1 days
As someone who’s been to Hungary a number of times, the shoes by the Danube and the house of terror are excellent places to visit whilst in Budapest.
Your videos just keep getting better. I was so impressed by the visuals of this episode!
Spain despite not having entered World War II forced to focus on recovering from a devastating 3 year civil war, sent the notorious Blue Division to the Leningrad Front, being recognized for their brave victory at the Battle of Krasny' Bor despite being massively outnumbered by the Soviets. Franz Halder, Chief of the General Staff of the German Army once said: "If you ever see a soldier, drunk, unshaven and in an unbuttoned tunic, do not rush to arrest him: he is most likely a Spanish hero"
The Spanish volunteers were known on the front lines for their kindness by civilians, and for their brutality and unquestioning determination by the Germans, not only to mention that some Spaniards had some standoffs with the SS having seen their atrocities...
I never knew they were known for their kindness by civilians. I just knew that they were brutal and unforgiving when it came to battle. They hardly ever gave mercy to the enemy and never expected any mercy.
@The Philosoraptor bruh they literally helped nazis
Spaniards being kind to others but brutally suppressing my country's independence?!!?? 😲😲😲😲
@@arielest6749 They had a common enemy, outright opposing the Nazis was a death wish in prior to 1943.
you leave out the part where some of the unit refused to leave after being recalled back to Spain, and fought all the way to Berlin. Thought i can’t imagine that lines up with your apparent view that they were just good guys fighting for country
One annoying thing I have is that, the Iberian Pact signed with Portugal also kept Spain out of the war was another big reason Spain refused to go to war against the allies
Awesome video as always. I've always wanted to ask, have you ever thought of doing more Ancient and Medieval documentaries?
Could you make a “American-Mexican war from the mexican perspective” please?
I am very curious in the mexican psyque during that era
It was pretty similar. It was a territorial dispute. They thought we were taking their land. We took all of Mexico, and gave them back their current borders. Those in now U.S land were resentful, those in Mexico were happy to not lose their entire nation.
@@spiffygonzales5899 That is an incorrect view of history. I don't know where you pulled that from lol. Santa Anna's governance was harshly criticized after the war and he died of cataracts hated by his people
@@vercot7000
I was talking about the modern u.s with that last statement.
We weren't wrong in the Mexican American war. Texas had already established its borders in the Texas revolution, Mexico was basically just trying to maintain as much power as possible with the U.S becoming a rising continental power while the u.s was upholding already determined borders
@@vercot7000 interesting fact Santa Anna helped introduce chewing gum to the US. He moved here and sold it
lol we have all gringos and even Mexicans that live there, what a shame for our country.
At 19:01 the guy who salutes the soldiers is Amin al Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Palestine and those aren't Iraqi soldiers, but Bosnian Muslim volunteers from the 13th Waffen SS Mountain Division "Handschar". They fought against Partisans in occupied Yugoslavia, but were very brutal towards local civilian population, mostly Serb.
Also the Indepensent State of Croatia fought for Axis, and even sent 10,000 troops to fight in Stalingrad.
He was corrupted to loss his humanity and faith and commit atrocities in name of the fuhrer not God ...... We in Iraq might went to that direction once or twice and we might repeat it:(
All "iraqi soldier" are represented by bosnian SS soldier, it’s probably the biggest mistake in the video
He mentioned they already covered Croatia
yeah, the grand mufti, leader of palestine teamed up with Germany to eliminate the jews
He didn't even mention the Golden Square or al-Gaylani
2:41 Italy
7:07 Japan
10:49 Spain
12:22 Hungary
15:24 Romania
19:01 Iraq
20:29 Bulgaria
22:52 Finland
I love your videos. It’s absolutely insane to comprehend the fact that this stuff happened 80 years ago. Absolutely crazy.
Have you accepted Jesus as our Lord and savior?
@@JuicyJenitals I'm an atheist so no, I'm glad you believe it and it it brings happiness to your life
@@DeKevers It doesn't really bring happiness to my life tho :( RN im being exploited basically and am stuck sharing the gospel. I want to be playing games right now. I would reconsider if i were you. I can help you understand the biblical texts and can help kickstart your relationship with God. The last 3000 years have been a testimony in favor of God's word (unless you want to believe that all governments and nations are conspiring together )
@@JuicyJenitals wait so why are you so passionate about it and sharing it with others if you're being exploited?
@@DeKevers Exploited by God. Bought a brand new PC and everything that could go wrong did go wrong. The CPU cooler on it is faulty and now it overheats, so I can't play games. My new headset stops working randomly and it is annoying and hard to play FPS games. I lost my license plus my car is having issues and I keep getting videos in my youtube recommended tab about God and how my time will be burned up. That i need to do something that will last, so now Im stuck ministering to people. it is not fun but in the end it will be worth it.
"Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life will keep it for eternal life", "anyone that does not pick up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me"
I can help you start a relationship with God.You would be surprised. I'm kind of passionate about it but it is challenging and im tired all the time
Something important that I think was missed in the video - Bulgaria did not declare war on the USSR, it kept neutral relations up until 1944, when on 4th of september the soviets declared war and thus basically installing the Fatherland front as de facto rulers. The Bulgarian government also protected it's jewish population although some anti-semitic laws were passed in an effect to please the Germans.
Bulgarians seem to forget they deported most of the Macedonian Jews to Treblinka. Small gestures here and there do not exempt them from being oppresors and collaborators with the Nazi regime. Even the actual bulgarian governments try to enforce the narrative of being "liberators" in their occupation of Macedonia.
So, Bulgaria was like the anti-Spain in some ways?
Germany and Bulgaria signed the tripartite pact in 1941. It helped in the war with Greece and declared war on Britain and the United States, Bulgaria was an ally of the Third Reich, and at the end, when the USSR was near the border, it abruptly withdrew from the war
As for the Jewish population, despite the fact that the percentage of surviving Jews in Bulgaria was one of the highest among the Axis countries, it is still an incredible number of deaths, out of 40,000 10,000 died, to say that these were several laws to please Germany would be a terrible disrespect to to all the dead
@@vastor3233 Absolute gibberish of a statement
@@MaschenkoAN if you are referring to the 10000 Jews from Macedonia and Trace, then keep in mind that they did not have a Bulgarian passport so there was no way to spin things around legally and deny them to Germany. Keep in mind, Bulgaria was supposedly the occupier, despite the fact that a notable majority of the population identified as Bulgarian.
Out of the 10,000-15,000 that were taken only around 100 survived.
If you are talking about a different 10000 Jews, I need links and courses.
20:00 Oops, you have that K98 with the bolt handle on the LEFT side!
Good video, although Italy wasn't entirely pro-German until after the Ethiopian War. Germany actually also sent weapons to Ethiopia. There was a lot of disagreement on the question of Austria. Italy supported the Austro-fascist regimes in Austria prior to the Anschluss as they more closely resembled Italian fascism. It wasn't until after the Austrian Nazi party became powerful enough to threaten Schuschnigg and when Germany essentially held a plebiscite at gun point in Austria on the Anschluss that Italy acknowledged German hegemony in Austria. After this Mussolini became a more integrated Axis member. Before this though there was even talk of Mussolini courting the allies.
Corporatism as fascism really does integrate well with what we got 🤷🏻♂️
plus Hitler, who was Austrian, quite possible resented South-Tyrolia being part of Italy for its dishonest role in WW1
@@embreis2257 yeah i forgot to mention this in the comment that was a part of the disagreement between the two also
I'm only just learning this past week that Ethiopia had more impact on WW2 than what I learned in high school in Canada. I'm Ethiopian born and raised, my grandfather and his siblings fought in the 2nd Italo-Ethiopian war (they were conscripted). Anyways, in my Canadian school, they spent like 3 mins on this war and invasion, and just talked over it like it was just another event in the mid 1930s lol.
@@awfan221 than you are luckier than most of us. take the Russians e.g., all they learn in school is how the Soviets singlehandedly brought down the Nazis. all the West did was dithering, produce a bit of military hardware and maybe fight some Japanese somewhere somehow until the Soviets turned their attention to this theatre too
In the southern Karelia, Finland actually went beyond the 1940 Mannerheim line, they didnt defend on the line... And in the North they settled on river Syväri, which goes between lakes Ladoga and Ääninen.
Finland proceeded only to the old pre-war border in Karelian isthmus. They lost lots of land in Winter War 1939-40, and took it back in Continuation War. Finland never went beyond that towards Leningrad and never took part of the siege, despite Germany wanted Finns to do so. Mannerheim Line was inside Finnish borders, not at the border. North of Lake Ladoga Finns did proceed forward to rescue ethnic finnish towns from Stalins ethnic clensing. About 30.000 ethnic Finns in Karelia were killed and thousands more were sent to Gulaks.
What I meant, is that the Finns got to their old Treaty of Tartu border on 1st of september, and continued forward to the Soviet Stalin Line area for a week more.
In other words they definetly didn't set on the exact "oldborder" line.
I am lucky to be alive in a time where this masterpiece of a video can be accessed free of cost.
I’ve always been fascinated how despite their ideological similarities how badly the Axis Powers behaved as an alliance while the Western Allies and the Soviets (and the Republic of China) for all their ideological differences got along remarkably well.
The Allies only worked as a military coalition, though. Once the mutual threats had been defeated, there was that whole decades of Cold War, you know.
@@Compucles hmm you're right on your point but I think OP is making a different point, the Axis as an alliance is not really good at getting along with their military coalition and common goals, they often ignored each other, German and Japan mostly. The Allies had a, paraphrasing OP here, remarkably well relationship in WW2, they complimented and often help each other, with US lend lease, shared British intelligence and Soviet commitment to the war the allies made a good coalition. I think this is OP was making a point. They had a common goal and they played part on their roles without much backstabbing or whining.
That's the power of triendship for ya
That's because Fascism is a naturally selfish and destructive ideology. Lots of Germans lived in Italian South Tyrol and one of Mussolini's biggest fears was that Hitler would invade to annex South Tyrol.
Akkor hol volt diktatura?
Knowledge you spread out is just astonishing. These kind of videos that explains it not by showing off the fact but even animating it to understand it imaginely have to be shared more and given more attention
This channel is WWWAAAAY better than, infographics channel
Your animators must be begging for mercy with how fast you're pumping out these videos
I teach at a bilingual school and ur content has been helping several kids learning English and History. Thank you.
You should keep in mind ww2 history writings are one of the most twisted, as its illegal by law to study ww2 in many countries in europe. Only the official version is accepted by law, and questioning it leads to life in prison. So I wouldnt teach this as gospel
The quality of your videos just keeping getting better and better. With this being the third ww2 video in a row, I realize this is one of the view historical topics that RUclips won’t suppress or at least not suppress as hard. I understand why you are doing it, I do not knock you for it at the slightest, I wish you all the best! Anyone who attacks you for it is not a true fan.
Zar Boris did it very smart. He never declared war on the Soviets, which meant they didn't have to pay reparations and didn't have to give up any lands and Bulgaria got to keep southern Dobrudzha
In my opinion,Romania is very underrated.They’ve done a lot of things being under resourced(like Odessa)and they gave Germany most of the oil they needed..
Romania was the most important axis power because they allowed Germany to get encircled at Stalingrad
chad WW2 Romania vs virgin WW2 Bulgaria
@@derblah9006 if the Romanians weren't there the Germans would have had to divert troops from other fronts potentially losing battles
@@derlasercrafterwally4342 Bulgaria had other priorities back there - don't be invaded and we succeded. Bulgaria can't fight 3wars as a mega state. Good we joined to get back Dobruja tho. And you know you can't claim to be better than a country 10 times older than you.
@@boyanvalchev2953how is Bulgaria older than Romania??
This channel - every single time - manages to explain messy and complicated history and all the swirling driving factors in a clear and understandable way. I see that one of your videos has dropped and I make time, pour myself a cup of tea or and make time for it. Thank you!
Love the animations, this is one of the channels I always watch, instead of just listening
I love watching your videos, maybe you can make Turkish War of Independence one day, it's would be interesting for many people.
Agreed. Gotta give kudos to Turkey. Although western armies were by then demobilised, and most men had no motivation to fight again, Britain,France, Italy and Greece together still had much more resources to work with and Turkey despite being disorganized at the start still managed to secure their country.
Absolutely stunning production value in these episodes. Keep up the good work!
You didnt mention the Croatia in this video. Croatians formed an independent country and were alies with Hitler.
Fun fact: the romanian army is also the one who had the most soldiers decorated with the iron cross. Take that Italy.
the fact the you are happy about the note from a foreign country it is a prove of the low consideration you have of your country
germany loved hoi4 historical focus ai so much they incorporated it to real life 🤩🤩
underrated
A lot of people make fun of Italy during WWII but imagine the devastation and how much more of a struggle it would be if they were as strong as Germany.
Have you accepted Jesus as our Lord and savior?
Yes if Italy wasn't useless then the Axis would have done better. Just like how if Germany didn't lose they could have won.
There is a reason why Britain feared and tried to prevent an Italian-German alliance so much before the war. The Italian navy posed a real threat and very well could have wounded the Royal Navy in 1940, I can't remember which battle it was but basically the Italians were just too timid despite having numerical advantage, and were 2 other Battleships nearby called into the battle it could have been superiority.
Imagine if Italy had good tanks, or Romania for that matter. Or if Japan had oil. Or if Romania had Planes. Or if Bulgaria was anti sementic. Or if Romania had a na- yeah I'm romanian
Gordon Ramsey to Axis military doctrine: "THE FRESHEST DAMN THING IN THE ROOM IS WHAT THE GUY IN THE CORNER IS WATCHING."
What the guy's watching:
Like, seriously. These videos constantly shatter expectations in the most amazing ways. Good job, Griffin and team.
Had Japan and the Soviet Union found out of the oil and gas deposits in Siberia especially around Sakhalin(which Japan already partially controlled do you think the Northern Strategy would have won over the Southern Strategy leading to the highly possible Soviet collapse? I still think the immediate need for oil after the embargo of 1940 by the U.S. required the already built facilities in Indonesia.
The Japanese also saw a real opportunity in the rubber resources of the East Indies, both for their own use, and as a bargaining tool to get the USA to negotiate. They also needed more food production, and there really was none of that in Siberia...so there were always really big economic drivers to the southern strategy over the northern one. ✌
Well, the Battle of Khalkin Gol would either have to not happen or Japan wins. The embarrassment of that battle shifted the Imperial General Staff in favor of the Southern strategy
There was also the fact that the Navy was always in favor of the Southern route, since the Northern one very much diminished their role, in theory. When you add it all up, the Northern route was always a bit of a longshot...the Southern route always had a larger chance of being chosen. ✌
It really would depend which of the two factions between the Army or the Navy gets its way. The Southern Route was favored because the Northern Route is faltering bad...
@@shawnkucinski4336 Khalkin gol is often overstated as the battle actually had a mixed result. The original soviet claims of Japanese losses exceeded the amount of troops that Japan even deployed into the battle. Khalkin gol's significance is mainly bookmarking the end of the kwantung army's ability to stomp around north east asia relatively uncontested, as typically the soviets would back down during border "skirmishes". Nanshin ron had been extensively discussed as a serious strategy as early as 1931.
23:02 My man won without having a king
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
WW2 Italians in the Soviet Union during the winter sounds too crazy to be true
There’s still a 50k Italian comunity in south Russia
Already happened during Napoleonic invasion of Russia
Slovakia and Croatia would haven been nice additions
10:15 i love the way you portrayed Uncle Sam so much
This video is very well made, don't know how some people can make such good content.
bro you didnt even watch half of it 💀💀💀
@The Philosoraptor hey i just seen you in history matters loool
@@saatejnarapuram8047 fr lmfaoo
18:16 Might be the funniest thing I've seen all week
Your channel is the best youtube channel in historic story ever with top notch artist elevating the quality up like no other channel ever come close
Your animation on WWII history is so stupendous!
Have you accepted Jesus as our Lord and savior?
@@JuicyJenitals Yes, but that has nothing to do with what I just commented.
Germany in a nutshell: _”I was a business man... doing business.”_
Finland in 1940-1941 was a boat in a quickly running river. Barely able to control it, and the destination was not up to them.
Can we just all appreciate how hilarious the memes are?
It would be intresting if you could do a video on Romania the axis power if possible?
Thank you for this, many people tend to forget that there were more countries is the axis powers
The Iraqis were supported by the Italians, not Germans, who threw their support in late after the Mufti and the Golden Square planned the whole thing from an Italian embassy
True. They weren’t even aware of the coup until it was underway, but they used bases out of French Syria to support them thereafter
Tbh Germany tried since 1933 to influence the monarch 🫅 and the army
Still germany sent iraq some aircrafts
The mufti was Palestinian
Both Germany and Italy supported Iraq.
Germany had quite a few allies.
However, they made many more enemies.
expert analysis
yes you have to know Palestine and Persia too axis
@@mazmiperkasa7093 they've bcame Iran 5 yrs b4 ww2
@@mazmiperkasa7093 Iran wasn't a part of the Pact. They didn't expel the German diplomatic staff, though. That was enough to warrant an invasion.
The speaker guy :- 😐 serious learning
The animator :- 😎 I ain't no boring
dear Armchair,I would like to say that you do some of the best content in youtube,and I would like to say that it would be immensely interesting if you covered the Hellenic War of Idepwndence
You forgot to mention the USSR Ribbentrop pact.
In my opinion the video is great but I kind of wanted to see Croatia in here too beacuse it played a somewhat important role in the Axis.
How about doing a video about the fall of Yugoslavia in the 1990s? Would be very interesting.
He won't touch that topic with a 10ft pole. Watch "The Weight of Chains" documentary on RUclips if you are interested in fall of Yugoslavia. Just keep in mind it was made by a Serbian and it's not neutral on the topic, but it's still worth watching.
No way. Do you have any idea how divisive that topic is?! He not going to do it in a 1000 years.
@@pablobronstein1247 why would he not touch this topic? It's not only the Second World War he talks about. He even included some other wars from the last 3 decades.
@@xh321 Are you a Serb or Croat or something? Don't you know how much the balkans hate each other? No chance he does a vid cause every side will hate him for it
watch 'The Death of Yugoslavia'. the 6-hours plus version. You'll understand afterwards.
Its always a good day when Armchair Historian uploads. 😃
The Quote by Pál Teleki hit me like a wall of bricks. Never knew that's what happened in Hungary as it's it's one of the least covered Axis countries. God damn I can't imagine how he must have felt in those days after having to betray Yugoslavia.
In 1944 when the war seemed to be inevitably lost for Germany, Horthy wanted to secretly negotiate a peace treaty with the Allies behind the Germans back. However, the Germans immediately got word of it, deposed Horthy and put a Fascist puppet government in charge of Hungary, led by Arrow-Cross Party leader Ferenc Szálasi who followed Hitler's orders like a good little puppy. Szálasi's government lasted for six months. In April 1945 the Red Army occupied Hungary and got rid of the Germans and their lackies. Szálasi was later charged with war crimes and executed along with most of his goons. Horthy was exiled to Portugal where he spent his old days, wrote his memoires and died in 1957.
You should do a video about countries on the rest of world who stayed neutral in the face of immense pressure from the both Axis and Allies. Turkey is one example I can think of since I am from there. Nazis could have used land of Turkey to gain access to rich oil resources in the Caucasus and Middle east. Yet, Turkey remained neutral since WW1 had a terrible cost for the nation.
They did eventually declare war on Germany in 1945, but, well, it was 1945. Germany was screwed anyway.
Switzerland and the vatican would be interesting too, both were totally surrounded by the axis
@@triangulum8869 I mean, the Vatican was created by Mussolini when he gave independence in a deal with the Pope iirc
@@triangulum8869 I heard that Switzerland remained neutral in part due to their compulsory military service system. It is not cost-effective for Germany to occupy countries where every citizen can act as a resistance force. They'd rather let them 'occupy' themselves.🤣
@@flatorange4978 Also, the Swiss banks had their money.
Meanwhile, Portugal and Sweden managed to remain neutral mainly due to geography. Portugal had the nominally neutral Spain blocking the path of any land invasion while a naval invasion wouldn't have been worth attempting. Meanwhile, Hitler had no reason to go after Sweden once he got all the North Sea access he needed from taking Denmark and Norway.
18:14 "SOVIETS. SOVIETS EVERYWHERE." -The Armchair Historian.
What is quite strange about the axis is that some of them had a bitter hatred towards eachother. For example, Romania had territorial disputes with both Hungary and Bulgaria yet all 3 of them where allies.
No different than Greece and Turkey being in NATO.
18:22 this is definitely a reference to one of the old COD Series i knew because of the Bullet Symbol and Map. ( the ones with the original Garand Ping's and old model of WW2 Price. )
Its also obvious since old COD is fps and this shows fps too and I honestly wanted to turn this into a joke going "Woah Sneak Peaked WW2 DLC of Fire And Maneuver in FPS!"
For a next video, could you cover the battle of hill 262 during the Falaise Pocket?
Alright everybody is mentioning the Animation but the Music is absolutely amazing.
The Tripartite Pact really should have been renamed into something less... specific at some point.
Fantastic per usual. I know all of this history very well but I enjoy watching the videos you guys put together
Title: Who were Germany’s Allies in WW2?
Me who saw the thumbnail: *understandable have a great day*
You skirted around a large initial ally of Germany, the USSR. Between WW1 and WW2, Germany was developing its tanks and military aircraft in the USSR. This was done to circumvent the terms of the treaty that ended WW1. The USSR also provided Germany with food, oil, and metals so that Germany could invade Poland, France, Denmark, The Netherlands, Norway, and attack the UK. No wonder Stalin didn't think that Germany would attack the Soviet Union, even though he was getting that warning from many sources.
and finland
That is never shown in the history books… but that is alarming!
In 1940, Stalin actually sent his foreign minister Vysacheslav Molotov to Berlin to negotiate the Soviet Union joining the Axis. But Hitler didn't trust Stalin, and he wanted Soviet territory for Germany(Lebensraum).
@@santisav2 Finland was clearly mentioned in this video. They were a "co-belligerent" during the Continuation War. However, they fought against Germany in the Lapland War. If the USSR hadn't attacked them in the Winter War, they would have likely been neutral like Sweden.
I noticed it too and also the flag of the Soviet Union is missing
You forgot about Soviet Union. Germany's biggest ally since Treaty of Rapallo in 1922 up until Operation Barbarossa.
As well as France and Britain with their "Munich Agreement" if we take all sides specifically
What if Finland aided Germany in operation Barbarossa and Stalingrad? Would Germany have failed so bad?
24:37 he just respawned and then died again a few seconds later...
Very good animation and clear explanation as always, however I've noticed that you put the african campaign as something limiting and delaying operation Barbarossa, I honestly think that the invasion of the USSR was not the main objective of the Axis, the goal which was supposed to be achieved was the complete control of the Mediterraean, which is the reason why Mussolini didn't want Hitler to invade the soviets
The Axis Powers overall, sure, but Germany was hellbent on invading the Soviet Union. Nothing was going to stop them from declaring war; their ideologies despised each other.
That's also true
Of course: Mussolini`s great dream, as expressed in the name of his ideology, was nothing less than the restoration of the Roman Empire: "Make Italy great again!"
- Germany`s single overarching war goal, however, was "autarky", achieved by conquering huge parts of the Soviet Union.
On a strategic level, Germany needed Italy as a "tool" to help with GB, and potentially France. So, to summarize: They had shared interests, but conflicting goals.
4:45 "Democracies of Europe who administered their colonies worse than dictators."
Yes, France and Belgium had very harsh quotas for the native populations and UK did some messed up things as well but none of them are comparable to what Nazi Germany did so I wouldn't agree with "worse than dictators".
Have you ever wondered why Australia and New Zealand have a white majority population? Maybe because the natives were wiped out of existence. However, this part of history is never focused on because the Britishers were the victors and the history is written by the victors. Germany had similar plans but never succeeded and are remembered for their crimes because they killed white Europeans and not the natives in some far off land who no one cares about. Even though I'll get cancelled for saying this but yes, the UK was indeed worse than both Germany and France. USA and Belgium stand second and third on the list.
@@BigBrotherTheWatcher1984 You're right. not sure if the Germans had plans to replace the native population of their colonies (i hope not) but considering the pan-Germanic ideal of the National Socialists, it is likely that they would unite the Germanic people of Europe and finally unite the Reich with Dantzig and East Prussia, which is something I consider fair.
Romania had no choice but to join the Germans. The USSR forcefully took parts of our land (Basarabia, Bucovina), so we fought to get them back.
and then big boy Stalin fucked you up
Like Hungary and Transylvania...
like Bulgaria and Dobrudja...
@@anneslot7013 And the Baltics
@@anneslot7013 no... hungary had no real claim about transilvania ... urss ilegaly did a ultimatum on romania for basarabia ... Romania won transilvania after ww1
@@nicolaeadrian7882 You say that Hungary did not have legal restrictions on the territory, but you still blame the USSR, which did the same as Hungary...
Germany: Be my friend or I’ll make you my friend *points at Slovakia*
Minor Axis members: Ok
Minor Axis members when the Soviets advance into their country: Ight, imma head out
Hungary and iraq didn't , they were brutally invaded until they surrendered.
@@murtadhaalkenani3876 Hungary wanted to surrender but was invaded by Germany.
@@kotopoulstain8735 still their capital was besieged and fought till the end.
No mention of the USSR. A German ally from 23 August 1939 to 22 June 1941. Both allies began World War 2 by attacking Poland.
The Finnish populace was heavily against the genocide done by the German national socialists, only reason they were with them was to mainly survive against the Soviets, this is stuff once told to me by my father's uncle.
Jewish Finnish soldiers are a prime example.
The Germans were actually surprised that some of the Finnish war heroes were infact jewish
@@utkarshchoudhary3870 They actually offered Iron crosses to some Jewish Finnish soldiers, but of course they rejected them
The Catholic Churches perspective of WWII. Curious about it since Italy was a part of the Axis powers and I don't recall ever learning about it in school.
Complementing Bulgaria, it is worth noting a few facts:
1. Bulgaria never declared war on the USSR, despite all the pressure from Germany. There is a version that this is why Hitler organized the poisoning of Boris III, who died suddenly immediately after returning from Berlin.
2. Bulgaria, despite German pressure, retained its Jewish population. Boris III refused to take repressive measures against any of his citizens. Although this protection did not apply to Jews in the occupied territories.
3. When the Red Army approached the border with Bulgaria, the Bulgarians simply laid down their weapons en masse - there were no military operations on the territory of Bulgaria, the Russians simply marched through the whole country, only occasionally meeting resistance from the Germans who did not have time to leave Bulgaria.
Can we please include that Bulgaria saved 1mil Jews and helped escape. We were bullied into joining the Germans, we had like 10 planes as a whole...we were more of ecnomical allies since we just finished fighting 2 Balkan wars, 1 Word War and were sick and tired...
I don't think calling Germany THE leader of the Axis Powers is appropriate, as it downplays Japan's influence in the war. It's like saying the US or USSR are the one leader of the Allies.
Germany was the leader in Europe. Japan was the main coordinator in Asia.
@@canadious6933 agreed.
Well Germany is what triggered WW2. Thats a reality and if it weren’t for them, a war on such level may have never started as well as the deaths.
Germany was the leader of the Axis Powers. The UK was the leader of the Allies. The USSR was the leader of its own faction, The Comintern.
@@wagnercarvalho1854 that’s certainly true in 1939, but in WW2 as a whole? Certainly not. The Soviets outmatched the UK’s contribution in Europe and the Americans as well as the Chinese outmatched their contribution in the Pacific. Also the Comintern was an international organization, not a military coalition.
Fun fact: Ciano and Mussolini were so afraid of Hitler attacking poland that they asked him for 60 million tons of coal and 10 million tons of steel from Germany.
It was estimated that to send all those materials to Italy, Hitler would have used 17000 trains.
It’s funny how Axis Belligerents such as Finland, Hungary, and Bulgaria weren’t necessarily full on Pro-Axis countries and were more like Allies of necessity.
It's funny how Finland didn't expel the Jews, and thus when they attacked USSR with Nazi-Germany, 200 000 German soldiers fought together with conscripted Finnish Jews.
Not to mention Romania that was gangbanged by Germany
I am not sure of Hungary but Bulgaria and Finland definetely
@@generalpanzerfaust2387, well, Finland never officially signed the Tripartite Pact (and therefore joined the Axis), while Hungary and Bulgaria did. But those two really only joined the alliance because they wanted lands that their neighbors had seized from them in WW1 (and then some), and thought that German aid would be the best way to do that. Plus, the USSR existed, and both Horthy and Boris felt that allying with Nazi Germany was a far better deal than Soviet Russia.
@@occam7382 the occupation of lands that lost at WW I isnt a good reason to help a maniac dictator destroy the world and and killed millions of people
The Iraqi uniform you used was the Bosnian Waffen-SS Uniform. The Iraqis wore British uniforms with pith helmets.
Insane to think Romania send more troops than all of germanys allies combined, didnt know this