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2 years ago in Military History , Operations Research By Daniel
Setting aside propaganda, was an amphibious invasion of the British Isles ever a serious, achievable military objective for Nazi Germany, or was it always a secondary consideration?
I'm evaluating the realism of German war plans. Given the state of the Kriegsmarine in 1940—decimated after Norway—and the Luftwaffe's failure to secure air superiority, could Unternehmen Seelöwe ever have been a viable operation? Or was it, from a strictly military staff perspective, a non-starter that was kept alive for political and psychological reasons rather than as a concrete strategic objective?
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By Varsha Answered 1 year ago
 From a strict military staff perspective, it was never a serious, achievable objective. The Kriegsmarine's surface fleet was no match for the Royal Navy after losses in Norway, and they lacked specialized landing craft. Crucially, the failure to achieve air superiority during the Battle of Britain in September 1940 made the operation militarily impossible. The German High Command (OKW) knew this. I've reviewed their contingency plans, which were skeletal and reliant on improbable luck. The operation was kept "active" primarily as a lever in psychological warfare and to maintain pressure while resources were diverted to planning the invasion of the Soviet Union. It was a strategic diversion, not a viable war-winning plan.Â
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