Timeline (Zossen Conspiracy)

Timeline for the ATL Zossen Conspiracy

Points of Divergence

Major PoDs

• Wilhelm Solf, without whom German-Japanese relations would never have recovered after World War I, dies in 1919 due to a stroke. Due to this, Japan never recovers its relations with Germany, and never joins the Axis. In fact, over the next few years, relations worsen between the two states almost to the point of war.
• In 1932, Hans Oster, an officer of the German Army got into an affair with a married woman. Due to this, he was forced to resign from service. He later rejoined the army, and rose to the rank of brigadier general, although he was never on the General Staff. After the Röhm-Putsch, or Night of Long Knives, Hans Oster joined an anti-Nazi group. Right before the Munich Conference in 1938, he used his position as Chief of Staff of the Abwehr to get classified information regarding stocks of weapons, food, ammunition, fuel, and others. The group then sent an emissary to the British to try to convince them to stand up to Hitler. They gave the British government the documents, which they then gave to Neville Chamberlain. His top generals told Chamberlain that Germany was not ready for a prolonged war in Czechoslovakia. This led to Chamberlain standing up to Hitler, and Hitler launching Fall Grün. Therefore, World War II starts in 1938 over Czechoslovakia.
• An oil fire in the Baku oil fields in 1940 causes a severe oil shortage across the Soviet Union, while an extremely warm spring ruins the wheat harvest causing widespread famine in the Soviet Union. This leads to a severely weakened Soviet Union in World War II.

Minor PoDs

• Physicist Hans Ferdinand Mayer is arrested before the Oslo Report can be passed to British intelligence.

Timeline (WW-II)

1938

The spheres of influence as dictated by the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact

• May 5- General Ludwig Beck, Chief of the German Army’s General Staff, submits a memorandum to Hitler opposing Fall Grün (Case Green), the plan for a war with Czechoslovakia, under the grounds that Germany is ill-prepared for the world war likely to result from such an attack.
• May 12– U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull rejects Russia’s offer of a joint defense pact to counter the rise of Nazi Germany.
• May 14- Chile withdraws from the League of Nations.
• May 20- Czechoslovakia orders partial mobilization of forces on the German border.
• May 25- The Soviet ambassador to Washington declares the Soviets are ready to defend Czechoslovakia if the United States, Britain and France are willing to support.
• May 28- In a conference at the Reich’s chancellery, Hitler declares his decision to invade Czechoslovakia and mobilizes 96 divisions.
• May 30- Poland is reassured by Rumania that it will block any effort by the Soviets to move into Polish or Czech territory.
• June 23- The Civil Aeronautics Authority is formed in the United States.
• July 6- The Evian Conference on Refugees is convened in France. No country in Europe is prepared to accept fleeing Jews.
• August 10 – At a secret summit with his leading generals, Hitler attacks General Beck’s arguments against Fall Grün, winning the majority of his senior officers over to his point of view.
• August 27 General Beck leaves office as Chief of the General Staff; he is replaced by General Franz Halder. This is mainly due to his opposition to Fall Grün.
• August 31- Winston Churchill, believing that the United Kingdom and France will defend Czechoslovakia, sends a personal note to Neville Chamberlain suggesting a broad international alliance including the United States and the Soviet Union.
• September 1- Hans Oster sends a group of emissaries who bring with them documents proving that Germany cannot afford a prolonged war over Czechoslovakia.
• September 2- The Soviet Ambassador to Britain calls on Winston Churchill to tell him that they are willing to fight over Czechoslovakia.
• September 5- Neville Chamberlain reads the documents sent over by Oster. He, as well as most of his staff, agrees that they should stand up to Germany to both embarrass Germany and boost their own world standing. He also agrees to the idea of an “international alliance” against Germany.
• September 9- Roosevelt makes it clear in a press conference that the United States will remain neutral in a German affair. However, he secretly talks to Chamberlain about the documents, and agrees that they should stand up to Germany.
• September 13- The followers of Konrad Henlein begin an armed uprising against the Czechoslovakian government in Sudetenland.
• September 17- Going back on previous promises, Rumania decides to allow Soviet troops to pass through their territory.
• September 18- After being informed of Chamberlain’s decision, the Soviet Union declares it will come to the support of Czechoslovakia. France follows suit soon after.
• September 21- Neville Chamberlain and Édouard Daladier assure Czechoslovak President Edvard Beneš that they will stand by them in case of an invasion.
• September 22- The Czech government announces that they will not cede the Sudetenland to Germany.
• September 23- Chamberlain declares to Hitler, as well as his cabinet, that they will defend any aggression against Czechoslovakia.
• September 24- Hitler, enraged, orders the execution of Fall Grün by the 28th.
• September 26- French and British leaders forcibly deny Hitler’s “request” to annex Sudetenland during the Munich Conference. They again say they will defend Czechoslovakia.
• September 28- German forces begin a surprise attack into Czechoslovakia, overrunning the border posts. However, they get bogged down almost immediately by prepared Czech forces at Most and Teplice.
• September 29- Upon hearing news of the German invasion, both Great Britain and France declare war on Germany. The USSR does so soon after. The USSR also requests Poland to allow its troops to cross in order to defend Czechoslovakia. The request is, predictably, denied.
• September 30- A large French force begins to push into Saarland.
  • New Zealand and Australia declare war on Germany.
  • President Roosevelt declares neutrality in the "European War".
• October 1- Soviet troops begin to cross across Rumania to defend Czechoslovakia, as well as through the Ukraine.
  • Nepal and South Africa declare war on Germany.
• October 2- The War Powers Act is passed in Great Britain, putting the British military on war footing. All leaves are suspended and reserves are called up.
• October 4- The German army makes a breakthrough at Most, forcing Czech forces to retreat. The government is evacuated out of Prague.
  • Canada declares war on Germany.
• October 6- The Czech army forms a solid defense line with the mountains, as well as their extremely advanced pillbox network. The Germans suffer huge casualties trying to break these pillboxes.
• October 10- Soviet advance scouts encounter Germans for the first time.
  • The British carrier HMS Courageous is sunk by a German U-Boat.
• October 11- French forces continue pushing into Germany. However, they advance extremely slowly. British generals urge French generals to hurry up.
• October 12- Soviet warplanes begin making raids against German forces. They land at Czech air bases.
• October 13- German forces mount a major offensive against Czech forces. However, it is repulsed with heavy casualties.
• October 15- French High Command orders their military to hurry up in Germany. They have advanced 20 km, and have captured 40 abandoned villages. Resistance is extremely light.
• October 17- As per their High Command’s wishes, the French army begins to speed up in Germany, advancing at a pace of 5 km a day. Germany becomes worried about the French forces.
• October 18- French forces encounter their first “real” resistance when they reach the Siegfried line. The battle ends with a huge loss for the French, who lost over 500 men to the German 150. French forces regroup for another attack.
  • The Soviet army meets the Germans at Olomouc.
• October 19- German forces gather for another attack. However, this is again repulsed with heavy German casualties.
• October 20- The Soviet Union again requests Poland for their troops to be allowed through. Predictably, Poland declines again.
• October 21- Seven Soviet bombers bomb Königsberg, killing 24 civilians.
• October 22- Eighteen more Soviet bombers land in Czechoslovakia and begin routine bombing raids against Germany.
• October 24- The British Expeditionary Force lands in France and begins to push towards Germany.
• October 25- Another French assault is pushed back on the Siegfried line. Hitler’s staff advises him to move several divisions back for defense. Hitler refuses.
• October 28- The BEF links up with the French force in Germany and prepares for a major push against the Siegfried line.
• October 28- The Vatican recognizes the Republican government as the correct government of Spain.
• October 30- The Allied Force launches a major assault into Germany. They successfully punch through several points in the Siegfried line.
• October 31- German forces begin to retreat.
• November 2- Hitler issues his “fight to your death” command. This leads to the destruction of many German soldiers who could have lived to fight another day.
• November 3- Field Marshall Erich von Manstein advises Hitler to pull back troops on the Western Front to better defensible positions, as well as pull at least ten divisions from the invasion of Czechoslovakia to counter the French and British threat. His requests are refused, and Hitler goes on a rampage about defeatism.
• November 4- Allied troops continue to push into Germany. They reach St. Wendel and Frankfurt becomes threatened.
• November 5- RAF bombers bomb Düsseldorf, as well as Cologne to target their industrial areas. Enraged, Hitler orders the Luftwaffe to begin bombing London.
• November 7- The first major bombing of London commences, with over 70 bombers involved in the raid. However, radar, combined with the fact that Belgium and the Netherlands stand in the way, only 17 bombers return, with the rest shot down by either anti-aircraft guns or the RAF. But, 42 managed to drop their payloads on London, killing 300 civilians. Göring advises Hitler to stop bombing London, fearing the loss of the entire Luftwaffe.
• November 8- Another major bombing raid occurs into Düsseldorf, destroying several factories.
• November 9- Allied forces reach Frankfurt, where they encounter stiff resistance from German troops stationed in the area. Manstein again forcibly suggests to Hitler that he move several divisions from Czechoslovakia to counter the Allies. Hitler says he will think about it. Manstein becomes increasingly frustrated with Hitler.
• November 10- A major German counterattack forces the Allies out of Frankfurt, and back several miles. This, however, leads Hitler to believe they can defeat the Allies without the divisions from Czechoslovakia, and leads to him not committing these divisions to the homeland.
• November 11- German troops continue to push at Allied troops. However, re-enforcements for the Allies are soon arriving.
• November 12- The Second British Expeditionary Force lands in France, and begins to move rapidly towards the front. They are smaller than the first force, consisting of 175,000 men. Motorized infantry is used en masse for the first time by the British.
• November 13- The German counterattack is stopped cold by the Allies in Germany.
• November 14- After Manstein advises Hitler for the third time to move troops back from Czechoslovakia, Hitler goes on a rampage and demands the immediate resignation of Manstein. Manstein takes this without complaint and immediately resigns from the Wehrmacht. His fellow Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt tries to defend Manstein. However, Hitler screams that if he doesn’t want to be next, he should shut his mouth.
• November 15- Soviet and British bombers strike Berlin for the first time, filling the skies with over 50 bombers. Hitler is stunned, and angrily orders another raid on London.
• November 16- A large Luftwaffe raid begins to form that will take hundreds of planes over London. However, British spies get wind of this and send messages back to the Admiralty as well as the RAF. They both get ready for the raid.
• November 17- The German raid is launched over England, consisting of over 200 planes. However, as they circle around the Low Countries, RAF fighters intercept them and begin downing them. By the time they reach England, only 35 are left. None of them return home to Germany. This is a crippling blow for the Luftwaffe.
• November 18- Another major German push occurs in Czechoslovakia. It is again pushed back.
• November 19- Allied forces launch another counterattack into Frankfurt, routing the German forces there. Vicious house to house fighting begins.
• November 20- Frustrated with the lack of success in Czechoslovakia, Hitler actually orders eight more divisions to move into the region to reinforce the 96 already there.
• November 21- Worried by Hitler’s instability and his firing of Manstein, several members of the General Staff sign a petition asking for Manstein’s return. Hitler refuses to even consider it.
• November 22- Czech forces launch a counterattack on German forces, pushing them back a few miles.
  • The RAF and the ALA (Armée de Air) launch another huge raid on Berlin involving over 200 planes.
• November 23- The eight re-enforcement divisions arrive in Czechoslovakia and begin pushing back at the Czechs.
• November 24- 400 Soviet paratroopers land in Czechoslovakia to assist the Czech against the Germans. They had originally been 600- however, due to poor conditions and poor training, 200 either died or were captured by the Germans.
• November 25- A small German uprising occurs in the Sudetenland.
• November 27- A Czech force crushes the German uprising.
• November 28- German fuel stocks start to become critical. Iron also starts to be a problem, mainly due to the British not allowing Swedish iron to go to Germany.
• November 30- The Battle of the Atlantic starts, with the sinking of the first US merchant ship by a German U-boat. Great Britain needs over one million tons of supplies a day to keep fighting, which is currently being met.
• December 1- With the lack of British and French movement into Germany, the term "Phoney War", which is coined by U.S. Senator William Borah. He is partially correct, as there are currently 112 Allied divisions in Germany compared to the German 23.
• December 2- The campaign in Czechoslovakia comes to a grinding halt as winter truly sets in and Panzers begin to become bogged down.
• December 5- Czech forces launch a major attack on the Germans’ flank, forcing them to withdraw several miles to form a tighter defense line.
• December 6- Allied fighters and bombers launch another massive raid on the Ruhr area of Germany, destroying many more industrial factories and production centers. However, a portion of the raid struck Frankfurt.
• December 8- Allied forces remain outside of Frankfurt, having set up defensive positions.
• December 9- Hitler again orders a counterattack. However, Rundstedt does not pass on the order, which he fears will lead to the death of his men.
• December 22- The Nationalists win a decisive victory at Teruel in Spain.
• December 25- There is a temporary unofficial truce in both Czechoslovakia and Germany by both sides on Christmas Day.

Europe at the end of 1938. Red is Allied advance into Germany, black is Germany.

1939

• January 5- The Republican army starts a diversionary offensive in Estremadura, named the Valsequillo Offensive.
• January 14- France again starts to supply and arm Republican forces in Spain.
• January 15- Czech Special Forces go into Germany in disguise, where they mess up the logistical effort, giving wrong directions to truck drivers and such.
• January 16- Czech forces counterattack at the Germans, pushing them back even farther.
• January 17- Allied forces in Frankfurt finally capture the city, forcing German troops to retreat dozens of miles. However, pockets of resistance remain, which proves to be a serious hindrance to Allied troops.
• January 19- Hitler finally orders the withdrawal of 12 divisions from Czechoslovakia to counter the Allied army. However, German troops are still outnumbered by 112 divisions to 35, of which only three-fourths are at full strength.
• January 22- A popular German uprising occurs in Czech territory.
• January 23- Seeing the chaos caused by the uprising, German forces quickly counterattack, forcing the Czech back several miles. However, reinforcements from Czech forces as well as pillboxes and trenches force another stalemate.
• February 2- Hungary joins the Anti-Comintern Pact.
• February 8- Málaga is taken by Republican troops.
• February 27- France and Great Britain recognize the Nationalist government.
• March 6- Remnants of the Nationalist leadership flee to France.
• April 1- United States recognizes the Nationalist government.
• April 3- Hitler takes command of the Wehrmacht away from Rundstedt, claiming he is of ill health. Hitler orders that a massive attack be made.
• April 4- Before Hitler’s attack can be made, Czech troops cut key supply lines to the German army with special operations forces and specialized bombing raids.
• April 5- Hitler orders the attack to go on anyway, despite the protests from the General Staff.
• April 7- Operation Glorious Liberation is started by the German forces in Czechoslovakia. The huge offensive involves over 100,000 men and 130 artillery pieces. They are supported by 1,200 tanks.
• April 8- Operation Glorious Liberation is an immediate success, pushing the Czechs back six miles.
• April 9- A flood of Soviet reinforcements allow the Czechs to flank the Germans and drive them back two miles.
• April 12- The Allies push farther into Germany.
• April 13- With absolute air superiority and ground superiority, the German army begins the final big push.
• April 15- Most of the Czech government is killed in an air raid. The government is thrown into chaos.
• April 19- German troops finally break the Czech lines. The Czech army begins to retreat.
• April 22- The Czech army forms a temporary defense line at Jihlava, which is behind Prague. The people begin to lose faith in their government.
• April 23- The Czech Liberation Army starts with a small meeting between 20 patriots in Prague.
• April 25- The Allies launch a major offensive, overwhelming German troops at Stuttgart and pushing towards Nuremburg.
• April 26- Hitler finally recognizes the Allied threat and orders the Wehrmacht to make a serious effort to push back the Allies.
• April 28- Caught unprepared, the Allies are pushed back several miles by a brilliant flank attack by the Germans.
• April 31- Trenches begin to be dug in the new lines.
• May 3- The New York Times publishes an article called “The New Great War in Europe.” It describes trench warfare in Europe and compares it to World War I.
• May 6- The CLA launches a major attack against German supply dumps behind the front lines. Meanwhile, more guerrilla attacks lower German morale.
• May 9- The Soviet Union invades Poland, citing they are German allies.
• May 10- The British and French governments give their approval for the Soviet invasion of Poland.
• May 12- The Red Army faces light resistance as they pummel the weak Polish army.
• May 14- The Polish army forms a solid defense line called the Warsaw line that holds back the Soviets temporarily. The Polish government is evacuated to Lodz.
• May 15- A huge air attack destroys the parliament building of Poland.
• May 17- A major Slovak uprising begins, unopposed by the army. The uprising begins to grow.
• May 19- A huge mob of over 80,000 Slovaks begin to march towards the temporary capital of Brno, demanding that the government surrenders.
• May 20- The Soviet army crashes into the Warsaw line, smashing open a huge gap in the lines.
• May 21- Panicking, the Czech army opens fire on the Slovaks. Over 300 Slovaks are killed, as well as 19 soldiers. Known as the Massacre of Ostrava, international outrage against the Czechs begin.
• May 22- A Slovak “government” announces their secession of Slovakia from Czechoslovakia. They release a formal statement out to the world.
• May 23- The German government recognizes the new Slovak government.
  • The Spanish, Polish, Bulgarian, Hungarian, and Italian governments recognizes the new Slovak government.
• May 24- Emboldened by multiple governments recognizing them, the Slovak interim government begins a massive guerrilla movement against the Czechs. With the Germans at their front door, the Czechs cannot do anything about this.
• May 25- Warsaw is taken by the Red Army. The Polish government requests help from the British and French. The requests are ignored.
• May 26- Hitler meets with Mussolini to discuss a possible alliance.
• May 27- Germany sends some volunteer units to Poland.
• May 28- The Soviet army takes Lodz. The Polish government continues to flee.
• May 29- The talks between Hitler and Mussolini ends with Mussolini hinting of a possible future alliance.
• June 3- The Polish government surrenders to the Soviet Union. The Poland SSR is created and is absorbed into the Soviet Union.
• June 5- The Nazis make a strong push into Czechoslovakia, taking over half of it.
• June 9- After realizing that the fall of Czechoslovakia was fait accompli, President Beneš surrenders to Germany. Czechoslovakia is added to the Third Reich.
• June 10- Nazi forces begin withdrawing from Czechoslovakia in order to deal with the Allied threat.
• June 12- Russian troops begin pulling out of Czechoslovakia after realizing it is a lost cause.
• June 19- German troops back from Czechoslovakia launch a massive flank attack against the Allies, who chose to ignore valuable intelligence from their spies. Over 9000 Allied troops are killed and 2000 are captured in the Battle of Frankfurt. The allied army begins to retreat back into France.
• June 20- German troops continue to pursue the Allies. They retake most of Germany.
• June 21- Neville Chamberlain is forced to resign after his half-hearted attack into France. Winston Churchill takes his place as Prime Minister.
• June 26- German troops invade both the Netherlands and Belgium, which are mostly empty of troops since they have been sent to help the British Expeditionary Force. German paratroops capture the Belgian fort Eben Emael then declares a state of emergency.
• June 29- A bombing raid into Denmark forces King Christian X to capitulate to the Battle for The Hague ends up as a German victory, albeit with heavy casualties.
• June 27- General Heinz Guderian's Panzer corps breaks through at Sedan, France. Meanwhile, Luxembourg capitulates.
• June 28- Under the leadership of Churchill, Great Britain invades Iceland. The Dutch fall to the Germans at the Battle of the Grebbeberg.
• June 30- Rotterdam is carpet-bombed by the Luftwaffe, causing many civilian deaths and tremendous damage. The Netherlands decide to surrender with the exception of Zealand.
• July 1- The Netherlands capitulates.
• July 2- German forces cross over the Meuse River.
• July 3- German troops enter Brussels and take Antwerp.
• July 5- German forces are unable to cross into France due to lack of men and supplies.
• July 6- The last remaining Jewish businesses in Germany are closed.
• July 8- Mahatma Gandhi sends a letter to Adolf Hitler addressing him as "My Friend" and pleading an end to the war.
• August 2- Albert Einstein writes to President Roosevelt about the possibility of developing an atomic bomb with uranium.
• August 20- Soviet forces under General Georgi Zhukov defeat Japanese forces in Mongolia.
• August 22- The Czechoslovakian Resistance moves underground and begins guerrilla attacks on German occupation forces.
• August 25- Germany annexes West Czechoslovakia.
• August 27- A German U-Boat sinks the battleship HMS Royal Oak.
• August 31- Physicist Hans Ferdinand Mayer is arrested by the Gestapo under charges of espionage and high treason. A search of his apartment reveals documents describing German weapons systems in great deal that he was about to send to the British.
• September 3- Nazi Germany and Italy sign the Pact of Steel, allying the two nations both economically and militarily.
  • Britain and France decline Hitler’s offers of peace
• September 11- Germany invades France.
• September 12- France and Great Britain declare war on Germany.
• September 13- The first German tanks are spotted in France west of the Ardennes Forest.
• September 14- The Meuse front breaks down as German forces capture Seden and Stonne, taking a commanding position over French troops and forcing them to retreat.
• September 15- Churchill flies to Paris for an emergency meeting
• September 17- France launches its one of its only counterattack of the war against Montcornet under the command of General de Gaulle.
• September 22- German tanks occupy Amiens
• September 26- Guderian and Rommel’s tanks reach the English Channel in just 16 days.
• September 29- Maurice Gamelin begins planning for a major French counteroffensive against overextended German forces in Northern France.
• October 1- The newly created French Third Army Group, under the command of General Antoine-Marie-Benoît Besson begins moving for an all-out offensive against von Rundstedt’s Army Group A.