OK I realise this is an old string but I've only just read it!

I thought I'd respond to the comment on German treaty obligations and how they were breaking them long before 1939. The treaty of Versailles limited Germany to an army of 100,000 with no tanks or heavy artillery. It also restricted their Navy to 15,000 men and no submarines while the fleet was limited to six battleships (of less than 10,000 tons), six cruisers and 12 destroyers. Germany was not permitted an air force.

OK here are a few facts to show how Germany was breaking these obligations long before 1939.

The Army
Panzer IV design work had begun in 1935 and trials of prototypes were undertaken in 1937. The Panzer I marked the first production tank design in Germany since the conclusion of World War I. In 1932, specifications for a light (5-ton) tank were made and issued to the German industrial manufacturers. Production began in 1934. Recognising that this programme was banned under Versaille the Panzer I was referred to as “Landwirtschaftlicher Schlepper" (an agricultural tractor).

The Navy
The treaty limited Battleships to 10,000 tons but the Pocket Battleships all had displacements over this limit. The first of which, Deutschland, was launched in 1933. The famous Battleship Bismarck was laid down in July 1936. It’s displacement was almost five times the limit in Versailles.

The Air force
Heinkell ,Messerschmitt, Dornier and others were developing planes for the Luftwaffe from the early 1930’s. In 1934 the Luftwaffe held a competition to choose the design for its principal fighter. The winner was the famous Messerschmitt BF109. The Heinkell He111, one of the bombers responsbile for most of the damage during the Blitz in 1940 first flew in 1935.