I watched a program last night that gave the history of “Valkyrie”. I couldn’t understand, and it wasn’t explicitely stated, why they came up with all these elaborate plans. Did Hitler have all those who met with him searched and dis-armed? Surely, someone had to have had a pistol.
It was extremely difficult during the war for non-Nazis to get in the same room with Hitler with anything resembling a weapon. A small pistol might have been smuggled in, but getting close enough to be certain of a fatal shot would have been nearly impossible.
That’s why the conspirators settled on explosives.