Interesting to note how many others share a curiosity about this period.
But something tells me 1940 will be a less "interesting" year -- after all, President Roosevelt is working for peace. The Pope is working for peace. Mussolini is calling for peace. Stalin got a bloody nose in Finland. Neville Chamberlain's government is talking through many different channels about peace feelers from Germany. Even some German Army officers are planning to overthrow Hitler and request a negotiated peace.
So, no doubt, in 1940 at leasst one of these peace efforts will pay off, and what could have been a very deadly war -- resulting in the deaths of thousands, possibly tens of thousands -- will be avoided, and sanity will be restored to civilized men everywhere.
What do you think? ;-)
I wish I shared your optimism. Roosevelt and Pius XII working for peace is all very well, but this Hitler character is a wild card. I just don't trust him. He acts as though he doesn't really want peace at all. And he seems to be firmly in control of the German government. He could launch an attack against the Maginot line any time now. Even though it would probably be suicidal, it would be very costly in human terms for the French as well as the Germans. With Goering's air force, or Luftwaffe, as they call it over there, supporting a "Blitzkrieg" attack on France, he might just get lucky and prevail. He has had remarkable good fortune so far, has he not? If that happens he is just a short hop across the Channel from Great Britain. It is not out of the question that next year by this time Hitler could be the new master in both Paris and London. What will FDR do then, do you suppose?