jul 20, 1944 - The July Plot

Description:

On this day, German officers unhappy with the Nazi high command after the results of D-Day attempted an assassination of Hitler. They planned to kill Hitler then use the German Reserve Army to take control of the Third Reich.

Claus von Stauffenberg (pictured) headed and executed the plan. He called a meeting with Hitler and in his briefcase had plastic explosives on an acid fuse. Minutes before the bomb exploded, Stauffenberg left the room on the pretense of making a phone call.

By pure luck, a few seconds before the bomb exploded, one of the officers moved the bomb behind a thick table leg. In the end, 4 people died, with Hitler not being among them, but he easily could have been one of the fatalities.

At this late stage of the war, a change in leadership might have saved the Germans. As we know from history, Hitler's policies lead to defeat, and so a new war plan may have surprised the Allies enough such that the Germans might have won the war.