Germany's industrial gamble in the Atlantic

Germany's declaration can be examined as a gamble over industrial capacity. British and imperial infrastructure had proved more durable and less accessible to German attack than expected. American industry and pressure in the Atlantic were also becoming factors before formal belligerency. In the reasoning compared here with Japan's decision for war, continuing without fighting America promised eventual defeat, while fighting offered a very small chance of changing the outcome. That was the theory behind the gamble, rather than proof that defeat without a declaration was inevitable. The criticism is that declaring another war added complications when the unfavorable balance called for negotiation.