{"id":1335,"date":"2014-11-12T00:20:12","date_gmt":"2014-11-12T05:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/?p=1335"},"modified":"2014-11-12T00:20:12","modified_gmt":"2014-11-12T05:20:12","slug":"map-of-the-week-hitlers-map-of-south-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/2014\/11\/12\/map-of-the-week-hitlers-map-of-south-america\/","title":{"rendered":"Map of the Week: Hitler’s Map of South America"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Have we ever wondered what WWII would have been like if South America was involved? \u00a0This map was created sometime in the late 1930s or the early 1940s and depicts a Nazi plan to invade South America. \u00a0The cartographers, however, were likely not German and the map is probably a British forgery. \u00a0Nonetheless, this map was still played a pivotal part in World War II and was an influential resource for the Americans. \u00a0Right away my attention was caught with the new names and larger regions on South America and the lines going around and through the country. There is also a German phrase on the bottom right portion of the map is translated to say \u201cAir transport network of the United States of South America main lines\u201d which telling the audience that this map had an aerial purpose. \u00a0Given the context of the time period and the complexity of the map, I think America should have been alarmed about the preparedness of a potential German invasion.<\/p>\n

Hitler\u2019s viewpoints were outlandish and absurd, so his depiction of South America during World War II shouldn\u2019t come as a complete surprise. \u00a0However people during this time really thought Hitler could take over the world, and given the likelihood that this map is a British forgery only further tells us that this plan was realistic idea in the eyes of many. The cartographers consolidated the thirteen countries of South America into five different regions: Neuspanien, Guyana, Chile, Argentinien, and Brasilien. \u00a0This plan was similar to Hitler\u2019s plan of taking over Europe. \u00a0Separating countries into larger regions would have made it easier for a Nazi invasion.<\/p>\n

The Neuspanien (New Spain) region is not named after a South American country like the other regions which tells us that this region is different from the rest. \u00a0The cartographers may have done this because Hitler recognized Spain\u2019s region not as one they wanted to take over. \u00a0The Nazi\u2019s viewed Spain as a loose ally in the war, and the aerial routes into and coming out of Neuspanien would support that premise. \u00a0The Neuspanien region also has an important geographical location in context to the war because it is below the United States and positioned in between them and Europe. \u00a0However this map makes invading and taking over a country look easy. \u00a0The map assumes that all the aerial routes are open and that the Nazi\u2019s can easily take over these places. \u00a0Hitler perceived the world to be catered to his wishes, meaning that he thought invasion and takeover were just going to happen if they made a plan an executed. \u00a0Too many important events in the world had occurred for a man and his army to just shape the world as they wished.<\/p>\n

The aerial routes illustrate that Hitler and his government have a plan of attack in South America and they show the German influence and power in the world. \u00a0This was a time where air travel was advancing rapidly and the geographic imagination of many people were being displayed. The routes show how the German\u2019s and their allies will be able to travel and transport supplies in South America. \u00a0The Germans would be able to move easily within the country, making them ready to fight and expand their empire. \u00a0The map has many routes going along the coast of each region, with only a few routes that travel horizontally through the continent. \u00a0This tells us that the Germans could move within South America but that they would try to avoid conflict by traveling on the coast of the continent. \u00a0Those routes would also make it easier to travel to different continents like North America and Europe.<\/p>\n

This release of this map influenced FDR\u2019s decision for the United States to enter the War. \u00a0FDR saw that Hitler wanted to invade South America and he saw their preparation level with a map of air travel routes already in place. He knew that South America could be a very important player in the war due to its geographical location. When he revealed the map in a speech he said, \u201cThat map, my friends, makes clear the Nazi design not only against South America but against the United States as well.” \u00a0This obviously alarmed the public right away. \u00a0They now had visual evidence of a Nazi invasion and public sentiment changed regarding the war. This was an important thing for FDR to say because he knew that there would be an emotional factor for Americans now. \u00a0Seeing a planned invasion so close to United States borders, with the possibility of the invasion moving into the US, frightened many Americans. \u00a0Seeing the atrocities happening in Europe, Americans knew they needed the keep the US safe. \u00a0FDR was gaining the public support he need and it ultimately helped him intervene in the war.<\/p>\n

This map still remains an important artifact from WWII. \u00a0This unconventional map showed us a possible Nazi plan of invasion of South America. \u00a0The map\u2019s aerial routes were advanced and show the Nazi\u2019s were prepared and meant business. \u00a0The map also heightened the American sentiment which helped FDR decide to enter the war. \u00a0The vital role that this map played in WWII only further tell us how important maps can be.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have we ever wondered what WWII would have been like if South America was involved? \u00a0This map was created sometime in the late 1930s or the early 1940s and depicts a Nazi plan to invade South America. \u00a0The cartographers, however, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2108,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21024],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1335","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-maps-of-the-week"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1335","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2108"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1335"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1335\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1335"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1335"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/livesofmaps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1335"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}