The Axis powers, consisting of Germany, Italy, and Japan, seemed invincible in 1941, having achieved swift and decisive victories in World War 2. By late 1941, Adolf Hitler's empire stretched across Europe, Russia, North Africa, and the Mediterranean, with a population greater than that of the United States. Japan's empire was even larger.
How to Lose a War
A fresh perspective on the story of 1939-1945, the second world war, is offered in 'How to Lose a War'.