I offered my hand to France and England at the time for an understanding. You still recall the answer I received. My arguments against the nonsense of pursuing this war, on the certainty of gaining nothing, even under the most favorable of circumstances, and of losing much, were mocked and scoffed at, or passed over. […] All of this - as I said - need not have happened. For peace was all I asked of France and England in October. But the gentlemen war profiteers wanted a continuation of this war at all cost. They have it now. […] In this hour I feel compelled, standing before my conscience, to direct yet another appeal to reason in England. I believe I can do this as I am not asking for something as the vanquished, but rather, as the victor, I am speaking in the name of reason. I see no compelling reason which could force the continuation of this war.

Adolf Hitler (Chancellor of the German Reich) “A Last Appeal to Reason by Adolf Hitler. Speech before the Reichstag”, 1940 (The translated speech was dropped as leaflets over London. Germany made multiple peace proposals since the beginning of the war and offered to return conquered territory)