These extraordinary memoirs--written by German Field-Marshal Wilhelm Keitel in the six weeks before he was hanged in Nuremberg for war crimes--offers readers an unparalleled, insider's view of the Wehrmacht, Hitler, and the events that made WWII the most devastating conflict of modern times.
These extraordinary memoirs—written by German Field-Marshal Wilhelm keitel (1882-1946) in the six weeks before he was hung in Nuremberg for war crimes—offers readers an unparalleled insider's view of the blitzkrieg against Poland, the conquest of France, and the brutal campaign against the Soviet Union. Most startling is his account of the final eighteen days of the Thrid Reich, which he personally directed.
The renowned WWII historian’s in-depth biography of the Nazi military commander who played a key role in the invasions of Poland, France and Russia. Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt was one of the most important German commanders of the Second World War. He served on both the Western and Eastern Fronts of World War I and rose steadily through the ranks of the German army before retiring in 1938. Then, only a year later, he was recalled to help execute Hitler’s invasion of Poland. He played a leading part in this and the subsequent invasion of France. Thereafter he commanded Army Group South in the assault on Russia before being sacked at the end of 1941. Recalled again, Rundstedt was made Commander-in-Chief West and as such faced the 1944 Allied invasion of France, but was removed that July. He resumed his post in September 1944 and had overall responsibility for the December 1944 Ardennes counter-offensive. Captured by the Americans, he gave testimony as a defense witness at Nuremberg. Though he was charged with war crimes, he was spared trial due to his ill health.
The Eastern Front, 1941. Operation Barbarossa. HitlerÃ-s armies advance into the Soviet Union to conquer Lebensraum in the East. Among the corps commanders is General Gotthard Heinrici, a career soldier, a highly decorated First World War veteran, who observed and recorded in his diary and letters the unprecedented harshness of the German conduct of the campaign. With remarkable candour he described his experiences at the front and the everyday lives of the troops under his command - and the appalling conditions in which the war was fought. In his writings he revealed his growing doubts about Hitler's strategy and his mounting concern as the Wehrmacht was implicated in war crimes and the first actions of the Holocaust. This selection from Heinrici's diaries and letters, edited and with a perceptive introduction by Johannes HÂrter, gives a fascinating inside view of the fighting on the Eastern Front from a commander's perspective. It is also provides an unusual insight into the feelings, attitudes and acute anxieties of one of the Wehrmacht's most able generals in the midst of a brutal campaign.
Commander of the U-boat fleet, Supreme Naval Commander, and finally Hitler's successor in the last days of the Third Reich, Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz (1891-1980) has been condemned as a Nazi and praised as one of the most brilliant and honorable military leaders of the war. His "wolf-pack" tactics resulted in a handful of U-boats sinking 14.5 million tons and nearly deciding the Battle of the Atlantic. Sentenced to ten years at the Nuremberg Trials, Doenitz wrote his memoirs upon his release. In a clear firm style he discusses the planning and execution of the U-boat campaign; the controversial sinking of the Laconia; America's "neutrality" before its entry into the war; the Normandy invasion; the July 1944 bomb plot; his encounters with Raeder, Goring, Speer, Himmler, and Hitler; as well as his own brief tenure as the last Fuhrer. Introduced by two acclaimed historians who knew Doenitz well, this invaluable work allows the reader to view the war at sea through the periscope's eye.
In the Third Reich, political dissidents were not the only ones liable to be punished for their crimes. Their parents, siblings and relatives also risked reprisals. This concept - known as Sippenhaft – was based in ideas of blood and purity. This definitive study surveys the threats, fears and infliction of this part of the Nazi system of terror.
Bestselling historian Andrew Nagorski “brings keen psychological insights into the world leaders involved” (Booklist) during 1941, the critical year in World War II when Hitler’s miscalculations and policy of terror propelled Churchill, FDR, and Stalin into a powerful new alliance that defeated Nazi Germany. In early 1941, Hitler’s armies ruled most of Europe. Churchill’s Britain was an isolated holdout against the Nazi tide, but German bombers were attacking its cities and German U-boats were attacking its ships. Stalin was observing the terms of the Nazi-Soviet Pact, and Roosevelt was vowing to keep the United States out of the war. Hitler was confident that his aim of total victory was within reach. But by the end of 1941, all that changed. Hitler had repeatedly gambled on escalation and lost: by invading the Soviet Union and committing a series of disastrous military blunders; by making mass murder and terror his weapons of choice, and by rushing to declare war on the United States after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. Britain emerged with two powerful new allies—Russia and the United States. By then, Germany was doomed to defeat. Nagorski illuminates the actions of the major characters of this pivotal year as never before. 1941: The Year Germany Lost the War is a stunning and “entertaining” (The Wall Street Journal) examination of unbridled megalomania versus determined leadership. It also reveals how 1941 set the Holocaust in motion, and presaged the postwar division of Europe, triggering the Cold War. 1941 was “the year that shaped not only the conflict of the hour but the course of our lives—even now” (New York Times bestselling author Jon Meacham).