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This is the first of a comprehensive ten-volume history of the Second World War, written from the German perspective and translated for the first time into English. The volumes so far published have achieved international acclaim as a major contribution to historical study. Under the auspices of the Militärgeschichtliches Forschungsamt (Research Institute for Military History), a team of renowned historians has combined a full synthesis of existing material with the latest research to produce what will be the definitive history of the Second World War.
This volume, The Build-up of German Aggression, surveys the forces both within and outside Weimar Germany which paved the way for Hitler. The authors examine the systematic preparation for war, from the outset of Nazi rule, through rearmament, economic autarky, diplomacy, and the penetration of German society at all levels. They consider the extent to which the movement can be regarded as a continuation of historic German nationalism; the limits of Hitler's involvement with the army and big business; and the lack of coordination between the administration and the armed services. The book demonstrates that, despite Nazi propaganda and in stark contrast to 1914, most Germans in 1939 opposed a war which they nevertheless endured with such tragic consequences.
Intensively researched and documented, Germany and the Second World War is an undertaking of unparalleled scope and authority. It will prove indispensable to all historians of the twentieth century.
List of contents
- Introduction
- Part 1: Ideology, Propaganda, and Internal Politics as Preconditions of the War Policy of the Third Reich
- I: Militarist and Pacific Ideologies in the Last Phase of the Weimar Republic
- II: Propaganda Mobilization for War
- III: Organising Society in Preparation for War
- Part II: The National Socialist Economy in Preparation for War
- I: From International Economy to Large-Area Economy
- II: The National Socialist War Economy
- III: Job-Creation and Armament Boom
- IV: The National Socialist Economy Under the 'New Plan'
- V: The War Economy Under the Four-Year Plan
- VI: Rearmament Economy and Agression
- VII: The Third Reich's Economic Readiness for War
- Part III: The Rearmament of the Wehrmacht
- I: The Reichswehr and National Defence
- II: The Rearmament of the Individual Services, 1933-1939
- III: The Wehrmacht of the Third Reich
- Part IV: Foreing Policy and Preparation for War
- I: Hitler's 'Programme' and the Problem of Continuity in German Foreign Policy
- II: The Great Powers and the Aspiring Great Power
- III: Bilateral Foreign Policy
- IV: Chances of Hegemony: Stresa and the Break-Up of European Solidarity
- V: The Road to war, 1963-1938
- VI: 1939: The Initial Position
- Conclusions
About the author
Hans-Erich Volkmann, geboren 1938 in Montabaur, Direktor und Professor am Militärgeschichtlichen Forschungsamt, Professor für Neuere und Neueste Geschichte an der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg i.Br.§Veröffentlichungen u.a.: Die NS-Wirtschaft in Vorbereitung des Krieges, in: Ursachen und Voraussetzungen der deutschen Kriegspolitik, Stuttgart 1979 (= Das Deutsche Reich und der Zweite Weltkrieg, Band 1), S. 177-370; als Hrsg.: Ende des Dritten Reiches - Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges. Ein perspektivische Rückschau, München, Zürich 1995; als Hrsg. gemeinsam mit Rolf-Dieter Müller: Die Wehrmacht. Mythos und Realität, München 1999.
Wolfram Wette, geboren 1940, studierte Politikwissenschaft, Geschichte und Philosophie, 1971 Dr. phil., 1991 Habilitation, 1971-1995 am Militärgeschichtlichen Forschungsamt (MGFA) in Freiburg i. Br.; seit 1998 apl. Professor für Neueste Geschichte am Historischen Seminar der Universität Freiburg i. Br.. Mitbegründer und mehrfach Sprecher des Arbeitskreises Historische Friedensforschung (AHF), Mitherausgeber der Reihe "Geschichte und Frieden" und des Jahrbuchs "für Historische Friedensforschung"
Summary
The first volume of the Germany and the Second World War series, this volume surveys the forces both within and outside Weimar Germany which paved the way for Hitler, examining the systematic preparation for war from the outset of Nazi rule.
Additional text
'worth waiting for ... its contributors ... do a truly commendable job of analysing the receptivity of Germans to the martial spirit ... Handsomely produced and smoothly translated ... the first two installments of Germany and the Second World War can be warmly recommended to the broad readership they deserve.'
Marilyn Shevin Coetzee, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, History, Summer 1992
Report
From reviews of the German edition: `The tone of the work is cool, magisterial and convincing ... this is a work of the highest importance, not only for military historians, but for all students of world history in the 20th century.' Michael Howard, English Historical Review
