The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
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| Author | William L. Shirer |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | History, Nonfiction |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster, Inc. |
| Publication date | 1960 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
| Pages | 1,245 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-671-72868-7 (1990 paperback) |
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by journalist William L. Shirer was the first definitive history of Nazi Germany in English.
Shirer, an American radio reporter for CBS, covered Germany for many years until December 1940, when increasing Nazi censorship of his broadcasts made work impossible for him. This 1,245 page book, first published in 1960 by Simon & Schuster, Inc. and still in print, colors its historically accurate information with denunciation of Nazism and tyranny.
The book is based largely on the captured documents of the Third Reich, including the diaries of propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels and General Franz Halder. Additional major sources include testimony and evidence from the Nuremberg trials, British Foreign Office reports, and the detailed diary of Ciano, Mussolini's son-in-law and Italian Foreign Minister. Other sources include confidential speeches, conference reports, taped transcripts of telephone conversations, as well as Shirer's personal recollections during the six years he reported on the Third Reich as a journalist.
At the time the book was written, only a part of the diaries of Goebbels was known. Other documents have been discovered and many documents have since become available from Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union.
The book was adapted into a television program for the ABC network in 1966. It was one of the first programs to be marketed as a miniseries.
Contents |
[edit] Structure
The book is broken up into six sub-books spanning 31 chapters and numerous sub-sections as follows:
FOREWORD
BOOK ONE: THE RISE OF ADOLF HITLER
1. BIRTH OF THE THIRD REICH
The Advent of Adolf Hitler
The Early Life of Hitler
"The Saddest Period of My Life"
The Budding Ideas of Adolf Hitler
2. BIRTH OF THE NAZI PARTY
The Beginning of the Nazi Party
Advent of the "Fuehrer"
3. VERSAILLES, WEIMAR AND THE BEER HALL PUTSCH
The Shadow of Versailles
A House Divided
Revolt in Bavaria
The Beer Hall Putsch
Trial for Treason
4. THE MIND OF HITLER AND THE ROOTS OF THE THIRD REICH
The Historical Roots of the Third Reich
The Intellectual Roots of the Third Reich
The Strange Life and Works of H. S. Chamberlain
BOOK TWO: TRIUMPH AND CONSOLIDATION
5. THE ROAD TO POWER: 1925–31
The Emergence of Paul Joseph Goebbels
An Interlude of Rest and Romance for Adolf Hitler
The Opportunities of the Depression
6. THE LAST DAYS OF THE REPUBLIC: 1931–33
Hitler Against Hindenburg
Fiasco of Franz von Papen
Schleicher: The Last Chancellor of the Republic
7. THE NAZIFICATION OF GERMANY: 1933–34
The Reichstag Fire
Gleichschaltung: The "Co-ordination" of the Reich
"No Second Revolution"
The Beginnings of Nazi Foreign Policy
The Blood Purge of June 30, 1934
The Death of Hindenburg
8. LIFE IN THE THIRD REICH: 1933–37
The Persecution of the Christian Churches
The Nazification of Culture
The Control of Press, Radio, Films
Education in the Third Reich
The Farmer in the Third Reich
The Economy of the Third Reich
The Serfdom of Labor
Government in the Third Reich
BOOK THREE: THE ROAD TO WAR
9. THE FIRST STEPS: 1934–37
The Breaching of Versailles
A Coup in the Rhineland
1937: "No Surprises"
The Fateful Decision of November 5, 1937
10. STRANGE, FATEFUL INTERLUDE: THE FALL OF BLOMBERG, FRITSCH, NEURATH AND SCHACHT
The Fall of Field Marshall von Blomberg
The Fall of General Freiherr Werner von Fritsch
11. ANSCHLUSS: THE RAPE OF AUSTRIA
The Meeting at Berchtesgaden: February 12, 1938
The Four Weeks' Agony: February 12–March 11, 1938
The Collapse of Schuschnigg
12. THE ROAD TO MUNICH
The First Crisis: May 1938
Wavering of the Generals
Birth of a Conspiracy Against Hitler
Chamberlain at Berchtesgaden: September 15, 1938
Chamberlain at Godesberg: September 22–23
The Eleventh Hour
"Black Wednesday" and the Halder Plot Against Hitler
The Surrender at Munich: September 29–30, 1938
The Consequences of Munich
13. CZECHOSLOVAKIA CEASES TO EXIST
The Week of the Broken Glass
Slovakia "Wins" Its "Independence"
The Ordeal of Dr. Hácha
14. THE TURN OF POLAND
A Slight Aggression By the By
The Heat on Poland
Case White
Hitler's Reply to Roosevelt
The Pact of Steel
Hitler Burns His Boats: May 23, 1939
The Intervention of Russia: II
Plans for Total War
The Intervention of Russia: III
The Hesitation of Germany's Allies
Ciano at Salzburg and Obersalzburg: August 11, 12, 13
15. THE NAZI-SOVIET PACT
The Military Conference at Obersalzburg: August 14
The Nazi-Soviet Talks: August 15–21, 1939
The Military Conference of August 22, 1939
Allied Stalemate in Moscow
Ribbentrop in Moscow: August 23, 1939
16. THE LAST DAYS OF PEACE
Mussolini Gets Cold Feet
Joy and Confusion of the "Conspirators"
The Last Six Days of Peace
Germany and Great Britain at the Eleventh Hour
The Last Day of Peace
17. THE LAUNCHING OF WORLD WAR II
The Last-Minute Intervention of Mussolini
The Polish War Becomes World War II
BOOK FOUR: WAR: EARLY VICTORIES AND THE TURNING POINT
18. THE FALL OF POLAND
The Russians Invade Poland
19. SITZKRIEG IN THE WEST
The Sinking of the Athenia
Hitler Proposes Peace
The Zossen "Conspiracy" to Overthrow Hitler
A Nazi Kidnapping and a Beerhouse Bomb
Hitler Talks to His Generals
Nazi Terror in Poland: First Phase
Friction Between the Totalitarians
20. THE CONQUEST OF DENMARK AND NORWAY
The Emergence of Vidkun Quisling
Hitler Meets with Sumner Welles and Mussolini
The Conspirators Again Frustrated
The Taking of Denmark and Norway
The Norwegians Resist
The Battles for Norway
21. VICTORY IN THE WEST
The Rival Plans
The Six Weeks' War: May 10–June 25, 1940
The Conquest of the Netherlands
The Fall of Belgium and the Trapping of the Anglo-French Armies
The Capitulation of King Leopold
Miracle at Dunkirk
The Collapse of France
The Duce Plunges His Small Dagger into France's Back
The Second Armistice at Compiégne
Hitler Plays for Peace
22. OPERATION SEA LION: THE THWARTED INVASION OF BRITAIN
The Battle of Britain
If the Invasion Had Succeeded
Postscript: The Nazi Plot to Kidnap the Duke and Duchess of Windsor
23. BARBAROSSA: THE TURN OF RUSSIA
Molotov in Berlin
Six Months of Frustration
"The World Will Hold Its Breath!"
Balkan Prelude
The Planning of the Terror
The Flight of Rudolf Hess
The Plight of the Kremlin
24. A TURN OF THE TIDE
The Great Drive on Moscow
25. THE TURN OF THE UNITED STATES
"Avoid Incidents with the U.S.A.!"
Japan Plays Its Own Game
On the Eve of Pearl Harbor
Hitler Declares War
Hitler in the Reichstag: December 11
26. THE GREAT TURNING POINT: 1942—STALINGRAD AND EL ALAMEIN
The Conspirators Come Back to Life
The Last Great German Offensives of the War
The German Summer Offensive in Russia: 1942
The First Blow: El Alamein and the Anglo-American Landings
Disaster at Stalingrad
BOOK FIVE: BEGINNING OF THE END
27. THE NEW ORDER
The Nazi Plunder of Europe
Slave Labor in the New Order
The Prisoners of War
Nazi Terror in the Conquered Lands
The "Final Solution"
The Extermination Camps
"The Warsaw Ghetto Is No More"
The Medical Experiments
The Death of Heydrich and the End of Lidice
28. THE FALL OF MUSSOLINI
29. THE ALLIED INVASION OF WESTERN EUROPE AND THE ATTEMPT TO KILL HITLER
Operation Flash
The Mission of Count von Stauffenberg
The Anglo-American Invasion, June 6, 1944
The Conspiracy at the Eleventh Hour
The Coup of July 20, 1944
July 20, 1944
Bloody Vengeance
BOOK SIX: THE FALL OF THE THIRD REICH
30. THE CONQUEST OF GERMANY
Hitler's Last Desperate Gamble
The Collapse of the German Armies
31. GOETTERDAEMMERUNG: THE LAST DAYS OF THE THIRD REICH
Hitler's Last Great Decision
Goering and Himmler Try to Take Over
The Last Two Visitors to the Bunker
Hitler's Last Will and Testament
The Death of Hitler and His Bride
The End of the Third Reich
A BRIEF EPILOGUE
NOTES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX
[edit] Criticism
Upon publication, the book was met with criticism from some members of the scholarly community for being more popular history than academic. Elizabeth Wiskemann, for example, stated in a 1961 review that the book was "not sufficiently scholarly nor sufficiently well written to satisfy more academic demands"[1], and William O. Shanahan in 1962 wrote that the book's "narrative does not rise above the most commonplace level of understanding"[2].
The book also includes several speculations (clearly marked as such), such as a footnote that theorizes that Heinrich Müller, an SS chieftain, later went to serve in the NKVD, for which Shirer had no evidence.
[edit] Publication
| The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Documentary |
| Running time | 120 minutes |
| Director(s) | Mel Stuart |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Lalo Schifrin |
| Country of origin | |
| Release date(s) | 1968 |
| IMDb profile | |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
The book has been reprinted many times since it was published in 1960. Current in-print editions are:
- ISBN 0-671-72868-7 (Simon & Schuster, US, 1990 paperback)
- ISBN 0-09-942176-3 (Arrow, UK, 1990 paperback)
- Folio Society Special Book Club Edition (2004 Hardback)
[edit] See also
- Berlin Diary
- List of Adolf Hitler books
- The Collapse of the Third Republic, also by Shirer
- List of Holocaust films
[edit] References
- ^ Elizabeth Wiskemann, International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-), Vol. 37, No. 2. (Apr., 1961), pp. 234-235. "It is too long and cumbersome...it is not sufficiently scholarly nor sufficiently well written to satisfy more academic demands. Mr Shirer, has, however compiled a manual ...which will certainly prove useful. "
- ^ William O. Shanahan, The American Historical Review, Vol. 68, No. 1. (Oct., 1962), pp. 126-128. [1]. "Shirer's history of the Third Reich is woefully inadequate. Shirer's monumental narrative does not rise above the most commonplace level of understanding. The inadequacies of Shirer's account could be dismissed...if his book had not found an enormous audience. Shirer's [writing] facility.. does not compensate for this book's essential weakness as history."
[edit] External links
- Digitalized version of the 1960 edition at the University of Michigan Digital General Collection
- Review of the book by Bryan Hiatt
- Online WWII references Online collection of many original WWII documents, including some of Shirer's sources (e.g. British/French "Color" books, captured German Foreign Office docs, various Nuremberg and NCA documents).
- Third Reich Ruins Geoff Walden's then/now photo-essay collection of many sites mentioned in Shirer's book, early Hilter locations featured.
- The reception of William L. Shirer's 'The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich' in the United States and West Germany, 1960-62 (fee-based jstor link). by Gavriel D. Rosenfeld, in: Journal of Contemporary History v29.n1 (Jan 1994): pp95-128.
ja:第三帝国の興亡
