Three historical periods always have fascinated me and I usually will read anything published with regard to them. Photographs From the Last Quiet Places on Earth. Shirers narrative supports the former but the latter view has many proponents. Start by marking The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany as Want to Read: Error rating book. Washington, DC 20024-2126 "Berlin Diary" also by Shirer is a good preface to this book. .MsoChpDefault It is very long and very depressing. mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; One relevant piece of history I have not seen mentioned in the context of this argument is the German colonization of South-West Africa, now Namibia. (3.11.178). This book begins at the end of WWI when Germany was embarrassed and sanctioned mercilessly by the allied powers. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Hitler was still a youth when he came under the spell of one of his teachers at Linz, Leopold Poetsch, and Shirer brings forth from the shadows of amnesia this nearly forgotten figure, an acolyte of the Pan-German League, who may have been the most decisive in shapingdistortingthe pliant young Adolf Hitler with his dazzling eloquence, which carr[ied] us away with him, as Hitler describes Poetschs effect in Mein Kampf. The result is a monumental study that has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of one of the most frightening chapters in the history of mankind. He wraps things up in 1937, the year that Hitler announced to his top Army and Navy brass that he intended to wage war against Austria and Czechoslovakia. While its length may be daunting for many readers, Shirer's analysis of the Reich argues that there are three entities that were duped at various points, leading to the success and eventual co. Shirer's key piece of historical literature on Nazi Germany draws not only on a plethora of sources, but also on key documents from within the Third Reich. Hitler's and Schuschnigg's speeches ignited demonstrations and riots in Austria's streets. Reprinted by permission of the publisher, Simon & Schuster. In fact, Shirer had a more encompassing objective, which was to link the obscene criminality of individuals to what was a communal frenzythe hatred that drove an entire nation, the Reich itself. As Shirer's section title announces, Shirer now offers an account of the fateful meeting between the Austrian Chancellor Schuschnigg and the German Fuehrer in February 1938. He shot himself in his underground Bunker as the Soviet Army advanced on Berlin. There was Charlemagnes First Reich.