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William L. Shirer

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The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich Paperback – December 1, 1991

by William L. Shirer (Author)

4.7 9,974 ratings

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Before the Nazies could destroy the files, famed foreign correspondent and historian William L. Shirer sifted through the massive self-documentation of the Third Reich, to create a monumental study that has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of one of the most frightening chapters in the history of mankind--now in a special 30th anniversary edition.
"One of the most important works of history of our time."
THE NEW YORK TIMES

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

William L. Shirer's THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH is a monumental study of the 20th Century's most frightening moments. Now, 53 years after the end of World War II, it may seem incredible that our most valued institutions, and way of life, were threatened by the menace that Hitler and the Third Reich represented. Shirer's description of events and the cast of characters who played such pivotal roles in defining the course Europe was to take is unforgettable.

Benefiting from his many years as a reporter, and thus a personal observer of the rise of Nazi Germany, and availing himself of some of the 485 tons of documents from the German Foreign Office, captured by the First Army, as well as countless other diaries, phone transcriptions, and other written records, meticulously kept at every level by the Germans, Shirer has put together a brutally objective account of how Hitler wrested political control of Germany, and planned and executed his 6 year quest to dominate the world, only at the end, to see Germany go down in flames.

The combination of personal recollection and amassing of historical evidence distinguishes this book as one of the great historical works of any time. For instance, he recounts that, from his apartment in Plosslgasse, in Vienna, he personally witnessed how perhaps half of Vienna's 180,000 Jews bargained their way to freedom in 1938.

Shirer explains that Hitler believed that France and England were too weak to pose much of a threat to his ambitions to subjugate Czechoslovakia, and later Poland. The momentary relief of Russia as a threat to his domination of Europe as a result of the flurry of diplomatic activity that proceeded his invasion of Poland is fascinating. There is no relief, throughout his narrative, of the brutality of Hitler and such a large contingent of Germans who populate this narrative.

Although 1600 pages long, this is such a richly rewarding experience for anyone who wants to come to grips with the mysterious question as to how this menace to civilization ever came into being, much less was sustained for as long as it was. The answer, unfortunately, is that most of Germany, for a whole host of reasons, embraced Nazism and the fanaticism that Hitler engendered.

For another book that deals with this problem, why so much of Germany lent its support to Hitler, I heartily recommend HITLER'S WILLING EXECUTIONER'S, by Daniel Goldhagen, published by Vintage Books. Although filled with perhaps more statistical details then the non-professional historian would need, this book helps to adumbrate the themes in Shirer's great book.

George Davidson, Director of Production, The Ballantine Publishing Group

From the Inside Flap

azies could destroy the files, famed foreign correspondent and historian William L. Shirer sifted through the massive self-documentation of the Third Reich, to create a monumental study that has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of one of the most frightening chapters in the history of mankind--now in a special 30th anniversary edition.
"One of the most important works of history of our time."
THE NEW YORK TIMES

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ballantine Books (December 1, 1991)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 1600 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0449219771
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0449219775
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.45 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.2 x 2.2 x 7 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,645,715 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,464 in German History (Books)
- #15,284 in World War II History (Books)

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William L. Shirer

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William Lawrence Shirer (February 23, 1904 – December 28, 1993) was an American journalist and war correspondent. He wrote The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, a history of Nazi Germany that has been read by many and cited in scholarly works for more than 50 years. Originally a foreign correspondent for the Chicago Tribune and the International News Service, Shirer was the first reporter hired by Edward R. Murrow for what would become a CBS radio team of journalists known as "Murrow's Boys." He became known for his broadcasts from Berlin, from the rise of the Nazi dictatorship through the first year of World War II (1940). With Murrow, he organized the first broadcast world news roundup, a format still followed by news broadcasts.

Shirer wrote more than a dozen books beside The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, including Berlin Diary (published in 1941); The Collapse of the Third Republic (1969), which drew on his experience living and working in France from 1925 to 1933; and a three-volume autobiography, Twentieth Century Journey (1976 to 1990). His brother was an analyst for the Securities and Exchange Commission and his niece, Jean Ingold, was an employee of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia. Photo by US State Department [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

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D. Safir

Simply a masterpiece of history about one of the darkest times in man's life on this planet.

Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2018

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This is an incredible book. I have not ready any other histories of Nazi Germany, but I can't imagine another more comprehensive account of the horror that was the Third Reich. This was not an easy read. I started this early in my life and, for reasons I don't recollect, never got into it. That was a long time ago. I finally decided that I must read this, if only for the fact that my family went through this and beloved members of my family lost their lives to this. I can't say this was a totally enjoyable read, but that was not the purpose. In reading this book I began to get a clearer understanding of how such an atrocity could have come to exist. There are many ironies in the book. If Hitler's grandfather had not belatedly married his grandmother, he would have remained Adolf Schicklgruber and certainly would not have achieved any of the power that he did. And the plots to overthrow him, from within his own ranks, time and again failed, once only by the fact of a detonator failing to go off. There are so many fascinating things to learn in this book. You do not have to be a history buff, only to have the need to understand how such an abomination could happen. There are many names, too many for me to keep track of. And I finally stopped reading every footnote. If I was given a test on this material, I probably would flunk it. But reading it, not as an obligation, but for an understanding of this bleak moment in our world's history, it is a masterpiece. Taken from the actual written diaries and source material from the Nazis, themselves, this is the ultimate book on Hitler, the Nazis and the Third Reich. If you choose to read this book, be prepared for an extremely detailed account of every correspondence, letter, speech, meeting that went on with each move and conjecture in this almost chess game of a war. It can get tedious. This is not an action novel. Sometimes you want to yell out, "Come on! Get on with the action!" But this is a history, not a novel. You have to understand that and go with it. Also, I started to get annoyed that there was so much on the war and nothing about the concentration camp atrocities and the genocide that was taking place. Mr. Shirer decided to put that all in one chapter about three quarters of the way through the book. So, it is not left out. Just put in its own special chapter. One glaring omission, which I cannot understand is that there is not one mention of Dr. Mengele, the most infamous doctor of the Third Reich, although there is a sub-chapter on the doctors and their cruel medical experiments. Maybe someone can explain this to me. All in all, this is a masterpiece and a must-read for anyone who wants to know about this event in history!

12 people found this helpful

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Minnie I.

Sixty Years Later, This Book Remains Chilling and Foreboding

Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2019

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After visiting a reunified Germany, I began to wonder how such intelligent, organized, proper people could have fallen for the myth of Hitler. So I decided to read this book. And although the book doesn't specifically address this issue, even sixty years later, it provides insights into the ways a population (and the world) can be hoodwinked. As such, it also provides a stark warning to the 21st century about leadership, charisma, propaganda (the control of the media), courage, and critical thinking.

Shirer, unlike so many of today's "journalistic" books, provides a narrative that is probably 90 percent objective. Throughout the book, Shirer bases his reporting on sources captured after the Nazi defeat. These include memoranda, entries from personal diaries, and even some one-on-one interviews with former Nazis. You can see the era's bias such as those against homosexuals (often referred to as "perverts") come into play, but given WHEN the book was written, this is not unexpected nor does it diminish the significance of the report. When Shirer expressed a personal opinion, like those from his diary, he made it blatantly clear that these were his impressions. So what I appreciated most about this book is that Shirer cited almost everything he wrote about (I wish they had used letters or numbers for the chapter endnotes instead of asterisks in the Kindle edition) and often included exact verbiage (translated from German, of course) from the documents he reviewed.

While his coverage of the Fuhrer and his growing megalomania is frightening enough, I found that his reporting on Joseph Goebbels' role in creating an atmosphere of belief in the Nazis in Germany the most frightening--and foreboding--of all. Goebbels understood from the getgo that people believe what they want to believe, and he used this understanding effectively. Goebbels controlled ALL media, all messaging, all symbolism for the Reich. As a media professional myself, I was stunned at his ability, as early as the 1930s, to understand the power of popular media. Not only did he use thuggery to silence opposing views, but his media savvy in movie-making, radio broadcasts, timing, event-staging, and even bunting were used to inspire a demoralized population into believing or at least not contradicting the unthinkable. He successfully usurped music, philosophy, and even religion to create a mass delusion among the German people. In my opinion, this may have been one of the main reasons a decent population eventually was caught up in the whole hegemony of Hitler. Certainly, there are other important contributing factors--the economy, a weak government, the depression, etc.--but Goebbels leveraged all of this things to create the big lie that others, particularly the Jews and the Slavs--were responsible for the fate of Germany. To me, this insight has the most relevance for today when Hollywood creates its own version of history, where "journalists" have no problem slanting news (on both sides of the aisle) to their point of view, where politicians have no problems with telling people what they want to hear, and where both political parties have stooped to a level of name-calling and dehumanization of the other. These were tactics that were found in the political milieu of Nazi Germany. While we have not reached that level, it is important to understand just exactly what and how Goebbels created a societal belief that supported the war machine and extermination of so many innocent people. And part of that media message was always terror and intimidation.

Besides this insight, Shirer provides us with personal glimpses into some of the key players of the Reich. He documents how "fateful" incidents impacted the decisions of the combatants' strategic decisions and the outcome of the war. The book is long and detailed but provides a good look at this unfortunate time in history. While most of the "greatest generation" have long since left this world, this book reminds us of the circumstances that created the twelve horrific years of the Third Reich. It is vital that we remember those years and the lessons learned from World War II. Unfortunately, I think many people will think the sheer volume of this book is overwhelming. But once into the book, I think readers will find it hard to put down. I know I did.

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Rick Rider

A book very appropriate for the politics of our current era (2024)

Reviewed in the United States on May 3, 2024

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The book is carefully researched and largely based on documents that the Nazis failed to destroy at the end of the early. Author also personally acquainted with three European and German countries as a foreign journalist. For a thorough knowledge of this era it is indispensable. The atrocities of the third reich under Hitler are almost beyond human comprehension.

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Trenton Farewell

The Definitive Work

Reviewed in Canada on April 30, 2024

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I think historians all agree this is the definitive work on WWII. The author was present when it happened and offers a unique, educated perspective on the subject. His research is second to none.

The audiobook is also top notch. I bought them both.

The author's biases of the era (written in 1960, content from 1930s) shows when he talks about groups of people known as perverts. Get past that, the rest of the volume is outstanding.

brunobv

Livro em Primeira Pessoa

Reviewed in Brazil on August 19, 2023

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Ao contrário dos demais livros sobre o tema, como a trilogia de Richard E. Evans, esta obra é escrita por uma testemunha ocular dos fatos. Willian Shriver foi correspondente jornalística na Alemanha durante o entre guerras, e narra fatos históricos com riquezas de detalhes que somente quem esteve presente aos eventos seria capaz de capturar. Todavia, não é uma obra enciclopédica. É um instantâneo riquíssimo em detalhes e costurado de forma magistral, uma leitura muito agradável e informativa, ainda que, de certa forma, já esteja datado por alguns conceitos hoje ultrapassados.

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Lord Denning

Excellent if you excuse the homophobia

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 10, 2024

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I would not consider myself a big history buff or even a big reader, but this is a brilliant read. Better paced and more gripping than most fiction. It is regrettable that the author makes some homophobic remarks in places - I guess he was from a different time himself, much like the monsters he is writing about.

2 people found this helpful

Kyrylo Shaptala

A must read

Reviewed in Germany on January 29, 2023

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Great book but really inconvenient to read

Diogo

Must read

Reviewed in Spain on December 7, 2022

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