Bøger af Frank McDonough

Name as a 2016 Book of the Year by the SpectatorA Daily Telegraph 'Book of the Week' (August 2015)Longlisted for 2016 PEN Hessell-Tiltman PrizeRanked in 100 Best Books of 2015 in the Daily TelegraphProfessor Frank McDonough is one of the leading scholars and most popular writers on the history of Nazi Germany. Frank McDonough's work has been described as, 'modern history writing at its very best...Ground-breaking, fascinating, occasionally deeply revisionist' by renowned historian Andrew Roberts. Drawing on a detailed examination of previously unpublished Gestapo case files this book relates the fascinating, vivid and disturbing accounts of a cross-section of ordinary and extraordinary people who opposed the Nazi regime. It also tells the equally disturbing stories of their friends, neighbours, colleagues and even relatives who were often drawn into the Gestapo's web of intrigue. The book reveals, too, the cold-blooded and efficient methods of the Gestapo officers. This book will also show that the Gestapo lacked the manpower and resources to spy on everyone as it was reliant on tip offs from the general public. Yet this did not mean the Gestapo was a weak or inefficient instrument of Nazi terror. On the contrary, it ruthlessly and efficiently targeted its officers against clearly defined political and racial 'enemies of the people'. The Gestapo will provide a chilling new doorway into the everyday life of the Third Reich and give powerful testimony from the victims of Nazi terror and poignant life stories of those who opposed Hitler's regime while challenging popular myths about the Gestapo.

The prequel to Frank McDonough's bestselling Hitler Years series, covering the dramatic period of German history that led to the rise of Hitler in 1933.Established in the wake of Germany's catastrophic defeat in the First World War, the Weimar Republic ushered in widespread social reform, vibrant culture and the most democratic conditions the German people had ever lived under. At its beginning in 1919, it was a regime that held hope for democracy, stability and prosperity in Germany. But it was also beset by economic upheaval and political violence on the left and the right. Ultimately, it led to the appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor, who created a one-party dictatorship that abandoned the rule of law, democracy and civil rights. In Gustav Stresemann's words, Weimar democracy was 'dancing on a volcano'.The Weimar Years is a vivid and compelling history of the period 1918-1933. Year by year, Professor Frank McDonough covers the major personalities, events in foreign policy and the music, art, theatre and literature that flourished during this era. McDonough also places particular focus on the unknown parliamentary history of Weimar, arguing that it was the failure of parliamentary democracy to bring stability that eroded public confidence and allowed the power of the elected Reichstag to gradually diminish, resulting in Hitler's appointment in January 1933.The Weimar Years is a story of rise and fall, as well as a warning sign of how, under poor leadership, economic pressure and unrelenting political instability, a democracy can drift towards a form of authoritarian rule that eventually destroys it.

Established in 1918-19, in the wake of Germany's catastrophic defeat in the First World War and the revolution that followed swiftly on its heels, the Weimar Republic ushered in widespread social reform, a radical cultural flowering and the most democratic conditions the German people had ever known. At its beginning, Weimar held out the hope that democracy, stability and prosperity would take root in Germany, but it was beset by frequent changes of government, waves of economic upheaval and spasms of violence of increasing intensity between the forces of left and right. Agitation and assassination by rightwing nationalists - enraged by the severity of the Treaty of Versailles and the acceptance of its terms by liberal German politicians - formed a threatening descant to the conciliatory efforts of successive coalition governments. Ultimately, the instabilities of Weimar would lead to the appointment as German Chancellor of the Nazi Führer Adolf Hitler, who created a one-party dictatorship that abandoned the rule of law, democracy and civil rights. In the words of Gustav Stresemann, Germany's Nobel Peace Prize-winning Foreign Minister from 1923 to 1929, Weimar democracy was 'dancing on a volcano'. The Weimar Years is a vivid and compelling narrative of a dramatic period in German history. Year by year, from 1918 to 1933, Frank McDonough covers the major events in both domestic and foreign policy and the personalities who shaped them, together with developments in music, art, theatre and literature. McDonough places particular focus on the parliamentary history of Weimar, arguing that it was the failure of parliamentary democracy to bring stability that eroded public confidence and allowed the power of the elected Reichstag to gradually diminish, culminating in Hitler's accession to power in January 1933. The Weimar Years is the tragic story of a rise and fall, as well as a warning of how, under poor leadership, economic pressure and unrelenting political volatility, a democracy can drift towards a form of authoritarian rule that eventually destroys it.

A new narrative of the rise and catastrophic fall of the Nazi regime: a twelve-year descent into barbarism, genocide and aggressive war that cost over 50 million lives.

A new narrative of the rise and catastrophic fall of the Nazi regime: a twelve-year descent into barbarism, genocide and aggressive war that cost over 50 million lives.

The Holocaust is a subject of enormous historical importance. The murder of approximately 6 million Jews stands apart as a perhaps the most horrendous episode in world history. In this fresh introduction, McDonough examines the racial war-within-a-war, outlining controversies and examining how it has been popularised and institutionalised.

McDonough takes a broad approach which brings social, economic and strategic factors together with a detailed analysis of Chamberlain's policy, allowing students to explore questions of continuity and change more clearly.