- Trevor-Roper, Hugh.
Hitler's War Directives.
Edinburgh: Birlinn, [1964] 2004.
ISBN 978-1-84341-014-0.
-
This book, originally published in 1964, contains all of Adolf Hitler's
official decrees on the prosecution of the European war, from preparations
for the invasion of Poland in 1939 to his final exhortation to troops
on the Eastern Front of 15th April 1945 to stand in place or die. The
author introduces each of the translated orders with an explanation
of the situation at the time, and describes subsequent events.
A fifteen page introduction explains the context of these
documents and the structure of the organisations to which they were
directed.
For those familiar with the history of the period, there are few revelations
to be gained from these documents. It is interesting to observe the
extent to which Hitler was concerned with creating and substantiating
the pretexts for his aggression in both the East and West, and also
how when the tide turned and the Wehrmacht was rolled back from Stalingrad
to Berlin, he focused purely upon tactical details, never seeming to
appreciate (at least in these orders to the military, state, and party)
the inexorable disaster consuming them all.
As these are decrees at the highest level, they are largely composed of
administrative matters and only occasionally discuss operational items;
as such one's eyes may glaze over reading too much in one sitting. The
bizarre parallel structure of state and party created by Hitler is evident
in a series of decrees issued during the defensive phase of the war in which
essentially the same orders were independently issued to state and party
leaders, subordinating each to military commanders in battle areas. As the
Third Reich approached collapse, the formal numbering of orders was abandoned,
and senior military commanders issued orders in Hitler's name. These are
included here using a system of numbering devised by the author. Appendices
include lists of code names for operations, abbreviations, and people whose
names appear in the orders.
If you aren't well-acquainted with the history of World War II in Europe,
you'll take away little from this work. While the author
sketches the history of each order, you really need to know the big
picture to understand the situation the Germans faced and what
they knew at the time to comprehend the extent to which Hitler's orders evidenced
cunning or denial. Still, one rarely gets the opportunity to read the
actual operational orders issued during a major conflict which ended
in annihilation for the person giving them and the nation which
followed him, and this book provides a way to understand how ambition,
delusion, and blind obedience can lead to tragic catastrophe.
January 2009 