Plotting Hitler's Death: The Story of German Resistance

by Joachim Fest

Book Overview

Fest recounts in vivid detail the events leading up to the July 20, 1944 attempt by German anti-Nazi conspirators to kill Hitler with a bomb, and for the first time, brings to a popular audience the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 080504213X
• ISBN13: 9780805042139
• Release Date: October 1996
• Publisher: Metropolitan Books
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Very Good Book

The author of this book, Joachim Fest, is one of the better know of the German World War 2 historians so I was expecting a well researched and factual book. What I found was just that. Fest first takes us through a history of a number of the failed plots and people responsible before sending the second half of the book on the plot that actually got the closest with a bomb blast injuring Hitler. Fest describes the set up of the plot, what was to take place after the assassination in regards to taking control of the German government and the assumptions of what would happen with the war. We also get a chapter on what happened to the members of the plot once it failed.Overall this is an interesting and well-constructed book. The information is laid out in an organized and easy to understand method. The writing is better then you expect from a historian, it flows through the story. The book is a good one volume accounting of the attempts on Hitler's life and, unless you are a true historian of the issues, is about all one needs to understand and appreciate it. If you are interested in World War 2 this is a good pick up.

A fascinating read, though more importantly, honest

I have to concede that at first I was highly skeptical that Fest, not just any German, but a German from the Nazi generation, would write an honest account of the German Resistance (I admit to harboring prejudices against Germans; my parents are survivors of the Nazi death camps). I expected Fest to exaggerate the motives of the Resistance, asserting that they were purely on humanitarian and moral grounds. After I read the book, however, I realized that I allowed my prejudices towards Germans get in the way. Fest makes no pretenses about their motives. They were wide-ranging, a few on humanitarian grounds, some because they saw they were losing the war, and for some it was the combination of several factors. It was an interesting and informative read. One criticism I do have is that there is a serious omission. Fest fails to tell us that many in the Resistance, even such notables as von Stauffenberg, Carl Goerdeler and Martin Niemoller sympathized with the Nazi view that there was a "Jewish problem" -- a problem that required a "solution." True, they were horrified when they learned that the Nazi "solution" to the "Jewish problem" was extermination; nonetheless they did harbor a fair amount of anti-semitism. As the brother of Claus von Stauffenberg testified: "In the sphere of internal politics, we had welcomed the basic tenets of National Socialism for the most part. . .The concept of race seemed sound and very promising. . ."; their objection was merely that its "implementation was exaggerated and carried too far." [the quote is taken from Goldhagen's book "Hitler's Willing Executioners."]

Good Narrative History and Analysis

This book is very well-written with a lot of interesting information about major and minor members of the German resistance. In addition to good story-telling, Fest provides interesting analyses of the reasons for their failures. It is a sad story, but the moral courage of many of those in the German resistance is inspiring.

A serious and profound work regarding an overlooked topic.

Joachim Fest's book should be required reading of all military and political leaders. All leaders must realize that the danger of losing one's morality often happens imperceptibly slow. "Plotting Hitler's Death" is a gripping account of how the German elite attempted on numerous occasions to topple Hitler. The irony of the assasination attempts is that the German Army,never trustful of Hitler, is the institution that comes closest to killing Hitler. At the same time, Mr. Fest protrays in exacting detail the internal conflict that these men experienced: loyalty due to the oath they swore but the realization that Hitler's regime was criminal.

Story of one determined indecisiveness

One of the things my sons and I have in common is an interest in World War II. I am interested in the personalities, one son is interested in battle specifics, one in the political ramifications, and the other in the over all picture. But in the past, they were united "against" me in one specific. They said that Hitler's generals who plotted to kill Hitler in July, 1944, did not begin their plot until they saw that they were going to lose the war. However, after reading Fest's "Plotting Hitler's Death" my sons and I all understand better what really happened--and we are now of the same understanding of this resistance. In his book "Hitler," Fest was quite contemplative, apparently trying to make sense of Hitler, his accomplishments and failures, and Germany's responsibility in bringing him to power. This introspection is lacking in "Plotting Hitler's Death." Perhaps that is because those who tried to get rid of Hitler compensated for those who brought him to power. Perhaps it is simply because it is a different tale to be told-a tale that Fest tells well. He rehearses in clear detail the events leading up to that July 20 th, the anxious and feverish moments before the explosion, the confusion following it, and the terrifying roundup and executions that followed. Fest points out that there was not one unified group or movement of resistance against Hitler; rather there were numerous groups that acted separately and often held differing views. Fest focuses on the three groups who were the only ones able to develop a strategy that posed a genuine threat to the regime. He follows them in his usual thorough manner. But this does not keep him from characterizing the very human natures involved, their determination and their indecisiveness, their fears and their courage, their plan and their failure. "Plotting Hitler's Death" brings an important clarity to one dimension of a tormented and confused era.