LoveReading Says
LoveReading Says
From the moment I removed the packaging, this book screamed quality at me. Even as my eyes first scanned the jacket, my fingers flicked through the pages and I saw the incredible array of information and accompanying photographs, I knew I was in for a treat.
In many ways, the Weimar period could and, perhaps should have been a model for a successful modern democracy. Women had democratic rights; there was improved communication, radios, cars, cinemas and airplanes. Political infighting, inflation and deep societal division conspired, however, to shatter the dream and, as the author so correctly highlights, the clear parallels to modern democracies are disturbing, particularly given Germany’s spectacular fall from the heights of liberalism to the depths of Nazi tyranny in so short a period.
Two years before he was appointed Chancellor, Adolf Hitler declared the thirteen years of the first true German democracy following the conclusion of WWI to have been wasted, as unmitigated political and economic chaos. Like Putin's Russia, Germany allowed poor leadership to drift the country towards authoritarian rule. This book is a timely reminder to many Governments around the world that the consequences of populism, complacency and self-serving agendas can be considerable.
The Weimar Years has so many chilling resonances with our world today. It is a warning to us all and historical writing at its very best. I feel like I have learned so much.
Highly recommended.
Matt Johnson
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| Primary Genre |
History
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About
The Weimar Years Synopsis
A DAILY MAIL BOOK OF THE WEEK
A SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR
A DAILY TELEGRAPH BEST HISTORY BOOK OF 2023
ASPECTS OF HISTORY BOOKS OF THE YEAR
A GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023
A DAILY MAIL BEST CHRISTMAS BOOK OF 2023
The prequel to Frank McDonough's bestselling Hitler Years series, covering the dramatic era of German history that culminated in the rise to power of Adolf Hitler in 1933.
Established in the wake of German defeat in the First World War, the Weimar Republic held out the hope that democracy, stability and prosperity would take root in Germany. From the start, however, it was beset by political and economic upheaval and spasms of violence between left and right. Year by year, from 1918 to 1933, Frank McDonough describes the major events in both domestic and foreign policy and the personalities who shaped them, together with developments in Weimar's flourishing cultural sphere. McDonough places particular focus on the parliamentary history of Weimar, arguing that it was the failure of parliamentary democracy to bring stability that allowed the power of the elected Reichstag to diminish, leading to Hitler's accession to power.
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 instability, a democracy can drift towards a form of authoritarian rule that eventually destroys it.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781803284798 |
| Publication date: |
10th October 2024 |
| Author: |
Frank McDonough |
| Publisher: |
Apollo an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing (UK) |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
656 pages |
| Primary Genre |
History
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Press Reviews
Frank McDonough Press Reviews
Yet again McDonough shows why he is one of the best chroniclers of 20th century Germany. This excellent book completes the set. Alongside his other volumes he now tells the whole story of Germany from one World War defeat to another. A giant achievement. - Dan Snow
Frank McDonough has done it again. This authoritative guide to the fractured Weimar Republic is both well-considered and immensely readable. Superb. - Clare Mulley, author of The Women Who Flew For Hitler
Magisterial, terrifyingly relevant and yet also a celebration of Weimar's delicious decadence: Frank McDonough's new Weimar Years, the latest in his outstanding series on Nazi rule and how it happened, combines scholarly research, narrative brio and lucid analysis in a work that enjoys the creativity and libertinism of Weimar - while chronicling its flaws and its rising darkness. - Simon Sebag Montefiore
Written with an easy style which belies its author's erudition, The Weimar Years is a masterpiece of narrative history - and a poignant lesson in how democracy can fail. - Roger Moorhouse
PRAISE FOR FRANK McDONOUGH: 'A masterclass in the history of Nazi Germany, with an internationally renowned expert as the teacher' Get History. 'What makes this volume really stand out is its stylish design and more than 80 coloured photographs, punctuating the account of Hitler's slow but inevitable march to war' Military History. 'An impressive tome, beautifully presented with a body of illustrations... It is as readable as it is authoritative. Rarely has the odious story of the Third Reich been so elegantly presented' History Today. 'I have read many books on the period and Frank McDonough's ranks above them all. Bravo' Danny Baker. 'McDonough writes clearly and readably with just enough detail on the huge canvas that he covers' - Spectator
Author
About Frank McDonough
Professor Frank McDonough is an internationally renowned expert on the Third Reich. He studied history at Balliol College, Oxford and gained a PhD from Lancaster University. Now based in Liverpool, McDonough has written many critically acclaimed books, including The Gestapo, Sophie Scholl and most recently The Hitler Years, a two-volume history charting the rise and fall of the Nazi regime.
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