Everyone knows that the Versailles Treaty was a failure, or was it?

For 20 years after the peace the predictions of Lord Keynes that the treaty would fail were believed, and to some extent it did, but only because his very prediction resulted in the disunity amongst the Allies that rendered the treaty impotent.

Far from beggaring Germany during the inter-war period as Keynes suggested it would, Mantoux shows that the actual reparation payments were near insignificant with respect to what was spent on the rebuilding of the infrastructure that finally gave rise to the Nazi war machine, and that many of those things that we blame on the treaty are a result of the non-application of the treaty terms.

Sadly, Mantoux died a hero in the final days of the Second World War. He lived fighting the injustice done to the Versailles peace and died fighting the consiquences of this injustice.

Werner Hofmann's new monograph on Caspar David Friedrich benefits from superb colour reproductions as well as Hofmann's own discursive brilliance.

Selections from Friedrich's letters are a neat fit, bowing to the idea that his transcendental painting ultimately eludes scholarly discourse.

This book lands with authority, passion, and a keen sense of the vistas of silence that Friedrich communicates to admirers everywhere.

A bargain. Snap it up if you come across it...

This highly illustrative tome includes pencil sketches and tracings showing lines of force for Friedrich's major works. In addition, an in-depth discussion of his life, including cultural and socio-political influences, is discussed concurrent with a review of not only his major masterpieces, but his minor, early works as well. An absolute must for anyone who has become enamored with his work, or the work of other similar sublime, landscape artists of the period.

For anyone interested in a well-written, informative but not blanketing read describing the period between the conquest of France by the Wehrmacht and the beginning of Barbarossa, this would make a fine choice. Describing the events, occurrences and plans relating to Operation Sea Lion, the German plan for the invasion of England, the author does a commendable job at outlining period in a way that is effieicent and informative but not so in depth that the substance of the material is masked by superflous idoltry. Focused on a period that is less known overall, I found this selection to be one of the more interesting at describing the period of late summer and fall 1940 and explaining all of the information that is needed to understand not only the military and political facts of the period, but also the mindset of the people on both sides of the channel during the time. One cannot hold a full appreciation for the magnitude of WWII in Europe without an understanding of the fear evoked in this period, and this book will fill that need certifiably.

The Peenemünde Raid is an excellent account of the British bomber raid on the German V-2 development facility on the night of 17-18 August 1943. This was the only large-scale RAF night precision-bombing attack in the whole war. In early chapters, Middlebrook details the development of the German rocket research facility at Peenemünde in 1937-1943 and the British intelligence effort directed against it. Incredibly, in November 1939 an anonymous German, who mailed secret documents about Peenemünde to British intelligence, gave the British a golden opportunity. Unfortunately, the British believed the documents were fakes and disregarded them. It was not until March 1943 that the British became aware of the rocket research at Peenemünde. Churchill promptly ordered RAF Bomber Command to attack the site as soon as possible.

Bomber Command had never attempted a large-scale precision night attack before and indeed, this was the only occasion it was tried. Three other innovations were employed: time & distance runs, a master bomber and moving aim points. However Middlebrook makes the point that the American 8th Air Force, which was trained for daylight precision attacks, was not consulted because Churchill wanted Peenemünde to be an "all-British" operation. If true, this was a stupid case of national pride overriding operational common sense. On the bright side, the British mounted a highly successful Mosquito diversion over Berlin which drew off most of the 200 German night fighters launched and there was no fighter opposition for the first half of the raid. British intruding night fighters also had a good night and shot down four Luftwaffe fighters, including two aces. The Germans badly misjudged where the raid was going, partly since the Luftwaffe low-level commanders did not know the significance of Peenemünde. The raid did inflict significant damage on the housing area but it failed to hurt either the experimental works or V-2 production buildings. About 150 Germans (incl. 2 scientists) and 600 foreign laborers were killed. The RAF lost 41 aircraft and 290 men, almost all on the exit route when the night fighters finally showed up. The moonlight night made it something of a duck shoot.

Middlebrook believes that the raid cost the Germans about 6-8 weeks worth of delay in producing the V-2s, which he says equates to saving perhaps 800 civilians in England. After the raid, the Germans dispersed the production to underground facilities in central Germany. The USAF made three raids in 1944, which hit the facility with much greater accuracy. I believe Middlebrook sketches out the facts but fails to draw a conclusion; namely, that had the Americans attacked Peenemünde in 1943 the damage to the facility would have been more severe. Overall, this book is not quite as good as Middlebrook's other books on RAF bomber raids.

Note--Middlebrook's book "The Schweinfurt Regensburg Mission" has nothing to do with Accounting. Amazon has the wrong reviews appearing with this title.

Absolutely essential reading for anyone wishing to understand American bombing operations and tactics in Germany during WWII. Middlebrook's research and attention to detail are first rate! He relies on original documents and "first-hand" accounts to paint a fresh portrait of these missions from the perspective of the American bomber crew, the German fighter pilots, and the people on the ground in Schweinfurt and Regensburg. Highest recommendation. For a great perspective on British night bomber tactics, try Middlebrook's "The Berlin Raids--RAF Bomber Command Winter 1943-44." An equally excellent companion volume.

The Cautio Criminalis is a classic in the literature on witchcraft. It is both intensely logical and passionately involved with correcting the injustices of the witch trials. Marcus Hellyer has produced a highly readable translation which transmits both the clarity and the passion of the original. He has also included an introduction on the work which reflects the current state of historical knowledge. This book belongs to the classics of the struggle for human rights; it ranks with Johann Weyer and Beccaria. Hellyer also indicates, at the end of the introduction, that this is not only a historical question; where crimes that we consider heinous are concerned, we are only too ready to abridge the rights of the accused. The appearance of this book is more than welcome.

More than any other, Dr. Klein's work illuminates the positive aspects of the science education system in the former East Germany. Her goal is clearly to help educators in this country learn from lessons abroad. Teachers should take note: this is what we could -- and should -- be doing better. An insightful, first-person account of the life of the mind in a now-gone nation. Perhaps the most compelling and philosophically minded work since Moby Dick.

Gabriele Wohmann knows how to entertain - and she knows how to look behind the scenes. With strong words, an amazing prose and a critical view on what's happening, she is very good at describing difficulties. This is a not totally a book about feminism(as a man, I wouldn't have dared reading it if it was) - it's a book about relationships, hopes, dreams, feelings and worries. It's just great literature!

A german child growing up inside USSR in the dark age of stalin. Growing up as a young stalinist through the scholar sistem and with his mother prisoner in the gulag. His experience sufering the repression of 1937 - 1938, the WWII and finally the build of the DDR (GDR). This is the vision from an experience and high training soviet scholar, and his progressive discover of the hard and inhuman reality of the soviet system.
Leonhard is one of the most important experts in marxism.