Prevail until the Bitter End: Germans in the Waning Years of World War II

209 Pages·4.574 MB·English

by  Alexandra Lohse

Prevail u ntil the Bitter End
A volume in the series
Battlegrounds: Cornell Studies in Military History
edited by David J. Silbey
A list of titles in this series is available at www . cornellpress . cornell . edu.
Prevail until the
Bitter End
Germans in the Waning
Years of World War II
Alexandra Lohse
Cornell University Press
Ithaca and London
Copyright © 2021 by Cornell University
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or
parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without permission in
writing from the publisher. For information, address Cornell University
Press, Sage House, 512 East State Street, Ithaca, New York 14850.
Visit our website at cornellpress . cornell . edu.
First published 2021 by Cornell University Press
Printed in the United States of Amer i ca
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Lohse, Alexandra, author.
Title: Prevail until the bitter end : Germans in the waning years of
World War II / Alexandra Lohse.
Description: Ithaca [New York] : Cornell University Press, 2021. |
Series: Battlegrounds : Cornell studies in military history |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021008202 (print) | LCCN 2021008203 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781501759390 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781501759406 (epub) |
ISBN 9781501759413 (pdf)
Subjects: LCSH: World War, 1939–1945—Germany—Public opinion. |
Public opinion—Germany—History—20th century. | Germany—
History—1933–1945. | National socialism—Public opinion. |
Germans—Attitudes.
Classification: LCC D810.P85 G44 2021 (print) | LCC D810.P85 (ebook) |
DDC 940.53/43—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021008202
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021008203
Cover photograph: Ruins at Berlin’s Spittelmarkt, Berlin, May 1945.
BA-BA photo no. 183-R77870. Courtesy of Das Bundesarchiv.
For Sabine, Tine, and the guys

Contents
Acknowl edgments ix
List of Abbreviations xi
Introduction: The World at War 1
1. Sta lin grad: The Right to Believe in Victory 16
2. Mobilizing the National Community: Do You Want Total War? 42
3. Genocide and Mass Atrocities: A Page Never to Be Written 72
4. Enemies Within and Without: A Sign of Providence 107
5. Dissolution: History Is the Arbiter 128
Conclusion: Understanding What National Socialism Is 149
Notes 159
Bibliography 179
Index 187

Acknowl edgments
I owe this book to the expertise, support, and kindness of so many people.
I am humbled by their generosity and pleased to fi nally say my thanks for
their many contributions to this proj ect. Its shortcomings are the only thing
to which I lay sole claim.
First and foremost, I wish to thank Richard Breitman. This book would
not have been conceived or executed without him. His patience and dedica-
tion continue to astound me, and I look forward to having him ask me what
is next. I am also thankful to Eric Lohr and Max Paul Friedman for their
guidance during this proj ect’s e arlier iterations.
I am grateful for the institutional support I received from my professional
home, the Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, including the In-
de pen dent Staff Research Fellowship that helped me carry this proj ect
across the finish line. Of course, the views expressed in this book are mine
and do not represent those of the United States Holocaust Memorial Mu-
seum (USHMM), its officers, or employees.