History

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

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  • Create Date：2021-06-24 08:53:08
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：William L. Shirer
  • ISBN：0099421763
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Summary

It was Hitler's boast that the Third Reich would last a thousand years。 Instead it lasted only twelve。 But into its short life was packed the most cataclysmic series of events that Western civilisation has ever known。

William Shirer is one of the very few historians to have gained full access to the secret German archives which the Allies captured intact。 He was also present at the Nuremberg trials。 This is his authoritative historical account of the years 1933-45， when the Nazis， under the rule of their desporic leader Adolf Hitler， ruled Germany。 They commandeered the Holocaust， one of the most shocking acts of evil in modern history， plunged the world into a second war， and changed the face of modern history and modern Europe forever。

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Reviews

Meena ，

A must read history of Hitler and the second world war。

Laura M ，

I can’t believe I finished this long-ass book！ It was probably more detail than I needed， the homophobia was bad， but overall I learned a lot about how WWII played out。

Adam Huber ，

Very interesting with some first hand experiences related by the author。 A very long undertaking， but fascinating insights into why certain decisions were made

John Jay ，

An absolute classic。

Brett C ，

This was a superb account of Nazi Germany！ William Shirer was a journalist/foreign correspondent during his time in Germany from 1934 to 1940。 He wrote the book based on his first-hand reporting， extensive document research， and multiple and reliable third-party evidence。 The writing was clear and very thorough but not oversaturated with details to become boring。 Shirer did a fine job on the narrative because it was linear and logical as to eliminate confusion。The First Reich was the medieval Ho This was a superb account of Nazi Germany！ William Shirer was a journalist/foreign correspondent during his time in Germany from 1934 to 1940。 He wrote the book based on his first-hand reporting， extensive document research， and multiple and reliable third-party evidence。 The writing was clear and very thorough but not oversaturated with details to become boring。 Shirer did a fine job on the narrative because it was linear and logical as to eliminate confusion。The First Reich was the medieval Holy Roman Empire; the Second Reich had been which was formed by Bismarck in 1871 after Prussia's defeat of France。 Both added glory to the German name。 The Weimar Republic， as Nazi propaganda had it， had dragged that fair name in the mud。 The Third Reich restored it， just as Hitler had promised。 pgs。 90-1 Shirer presented a clear picture on the rise of Hitler， and his philosophy， the rise of the Nationalist Socialist Party， the Nazification of Germany， life in the Third Reich， the gradual increase of a totalitarian state， the escalation to war， both Western and Eastern Fronts， the loss of momentum towards the end， and the inevitable destruction of the Nazi regime。 I have read many WW2 and Nazi Germany books; this one should be considered the cornerstone of the entire history from that time period。 I would recommend it to anyone who wants the complete story of Nazi Germany from its creation to demise。 Thanks！ 。。。more

Jashan Subhedar ，

Incredible book。 Must read if you're interested in Nazi Germany and WW2。 Incredible book。 Must read if you're interested in Nazi Germany and WW2。 。。。more

Anhh L ，

4。5*Lâu lắm rồi mới xơi một cuốn sách siêu dày như này， mà lại còn là sách lịch sử :）） Tiếp tục với chuỗi tò mò từ một câu chuyện lấy bổi cảnh của ww2 > sự sợ hãi vì quá tàn bạo > có chút thấy excited khi đứng trên phương diện chiến lược thì mình đã dẫn thân vào quả sách siêu to khổng lồ này。 Đúng là một cách sách lịch sử， nó cover hầu như diễn biến từ lúc Hitler còn nhở đến ngày cuối cùng của chế độ quốc xã。 Đại loại là có thể chia thành 3 giai đoạn: - Giai đoạn 1 là lúc Hitler còn nhỏ， người g 4。5*Lâu lắm rồi mới xơi một cuốn sách siêu dày như này， mà lại còn là sách lịch sử :）） Tiếp tục với chuỗi tò mò từ một câu chuyện lấy bổi cảnh của ww2 > sự sợ hãi vì quá tàn bạo > có chút thấy excited khi đứng trên phương diện chiến lược thì mình đã dẫn thân vào quả sách siêu to khổng lồ này。 Đúng là một cách sách lịch sử， nó cover hầu như diễn biến từ lúc Hitler còn nhở đến ngày cuối cùng của chế độ quốc xã。 Đại loại là có thể chia thành 3 giai đoạn: - Giai đoạn 1 là lúc Hitler còn nhỏ， người gốc Áo， trải qua quá trình trường thành abxyz， ban đầu còn tính làm hoạ sĩ nhưng ko thành， lưu lạc tại Vienna một thời gian và cũng chính là giai đoạn hình thành nên tư tưởng của ông ta: main point là về chủng tốc （người aryan là nhất， bài do thái） và việc lấy thêm không gian cho người Đức về phía Đông。 Cho đến sau này ông ý tham gia vào ww1 （position khá nhỏ） cho đến lúc tham gia vào Đảng quốc xã và đẫn đưa Đảng này lên nắm quyền chính trị ở Đức。 Có vụ bạo loạn nhà hàng bia ở giữa nhưng ko thành khiên Hitler phải ngồi tù mấy năm đó và trong lúc này kiểu như thời gian hình thành nên tư tưởng chính trị này nọ :））- Sau khi Đảng quốc xã lên cầm quyền thì bắt đầu gây dựng nên một Đế chế。 Nổi bật ở một số điểm sau: tài hùng biện， tài ngoại giao （chắc cuốn sách này cho mình một cái nhìn gọi là specific nhất về việc ngoại giao nó kiểu thâm cung nghìn sử như nào） nhờ cái tài ngoại giao mà Đức đã khiến các nước kiểu xoay như chong chóng: chiếm Áo vs Tiệp không mất một lực lượng nào， chiếm Ba Lan thì đàm phán được vs Liên Xô còn khiến Anh vs Pháp chậm chậm， rồi lúc chiến Đan Mạch và Nauy thì cũng nơi khiên quốc vương đầu hàng còn ko thì xử， chiếm Hà Lan vs Bỉ same rồi chiếm Pháp。 Gọi là giai đoạn huy của hoàng nhất đây， chiếm full lục địa Châu Âu rồi， dưới thì liên quan với Ý và bên kia vs Nhật， chiến lược chiến tranh （hơi khó khăn vì kiểu không có bản đồ follow và người ta cũng chỉ nêu các điểm chính thôi nhưng công nhận mấy ông tướng rồi thống chế giỏi và mặt trận là cái rì đó thật khốc liệt）。 - Giai đoạn thất thế của Đức chắc là lúc bắt đầu quay sang Liên Xô （đúng kiểu đưa ra một quyết định thôi ảnh hưởng các cục trận， vẫn ko hiểu sao ng ta cứ nghĩ thắng Liên Xô là thắng Anh nên phải gây chiến mà ko nghĩ là hai ông này thông đồ， đến Mỹ cũng thế）。 LX hiện lên với tinh thần chiến đấu quật cường， sư đoàn này sang sư đoàn khác， cố thủ đến cùng nhưng mình cũng có một cái nhìn khác thêm。 Anyway chính trị， chiến tranh là một nơi khốc liệt， không chiến thì chết， không thể trung lập， ko ác không được， làm trung lập cũng khó như một ván bài v， haizza。 Đoạn cuối chủ yếu là các trận bại của Đức và các quyết định sai lầm chủ yếu của Hitlẻ， chủ yếu là kiểu không cho rút， rồi atsm quân mình và cho rằng sứ mệnh là auto bên kia thua。 - Một trong những chương cũng nói về tội ác của QX nhưng cũng đọc trước các cuốn sách khác rồi nên mình ko specìic ở đây。 Cuốn sách cũng có đề cập đến bộ máy đứng sau cái này vs những cái tên như SS rồi Himmler， Heydrich này nọ。Anyway là congratulation QA because you just absorb a Wonderfull book， I don’t know exactly but I guest this is the thickest book I have ever read so far :）） 。。。more

Jayesh Patel ，

If you want definitive history of Hitler's Germany， go read this。 I read this 55 hour audio book but did not felt bored even once。 In approx。 1500 pages， author has given history of Third Reich， in essense of Hitler， with lucidity。 It can be guessed how much research he must had done to provide us this accurate descriptions of Nazi Germany。 As mentioned in the book， being a journalist， author was direct observer of the phenomenon of Nationalist Socialist Germany。 This gives an additional reason If you want definitive history of Hitler's Germany， go read this。 I read this 55 hour audio book but did not felt bored even once。 In approx。 1500 pages， author has given history of Third Reich， in essense of Hitler， with lucidity。 It can be guessed how much research he must had done to provide us this accurate descriptions of Nazi Germany。 As mentioned in the book， being a journalist， author was direct observer of the phenomenon of Nationalist Socialist Germany。 This gives an additional reason to pick this book to understand that history。I had so many emotions， ups and downs， listening to this book。 I have knowledge of World war， Nazi Germany and Hitler but this book gave me so much information to understand and analyze everything in context and details。 Would recommend this to everyone。 。。。more

Snade Snapper ，

It made me so scared =/

Karl Walsh ，

I loved this huge volume my Dad found。 It is wonderfully written， from a personal viewpoint， although the vastness of the subject necessarily means some skimping on detail

Sumeet ，

One of the best （and longest） books I've ever read。 One of the best （and longest） books I've ever read。 。。。more

DarkMatterDimensions ，

Literally the most incredible book ever written。 The sheer fact that this is not fiction， that it all happened， is mind-blowing。

Reid Brooks ，

I mean this book is an absolutely colossus。 One must， however， acknowledge the historical gift of its mere existence。 Without Shirer’s timely contribution documenting the history of the third Reich， we undoubtedly would be missing a crucial perspective if timely attitudes that in many respects shatter the modern telling of WW2 history。Understanding Germany in the era—the economic oppression from the French following Versailles， the National shame that lingered over the populace， the subversive， I mean this book is an absolutely colossus。 One must， however， acknowledge the historical gift of its mere existence。 Without Shirer’s timely contribution documenting the history of the third Reich， we undoubtedly would be missing a crucial perspective if timely attitudes that in many respects shatter the modern telling of WW2 history。Understanding Germany in the era—the economic oppression from the French following Versailles， the National shame that lingered over the populace， the subversive， radical movements from various corners， helps us frame precisely why she followed the path that she did。 And Shirer masterfully lays out the trajectory， enabling any reader to come to their own thoughtful conclusions on who was guilty of what sins in the moment。 History is， of course， written by the victors—and seeing the complexity of the moment is enlightening and beneficial for any engaged citizen who craves knowledge。This should be mandatory reading; it’s better than a semester-long college history class。 。。。more

Zagreb Mukerjee ，

Sonderweg claptrap

Laura Gembolis ，

I was most engaged by Chapter 8 in Book 2， Life in the Third Reich 1933 - 1937， where he describes the arts （writers， musicians， and visual artists）， education （both k-12& college）， youth camps， and journalism。Book Two Triumph & Consolidation- Chapter 8 Life in the Third Reich 1933 - 1937 Author notes that he observed plain women encouraging girls to have children out of wedlock。 Such a strange observation。 What advice did he witness from ugly women and beautiful women？ Or were they silent on th I was most engaged by Chapter 8 in Book 2， Life in the Third Reich 1933 - 1937， where he describes the arts （writers， musicians， and visual artists）， education （both k-12& college）， youth camps， and journalism。Book Two Triumph & Consolidation- Chapter 8 Life in the Third Reich 1933 - 1937 Author notes that he observed plain women encouraging girls to have children out of wedlock。 Such a strange observation。 What advice did he witness from ugly women and beautiful women？ Or were they silent on the issue？ Such unresolved sexism。 Perhaps only plain women were allowed to have opinions？ Or perhaps having an opinion makes a woman plain looking。 。。。more

Mohan G ，

One of the best books and a great starter book （yes its voluminous） to dig deep into ww2 history。 It was my first book on the subject of some substance and depth。 I have re read the book several times since in parts as well。 It tells a story well without trivialising the history。 However I have a peeve。 The fall of the third Reich happens far more quickly in the book than the rise。 The Author spends more time in the build up than he does in the teardown。 Like most books in that era the book is A One of the best books and a great starter book （yes its voluminous） to dig deep into ww2 history。 It was my first book on the subject of some substance and depth。 I have re read the book several times since in parts as well。 It tells a story well without trivialising the history。 However I have a peeve。 The fall of the third Reich happens far more quickly in the book than the rise。 The Author spends more time in the build up than he does in the teardown。 Like most books in that era the book is Anti LGBT。 。。。more

Elizabeth Krafnick ，

From the horse’s mouth， from about ten years after the warI avoided this book for years thinking it couldn’t have “real” info because it was so old but it is extraordinary。 The writer spent time in Nazi Germany and so editorializes a bit and because it is from the 1950’s he has become a historical figure himself。 Fascinating read。 Germans loved Hitler but his generals and staff almost from the start of his expansion not so much。 Very surprising。

Donald Schopflocher ，

Random unordered thoughts: - amazing that after such a long and detailed exposition， I haven’t many answers， just many， many questions。 Shirer provides a wonderful basis for further exploration though， whether it be Hitler biographies， Churchill memoirs， Holocaust analyses， or military histories。- so many unrealized chances to prevent World War II - silly to condemn Shirer on the ‘homosexuality as a perversion’ issue when it was the naziism that made Rohm and his cronies perverts， not their homo Random unordered thoughts: - amazing that after such a long and detailed exposition， I haven’t many answers， just many， many questions。 Shirer provides a wonderful basis for further exploration though， whether it be Hitler biographies， Churchill memoirs， Holocaust analyses， or military histories。- so many unrealized chances to prevent World War II - silly to condemn Shirer on the ‘homosexuality as a perversion’ issue when it was the naziism that made Rohm and his cronies perverts， not their homosexuality - I laughed uncomfortably every time he called Ribbentrop a dolt， a blockhead， an intellectual gangster， a thug， or stupid （or for that matter when he labelled dozen（s） of others similarly）; there is a huge reservoir of anger behind these insults - it seems misguided to refer to this book as a Hitler biography， it was more precisely a chronology of the third Reich。 Not even really history as analyses of causes were shallow or absent。 Understandable though as Shirer was a journalist， and the recounted events were quite recent。- while Shirer has been criticized for being influenced by the German high command’s denials of knowledge and responsibility， I felt that his coverage of the early ‘conspiracies’ was sufficiently sarcastic to convey skepticism about the Generals’ accounts- even as late in the book as the relating of the hideous examples of Nazi atrocity occur， I was left shaking with tears of impotent rage。 。。。more

Phelim Kyne ，

Big。。。

Yenkl ，

Jamais je n'avais lu de livre aussi clair et aussi dense sur la question！ Jamais je n'avais lu de livre aussi clair et aussi dense sur la question！ 。。。more

Brad Lyerla ，

Hitler was the master of the “big lie”。 His big lie was that Germany won the First World War， but that the Weimar elites negotiated a bad peace for Germany at Versailles。 This was nonsense， of course， but Hitler convinced more than a third of German voters that it was true。 You cannot help but wonder at the parallels to Trump’s big fib。 Ivana， mother of Donald’s first three children， reportedly has said that Donald admired Hitler and kept a copy of Hitler’s Mein Kampf on his nightstand during th Hitler was the master of the “big lie”。 His big lie was that Germany won the First World War， but that the Weimar elites negotiated a bad peace for Germany at Versailles。 This was nonsense， of course， but Hitler convinced more than a third of German voters that it was true。 You cannot help but wonder at the parallels to Trump’s big fib。 Ivana， mother of Donald’s first three children， reportedly has said that Donald admired Hitler and kept a copy of Hitler’s Mein Kampf on his nightstand during their marriage。 That’s a bad thing if it’s true。 Trump’s black heart may be debated， I suppose。 But one thing that is beyond debate is that Hitler was a monster， a lunatic and the ruin of Germany。 RISE AND FALL documents all of it and in painstaking detail。 While not a flawless book， it is nonetheless a must read if you wonder how authoritarianism can arise among a sophisticated， western people。 Wickedness lurks just beneath the surface of human society like a poisonous disease。 It is always there， despite appearances to the contrary。 And it takes only a charismatic liar to catalyze the brooding elements of society with the wickedly greedy who are only too happy to exploit the anger of those elements as a means of grabbing power。 In Germany， the conservative oligopoly thought it could control Hitler and his brown shirts。 No such luck and soon Hitler controlled the （formerly） influential and rich Herren and Damen。 Fortunately for the world， after an initial period of success when he caught the rest of Europe by surprise， Hitler’s fanaticism led him into a series of mistakes that assured Germany’s ultimate defeat by the Allies。 It is fascinating history and scrupulously researched。 Shirer took full advantage of the documents gathered by the Nuremberg prosecutors to detail his long and inclusive description of the Nazi years。 I recommend RISE AND FALL highly。 。。。more

Jelte ，

This book is written very well。 It depicts the horrors of the transformation of Germany。 Let is never happen again in any country of the world。

Kyle Casey ，

This was a monster of a book to finish but I'm glad I did。 Having read a lot about WWII I thought I had a pretty good grasp on the subject matter but I did manage to learn a lot from this。 The great strength of this book is also its weakness。 Shirer was a contemporary of the Nazis he writes about and as such is very emotionally invested in the descriptions of these men。 He is constantly calling them stupid or throwing in unnecessary insults to the intelligence。 In one instance he called Goebels This was a monster of a book to finish but I'm glad I did。 Having read a lot about WWII I thought I had a pretty good grasp on the subject matter but I did manage to learn a lot from this。 The great strength of this book is also its weakness。 Shirer was a contemporary of the Nazis he writes about and as such is very emotionally invested in the descriptions of these men。 He is constantly calling them stupid or throwing in unnecessary insults to the intelligence。 In one instance he called Goebels both stupid and quick witted in the same paragraph。 Shirer's emotional connection to the events is my only real complaint， and he created an amazing record of the rise and fall of the nazis。 I would highly advise anyone who wants to better understand the darkest point in the 20th century to read this and probably read it again。 。。。more

Shridhar Sp ，

Brilliant Brilliant book。 Took me a whole of 5 months of listening to it during the dog walks almost everyday。 Probably 10 on a 5-star scale for Grover Gardner's narration in Audible。 There are parts though I felt were inaccurate。 But， they might also be painted by the understanding of the role played by people at the point in time this history was written。 I say the above statements by Shirer about the role of Neitzsche's writings on Nazism and Adolf Hitler。 Superb！ Brilliant Brilliant book。 Took me a whole of 5 months of listening to it during the dog walks almost everyday。 Probably 10 on a 5-star scale for Grover Gardner's narration in Audible。 There are parts though I felt were inaccurate。 But， they might also be painted by the understanding of the role played by people at the point in time this history was written。 I say the above statements by Shirer about the role of Neitzsche's writings on Nazism and Adolf Hitler。 Superb！ 。。。more

Yaseen Hashim ，

Good book ， but he focused on some topics more than others

Marcel Wilnicki ，

I think this book should be read as a primary source rather than historical book and with a grain of salt。 There are a lot of subjective adjectives and his own ideas about history。 That being said the author experienced the events first hand and his accounts can be still relevant。 Also I have to admit it was a very engaging read。 For those who know something already about the topic I think there are much better positions out there。

Vince Snow ，

Whew， this was a long one。 But wow it was so good and I enjoyed it the entire time （the lengthy details towards the end about all of the conspiracy and assassination attempts on hitler did drag on）。 I learned much about what happened in world war two， and about the events leading up to it。 Probably the thing that struck me the most about the book and that might change the way I look at the world is that Hitler was earnest in what he believed。 He was committed to his anti-semitism and he really b Whew， this was a long one。 But wow it was so good and I enjoyed it the entire time （the lengthy details towards the end about all of the conspiracy and assassination attempts on hitler did drag on）。 I learned much about what happened in world war two， and about the events leading up to it。 Probably the thing that struck me the most about the book and that might change the way I look at the world is that Hitler was earnest in what he believed。 He was committed to his anti-semitism and he really believed that Jews were swine and should be wiped off the face of the earth。 I had a belief that there is something to be said about being committed to a set of ideals and that even if I disagree， perhaps even morally， with someone's belief system that it is respectable and admirable that they have a moral system that they are following。 I'm going to have to think about this one a lot more。 Hitler committed untold numbers of atrocities， and he did so thinking he was in the right。 Another thing that struck me about the book is how astonishing it is that Germany lost the war。 It is crazy how close they came to dominating all of Europe。I really loved the book， it was at times exciting， horrifying and terribly sad。 5 stars。 。。。more

Jenny G ，

Useless Italian and Japanese allies

Ceceilia Chirico ，

After referring to openly homosexual S。A。 officers as "notorious perverts" and "men of unnatural sexual inclinations"， while also at times pointing to their homosexuality as signs of their "moral degeneration" （instead of their support and participation in Nazism）， I could no longer continue reading。 The author is indeed extremely thorough and appears to cover every important detail that contributed to the rise of Nazi Germany， and I understand many things were different at the time of it's publ After referring to openly homosexual S。A。 officers as "notorious perverts" and "men of unnatural sexual inclinations"， while also at times pointing to their homosexuality as signs of their "moral degeneration" （instead of their support and participation in Nazism）， I could no longer continue reading。 The author is indeed extremely thorough and appears to cover every important detail that contributed to the rise of Nazi Germany， and I understand many things were different at the time of it's publication （though I still do not think this is a good excuse， especially given the tragedies the Nazis inflicted on homosexuals）。 However， I wanted to write this review as a heads-up for anyone who also saw the many recommendations of this book only to have to put it down after realizing the biases and homophobia of the author。 。。。more

Elliot Parker ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Comprehensive with an excellent range of sources for information。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0