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 Peter Longerich's "Hitler", to be published on Monday, is a
1,295-page tome that includes material from the diaries of Nazi
propaganda chief Joseph Goebbels and early Hitler speeches.
"Overall, you have a picture of a dictator who controlled much
more, who was more closely involved in individual decisions than
previously thought. I wanted to put Hitler as a person back in
the center," Longerich told Reuters in an interview.
Recent works on the Third Reich have placed more emphasis on the
social and political climate that led to the rise of Nazism
after defeat in World War One and crippling reparation demands.
Soon after World War Two, Germans clung to the belief that they
had been held hostage by a criminal gang led by the charismatic
Hitler, bent on conquering Europe and exterminating Jews.
Longerich, a professor at London University, argues that while
all Hitler's policies and the results were catastrophic, he
acted smartly in specific situations.
"The question why he managed to get so far needs to be
addressed: Obviously he had the ability to exploit individual
situations in his own interest and for his own aims," he said.
Even his racial policies, which culminated in the murder of at
least 6 million Jews in the Holocaust, were in large part down
to political opportunism, says Longerich, who does not think
Hitler was radically anti-Semitic at an early age.
"Around 1919-1920 he realized he could be successful in politics
by embracing and inciting anti-Semitism," he said, adding it
became a central element only in the 1930s.
Hitler's skill in taking power is even more striking given that
the Austrian-born art student was a 'nobody' with no ideology
until he was about 30. Only then, refusing to accept Germany's
defeat, was he drawn to the early Nazi party.
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Longerich also seeks to debunk the theory that Hitler had an
irresistible charisma that captivated Germans, arguing it was
largely artificially constructed by the Nazi propaganda machine
which pumped out pictures of entranced fans at rallies.
The author does not exonerate Germans, saying large parts of the
population supported Hitler while others were opportunistic in
following him, but he argues that there were social tensions and
discontent, for example within the church.
"It would be illogical to think that a deeply divided country like
Germany suddenly united behind one person and shared one political
view," Longerich said.
Seventy years after his death, Germans' attitudes toward Hitler are
still evolving, Longerich said.
"I don't think there is any enthusiasm for Hitler but we are seeing
taboos being broken," he said, citing recent films about the
dictator and a debate about the publication of "Mein Kampf".
As fears about right-wing radicalism in Germany grow due to the
refugee crisis, he warns that with a "rougher" political atmosphere,
"the potential of a single political figure is a factor which should
not be underestimated".
(Reporting by Madeline Chambers; Editing by Michael Roddy/Jeremy
Gaunt)
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