Ian Kershaw Knihy

Mistrná a ojedinělá studie mechanismů fungování nacistické společnosti v závěrečných měsících druhé světové války se zabývá zásadními otázkami spojenými s koncem nacistického Německa. Jaké motivy vedly Německo k pokračování v boji, i když bylo jasné, že válku prohrálo? Jak dokázal rozkládající se hitlerovský stát přežít až do příchodu Rudé armády k Říšskému kancléřství? Proč se německý národ nevzpíral režimu, jenž jej vystavil brutálnímu teroru a vedl zemi do záhuby, na rozdíl od situace v roce 1918? Jak armáda stále poslušně plnila Hitlerovy nesmyslné rozkazy? Jakou roli hrály strach a fanatismus v sebezničujícím kurzu? A jak ovlivnil spojenecký požadavek na bezpodmínečnou kapitulaci agonický odpor třetí říše? Ian Kershaw, uznávaný britský historik a expert na éru nacistického Německa, se snaží na tyto otázky odpovědět. Jeho komplexní a dramatické líčení finálních měsíců existence hitlerovského státu začíná nezdařeným atentátem na Hitlera v červenci 1944 a končí jeho smrtí a kapitulací v květnu 1945. Text obsahuje bohatý poznámkový aparát a je doplněn jedinečnou fotografickou přílohou a mapkami.

Following the enormous success of HITLER: HUBRIS this book triumphantly completes one of the great modern biographies. No figure in twentieth century history more clearly demands a close biographical understanding than Adolf Hitler; and no period is more important than the Second World War. Beginning with Hitler's startling European successes in the aftermath of the Rhinelland occupation and ending nine years later with the suicide in the Berlin bunker, Kershaw allows us as never before to understand the motivation and the impact of this bizarre misfit. He addresses the crucial questions about the unique nature of Nazi radicalism, about the Holocaust and about the poisoned European world that allowed Hitler to operate so effectively.

'Superb ... likely to become a classic' Observer In the summer of 1914 most of Europe plunged into a war so catastrophic that it unhinged the continent's politics and beliefs in a way that took generations to recover from. The disaster terrified its survivors, shocked that a civilization that had blandly assumed itself to be a model for the rest of the world had collapsed into a chaotic savagery beyond any comparison. In 1939 Europeans would initiate a second conflict that managed to be even worse - a war in which the killing of civilians was central and which culminated in the Holocaust. To Hell and Back tells this story with humanity, flair and originality. Kershaw gives a compelling narrative of events, but he also wrestles with the most difficult issues that the events raise - with what it meant for the Europeans who initiated and lived through such fearful times - and what this means for us.

Podtitul: Stauffenbergův atentát na Hitlera a jeho následky Stauffenbergův atentát na Adolfa Hitlera z 20. července 1944 byl nejpropracovanějším pokusem o odstranění nacistického diktátora za celou dobu existence Třetí říše. Ačkoli plány na Hitlerovo zavraždění, vycházející jak z armádních kruhů, tak od izolovaných jednotlivců, byly mnohem staršího data a některé z nich došly i praktické realizace, teprve akce hraběte Stauffenberga ohrozila Hitlera přímo na životě a svým spojením s přípravou převratu, který by svrhl nacistický režim jako takový, představovala vyvrcholení snah odpůrců režimu. Kniha Iana Kershawa \\\'Příběh Operace Valkýra\\\' sestává ze tří kapitol převzatých z jeho dvousvazkové biografie o Adolfu Hitlerovi a doplňují ji četné dokumenty přímých aktérů dramatu. Ty v českém překladu zčásti vycházejí vůbec poprvé.

Kershaw presents an understanding of Hitler and of the sequence of events which allowed a misfit to climb to the leadership of Germany. As Hitler's pitiful fantasy of being Germany's saviour attracted more and more support, Kershaw conveys why so many Germans adored and connived with him or felt powerless to resist him.

After the overwhelming horrors of the first half of the 20th century, the years from 1950 to 2017 brought peace and relative prosperity to most of Europe. Enormous economic improvements transformed the continent, while the catastrophic era of the world wars receded into the past, though its long shadow continued to shape mentalities. Europe became a divided continent, living under the nuclear threat, marked by intermittent anxiety. Europeans experienced a 'roller-coaster ride' of events that threatened disaster, often feeling powerless as the USA and USSR dictated their fates during the Cold War. There were notable successes, such as the dissolution of the Soviet bloc, the fall of dictatorships, and the reunification of Germany. However, accelerating globalization introduced new vulnerabilities. The impact of interlocking crises after 2008 served as a stark reminder that peace and stability were not guaranteed. In this remarkable work, the author presents a grand panorama of contemporary Europe and its historical roots, drawing on examples from across the continent. This exploration encourages a reevaluation of Europe and the essence of being European.

'Review from previous edition 'a book which should be read by everyone interested in the history of 20th-century Europe... perhaps the most revealing study available of popular opinion in Nazi Germany' ' -Times Higher Education Supplement

Finally, the one-volume edition of Ian Kershaw's definitive and masterful biography of Hitler. "The Hitler biography of the twenty-first century" (Richard J. Evans), Ian Kershaw's Hitler is a new, distilled, one-volume masterpiece that will become the standard work. From Hitler's origins as a failed artist in fin-de-si_cle Vienna to the terrifying last days in his Berlin bunker, Kershaw's richly illustrated biography is a mesmerizing portrait of how Hitler attained, exercised, and retained power. Drawing on previously untapped sources, such as Goebbels's diaries, Kershaw addresses crucial questions about the unique nature of Nazi radicalism, about the Holocaust, and about the poisoned European world that allowed Hitler to operate so effectively. 151 photographs; 8 maps. "As close to definitive as anything we are ever likely to see."—Jane Kramer, The New Yorker "A superb biography."—Ian Buruma, New York Times Book Review "Massive, extensively researched, extraordinarily balanced, and remarkably judicious."—Omer Bartov, The New Republic "Will become the classic Hitler biography of our time."—Gordon Craig, New York Review of Books

Ian Kershaw's biography of Hitler is a definitive work that combines a personal history of the dictator with an analysis of the forces that enabled his rise to power. Kershaw explores Hitler's impact and the context of Nazi Germany, providing a vivid account of his ascent and the resulting atrocities of World War II.

Jedinečná kniha o Európe krátko po druhej svetovej vojne zachytáva široké spektrum konfliktov, ktorými kontinent prešiel približne v rozmedzí rokov 1944 až 1949. Koniec vojny priniesol explóziu nového násilia naprieč celou Európou. Väzni zabíjali svojich väzniteľov, odbojári zabíjali a pranierovali kolaborantov. Etnické čistky, občianske vojny, znásilňovanie a zabíjanie boli bežné v dňoch, mesiacoch aj rokoch po oficiálnom skončení vojny. Kniha britského historika skúma Európu hnanú túžbou po pomste. Krutý kontinent je šokujúcim portrétom doteraz nepovšimnutej doby bezprávia a hrôz. Ako píše autor, je len akýmsi príjemným mýtom, že akonáhle skončila druhá svetová vojna, všetko sa vrátilo do normálu. Všetko, čo existovalo pred vojnou, bolo zničené, a to nehovoríme iba o dopravnej infraštruktúre, budovách či fabrikách, ale o celom predvojnovom živote. Povojnové roky sa niesli v znamení presídľovania, posúvania hraníc, ale trebárs aj zbavovania sa nepohodlných detí, ktoré v mnohých krajinách zostali po nemeckých vojakoch. Kniha Krutý kontinent je prvá veľká syntéza o danom období, ktorá ukazuje, že podobné dianie a chaos existovali takmer všade v Európe.

A powerful narrative detailing the final days of the Nazi regime and the collapse of a nation.

From one of Britain's most distinguished historians and the bestselling author of Hitler, this definitive history explores a divided Europe from the aftermath of the Second World War to the present. Following the horrors of the first half of the 20th century, the years from 1950 to 2017 brought peace and relative prosperity to much of Europe. Enormous economic improvements transformed the continent, allowing the catastrophic era of the world wars to fade into the past, though its long shadow continued to influence mentalities. Europe became a divided continent, living under nuclear threat and facing intermittent anxiety. Europeans experienced a tumultuous journey, often feeling powerless as the USA and USSR dictated their fates during the Cold War. There were notable successes, such as the dissolution of the Soviet bloc, the fall of dictatorships, and the reunification of Germany. However, accelerating globalization introduced new vulnerabilities. The interlocking crises post-2008 served as a stark reminder that peace and stability are not guaranteed. In this remarkable work, Ian Kershaw offers a grand panorama of contemporary Europe and its origins, prompting a reevaluation of what it means to be European.

The history of the Second World War, with its horrible twists and turns, is so well known that the major events and their outcomes have taken on a sort of inevitability. It has become, in effect, a tragedy with each leader and each country playing an assigned part. Ian Kershaw's extraordinarily thought-provoking and gripping new book, Fateful Choices, demolishes any such sense of inevitability. He examines closely eleven episodes at the heart of the War where there was an immense range of options open to planners and decision-makers. From declarations of war down to operational priorities, choices were made that could have resulted in an almost unrecognisably different conflict. Other viewpoints were passionately and articulately argued by powerful, ruthless advocates. In no case was the decision that prevailed to any degree foreordained. Kershaw, not least through his immense work on the career of Adolf Hitler, has spent many years thinking about the contingent nature of history. Fateful Choices dramatizes brilliantly and distressingly events that between them could have resulted in disaster or victory - either for the Allies or for the Axis.

What made Germany keep fighting to the death, even when it was clear they would lose the Second World War? Why did its rulers not cut a deal to save their own skin? And why did ordinary people continue to obey the Führer's suicidal orders, with countless Germans executing their own countrymen for desertion or defeatism? Ian Kershaw's searing account takes us into the heart of the Third Reich's final months, laying bare the fear and fanaticism that drove a nation to destruction. 'Brilliant . . . undoubtedly a masterpiece.' Mail on Sunday'No one has written a better account of the human dimensions of Nazi Germany's end.' James J. Sheehan, New York Review of Books'Masterly . . . Kershaw's gripping and boldly intelligent work will surely become the standard popularly accessible account of the Nazi system's terrible final phase.' Financial Times'Kershaw is a sure-footed guide through the Hades of the final dark months of the war in Europe.' Independent on Sunday'A compelling account . . . gives us much more then the view from the top . . . interwoven are insights into German life and death at all levels of society.' The Times'Brilliant . . . utterly terrifying.'Sunday Times, Books of the Year

This is a a fascinating and original exploration of how the Third Reich was willing and able to fight to the bitter end of World War II. Countless books have been written about why Nazi Germany lost World War II, yet remarkably little attention has been paid to the equally vital question of how and why it was able to hold out as long as it did. The Third Reich did not surrender until Germany had been left in ruins and almost completely occupied.

One of the great historians of our age asks: how far can a single leader alter the course of history? The modern era saw the emergence of individuals who had command over a terrifying array of instruments of control, persuasion and death. Whole societies were re-shaped and wars fought, often with a merciless contempt for the most basic norms. At the summit of these societies were leaders whose personalities had somehow given them the ability to do whatever they wished. Ian Kershaw's new book is a compelling, lucid and challenging attempt to understand these rulers, whether operating on the widest stage (Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini) or with a more national impact (Tito, Franco). What was it about these leaders and the times they lived in that allowed them such untrammelled and murderous power? And what brought that era to an end? In a contrasting group of profiles, from Churchill to de Gaulle, Adenauer to Gorbachev, and Thatcher to Kohl, Kershaw uses his exceptional skills to think through how other, strikingly different figures wielded power.

Chas Stewart Henry Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 7th Marquess of Londonderry, was born to power. Scion of an aristocratic family, Churchill's cousin, royal confidant, owner of vast coal fields & landed estates, wed to the doyenne of London society, he was an ornament to his class, the .1% who still owned 30% of England's wealth as late as '30. But history hasn't been kind to 'Charley', as the king called him, because, in his own words, he "backed the wrong horse"--a very dark horse indeed: Adolf Hitler & the Nazis. Londonderry wasn't the only aristocrat to do so, but he was the only Cabinet member to do so. It ruined him. In a final irony, his grand London house was bombed by the Luftwaffe in the blitz. Kershaw isn't out to rehabilitate Londonderry but to understand him, to expose why he was made a scapegoat for views that were much more widely held than anyone likes to think. H.L. Mencken famously said that "for every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat & wrong." The conventional explanation of the coming of WWII is a simple story of the West's appeasement of Hitler in the face of bullying. Thru the story of how Londonderry came to be mixed up with the Nazis & how it all went wrong, Kershaw shows that behind the familiar cartoon is a much more complicated & interesting reality, with miscalculations on both sides, fatal miscalculations.

'It is now time that something was done. But the man who has the courage to do something must do it in the knowledge that he will go down in German history as a traitor. If he does not, however, he will be a traitor to his own conscience' - Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, July 1944. The July 1944 plot to kill Adolf Hitler was a desperate attempt by a group of senior officers to redeem Germany's honour and end the Second World War. They were heroic because they knew their chances of success were slight and that the result of their failure would undoubtedly be a terrible death.They wanted to leave a message for later that there were Germans who understood the evils of Nazism and were willing to act against it. This extraordinary story is the basis for Bryan Singer's major new film "Valkyrie", due to be released in February 2009. Published for the first time as a separate book, "Luck of the Devil" is taken from Ian Kershaw's bestselling "Hitler 1936-1945: Nemesis" and is a brilliant account of just what happened in those fateful days at Hitler's Wolf's Lair headquarters, when his opponents came so astonishingly close to assassinating what is one of the modern era's most terrible figures.

Der Bestseller über den Einfluss Einzelner auf den Lauf der Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts Zwölf Mächtige, elf Männer und eine Frau, die das 20. Jahrhundert in Europa tief geprägt haben, rücksichtslose, mörderische Diktatoren oder demokratische Staatenlenker: Was zeichnete diese Menschen aus, dass sie große Macht erlangten und Geschichte machten? Welche Voraussetzungen brachten sie mit? Wie weit wurden sie von den Umständen ihrer Zeit und Umgebung befördert oder getrieben? Vor dem Hintergrund der aktuellen Erfahrungen mit autoritären Führern ergründet der englische Historiker Ian Kershaw, einer der besten Kenner der europäischen Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts, die Bedingungen für den Aufstieg zur Macht und analysiert dabei grundsätzlich die Möglichkeiten und Grenzen »starker« Führungspersönlichkeiten.

Geweldige nieuwe Kershaw Na twee verwoestende oorlogen in de eerste helft van de twintigste eeuw begint Europa aan zijn wederopbouw. Ian Kershaw beschrijft de eerste stappen naar een nieuwe, ogenschijnlijk welvarende toekomst, die echter wordt geteisterd door de spanningen van de Koude Oorlog, de economische groei en de sociale gevolgen daarvan, de roerige jaren zestig, de val van de Sovjet-Unie en de problemen die de landen in Oost-Europa ondervonden bij de transitie naar democratie en kapitalisme. Vervolgens zette 9/11 ook in Europa grote veranderingen in gang, gevolgd door oorlogen in Afghanistan en Irak. De opeenvolging van crises sinds 2008 bracht Europa in het zware weer waarin we nu nóg verkeren. In Een naoorlogse achtbaan – Europa 1950-2017 bouwt Ian Kershaw voort op de Europese geschiedenis uit het eerste deel van dit tweeluik, De afdaling in de hel – Europa 1914-1949. Het is een verhaal van hoge pieken en diepe dalen, vol kronkels en wendingen; een achtbaan, inclusief de uitgelatenheid en de doodsangst. De materiële en sociale vooruitgang in de korte periode van 1950 tot 2017 is verbluffend, maar deze transformatie was geen onomstotelijk succesverhaal. Europa bevindt zich in 2017 in een nieuwe periode van onzekerheid met een tanende invloed van de Europese Unie. Wat zal de tijd brengen? In zijn laatste hoofdstuk waagt Kershaw zich aan een blik op de toekomst.

Warum kämpften die Deutschen bis zum bitteren Ende? Das »Dritte Reich« kämpfte nicht nur bis zum bitteren Ende, bis zur totalen Niederlage, es funktionierte auch bis zum Schluss. Bis die Rote Armee vor den Pforten der Reichskanzlei stand, wurde die öffentliche Ordnung in Deutschland, das täglich ein Stück mehr unter alliierte Besatzung geriet, weitgehend aufrechterhalten. Löhne wurden bezahlt und die Verwaltung lief – wenngleich unter großen Schwierigkeiten – weiter. Die Gründe dafür, warum Hitlers Deutschland militärisch zusammenbrach, sind bekannt, die Frage, wie und warum das »Dritte Reich« bis zum Schluss funktionierte, ist dagegen bis heute nicht beantwortet. Zentral bei der Suche nach einer Antwort auf die Frage, wie das Regime bis zum Ende durchhalten konnte, so der renommierte NS-Historiker Ian Kershaw, ist Hitlers Art der charismatischen Herrschaft.

Dr. phil. Ian Kershaw, geboren 1943, studiere in Liverpool und Oxford. Er lehrte von 1968 bis 1989 an den Universitäte Manchester und Nottingham. Seit 1989 ist er Professor für Neuere Geschichte und Direktor des Historischen Instituts der Universität Sheffield.

Die Frage nach dem Einfluss Einzelner auf den Lauf der Geschichte ist ebenso alt wie heikel. Für Ian Kershaw steht bei seinem Blick auf Europa im 20. Jahrhundert nicht das moralische Urteil der Nachgeborenen im Vordergrund. Ihn interessiert das komplexe Zusammenwirken historischer Gegebenheiten mit den Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen von Menschen, die Raum und Epoche maßgeblich beeinflussten. Kershaw betreibt keinen Geschichtsdeterminismus: Vielmehr fragt er jeweils nach Denkmustern und Idealen, Defiziten und Prägungen, also individuellen Eigenschaften, denen Entscheidungen folgten. Im Zusammenwirken mit den Potenzialen des Amtes, sei es übertragen oder usurpiert, lasse sich, so Kershaw, eher begreifen, warum die Verbindung von Person und Macht bei Lenin oder Mussolini, Hitler oder Stalin Europa in den Abgrund führte. Kershaw sucht das in der jeweiligen Persönlichkeit und in der historischen Situation Wurzelnde, um über Werturteile hinaus zu verstehen.