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Wehrmacht Generals, West German Society, and the Debate on Rearmament, 1949-1959
Alaric Searle
Book Code: C7968
ISBN: 0-275-97968-7
ISBN-13: 978-0-275-97968-3
344 pages, photos, tables
Praeger Publishers
Publication: 12/30/2003
List Price: $99.95 (UK Sterling Price: £57.95)
Availability: In Stock
Media Type: Hardcover
Also Available: Ebook
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Subjects: Reviews:
  • [S]earle directs the spotlight of his inquiry into areas hitherto poorl lit and thereby, expands our knowledge of the German security debates of the 1950s.
    —German Studies Review     February 2006
  • Alaric Searle adds to the literature on West Germany's struggle with the Nazi past, here within the context of German rearmament in the 1950s. Using a vast selection of German records, Searle examines how Hitler's former generals involved themselves in debates over West Germany's integration into NATO and how their collaboration with Adolf Hitler defined their postwar role. This is a valuable study....Successful cooperation between pragmatic former generals and their civilian superiors in creating a new type of German army together with a conscious suppression of the Wehrmacht's worst crimes would delay a full reckoning with the past until after the Cold War. Searle shows nicely how this curious dichotomy occurred.
    —The Journal of Military History     2005
  • [S]earle has raised some provocative questions about the origins of the Bundeswehr and the relative success of democratization at different levels in the former military hierarchy.
    —H-German.net     February 2005
  • Some may dissent from Searle's judicious and thoughtful conclusions, but the book is especially valuable for readers new to the subject of transitions to democracy and reestablishment of military professionalism in Germany.
    —American Historical Review     April 2005
  • Searle provides an important examination of the role of former Wehrmacht generals in the seminal event of early post-war German history, the rearmament of the Federal Republic. This is a work that deserves a wide readership among historians of modern Germany as well as among political scientists concerned with the influence of interest groups and organizational behavior on the development of government policy.
    —Sehepunkte     2004
Description: Examining the fate of former German generals after the Second World War, this is one of the first books in English to utilize the extensive archival material now available on the West German rearmament debate. Focus is given to the role these generals played in military policy-making, in planning for democratic armed forces, and in public discussions on coming to terms with the National Socialist past. The former generals were active in behind-the-scenes military planning and debates on military reform, but they also engaged in public efforts to influence politics as spokesmen of veterans' organizations. Alaric Searle uncovers proof that some former generals tried to bypass parliamentary control of the Federal armed forces, while others intervened to thwart those efforts. Through their actions, these generals also became symbols and metaphors for the National Socialist past. At an early stage, the generals were involved in the media discussions on rearmament. From the mid-1950s onwards, they increasingly became the objects of critical press attention, most notably in a number of trials that centered on wartime execution orders. These trials immediately assumed relevance for the public debate on military reform and rearmament. In providing an account of the political and military activities of the Wehrmacht General Officer Corps after World War II, this work also contributes to the broader debate on the role of elites in West German society after 1945.
Table of Contents:
  • Tables
  • Preface
  • Abbreviations
  • A Note on Wehrmacht Generals' Ranks
  • Introduction
  • Prologue: Wehrmacht Generals in Defeat, 1945-49
  • The Generals Regroup: The Attempts to Establish a Consensus, 1950/51
  • The Institutional Response: The Blank Office, the Gehlen Organization, and the Control Group, 1951-56
  • The Pressure Group Response: Generals, Veterans' Associations, and Rearmament, 1951-56
  • Rearmament, Generals, and Society: The Press, Politics, and Public Opinion, 1949-59
  • Rearmament, the Past, and the Law: Wehrmacht Generals on Trial, 1951-59
  • Conclusion
  • Selected Bibliography
  • Index
LC Card Number: 2002044992
LCC Class: UA710
Dewey Class: 355
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