Eight Days in May: The Final Collapse of the Third Reich
Eight Days in May: The Final Collapse of the Third Reich book cover

Eight Days in May: The Final Collapse of the Third Reich

Hardcover – September 21, 2021

by
Price
$24.49
Format
Hardcover
Pages
336
Publisher
Liveright
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-1631498275
Dimensions
6.3 x 1.2 x 9.3 inches
Weight
1.3 pounds

Description

"[G]ripping, immaculately researched . . . In Mr. Ullrich’s account, the murderous behavior of the Reich’s last-ditch loyalists was not a reaction born of rage or of stubbornness in the face of defeat―common enough in war―but of something that had long ago tipped over into the pathological." ― Andrew Stuttaford, Wall Street Journal "[V]ivid, fast-paced . . . Superbly researched, Eight Days in May communicates the pity of Hitler’s war and its aftermath with sympathy and an impressive narrative verve." ― Ian Thomson, The Spectator (UK) "[E]xcellent . . . It still must be hard for a German scholar to be entirely dispassionate about what was done in (still, just) living memory." ― David Aaronovitch, The Times (UK) "This vivid account by historian Ullrich ( Hitler: Downfall) renders the death throes of the Third Reich in riveting detail... This immersive and often disturbing chronicle brilliantly evokes a surreal moment in history that gave 'the impression of apocalypse on the one hand and of a new beginning on the other." ― Publishers Weekly , starred review "[R]ichly textured... A vital and often vibrant account of eight days when people all across Europe were suspended in confusion and chaos." ― Kirkus Reviews "Ullrich provides a sweeping view of Germany’s collapse: he documents the regime’s last-minute power struggles, sexual violence and plundering inflicted by the Soviet army, death marches and massacres of prisoners of war and forced laborers by diehard Nazis, and brutal sieges and battles... expertly researched and written." ― Michael Rodriguez, Library Journal "A fast-paced, brilliant recounting of the turbulent last days of the Third Reich. With all the energy and chaos of a Jackson Pollock canvas, Eight Days in May evokes the complete and utter chaos of a collapsing society. We see victor and vanquished, persecutor and victim, and witness an empire as it falls from its savage heights to the depths of a despised and defeated nation.” ―Helmut Walser Smith, author of Germany: A Nation in Its Time “The last days of the Third Reich have often been told, but seldom with the verve, perception and elegance of Volker Ullrich’s rich narrative. For Western states that have never faced comprehensive and destructive defeat, this is an instructive lesson in how societies cope with the devastating reality of a surrender that they grimly await.” ―Richard Overy, author of RAF: The Birth of the World’s First Air Force “The last chapter of the Nazi regime, just before its fall, is perhaps the most interesting. And Volker Ullrich manages to cover the days after Hitler’s suicide with brilliant prose, and excellent original research.” ―Norman Ohler, New York Times best-selling author of Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich “Volker Ullrich’s compact, gripping narration brings to life the death throes of the Nazi regime as individual acts of delusion, desperation and resignation. This vivid mosaic of German reactions to defeat is a suspenseful account and original depiction of the ambivalence and disbelief of those who had been spell-bound by Hitler.” ―Wendy Lower, author of The Ravine and Hitler’s Furies Ullrich Volker is a prize-winning historian and the author of Hitler: Ascent, 1889–1939, Hitler: Downfall, 1939–1945, and Eight Days in May: The Final Collapse of the Third Reich. He lives in Hamburg. Jefferson Chase has translated works by Thomas Mann and Wolfgang Schivelbusch, among others. He lives in Berlin. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • "[G]ripping, immaculately researched . . . In Mr. Ullrich’s account, the murderous behavior of the Reich’s last-ditch loyalists was not a reaction born of rage or of stubbornness in the face of defeat―common enough in war―but of something that had long ago tipped over into the pathological." ―Andrew Stuttaford,
  • Wall Street Journal
  • The best-selling author of
  • Hitler: Ascent
  • and
  • Hitler: Downfall
  • reconstructs the chaotic, otherworldly last days of Nazi Germany.
  • In a bunker deep below Berlin’s Old Reich Chancellery, Adolf Hitler and his new bride, Eva Braun, took their own lives just after 3:00 p.m. on April 30, 1945―Hitler by gunshot to the temple, Braun by ingesting cyanide. But the Führer’s suicide did not instantly end either Nazism or the Second World War in Europe. Far from it: the eight days that followed were among the most traumatic in modern history, witnessing not only the final paroxysms of bloodshed and the frantic surrender of the Wehrmacht, but the total disintegration of the once-mighty Third Reich.
  • In
  • Eight Days in May
  • , the award-winning historian and Hitler biographer Volker Ullrich draws on an astonishing variety of sources, including diaries and letters of ordinary Germans, to narrate a society’s descent into Hobbesian chaos. In the town of Demmin in the north, residents succumbed to madness and committed mass suicide. In Berlin, Soviet soldiers raped German civilians on a near-unprecedented scale. In Nazi-occupied Prague, Czech insurgents led an uprising in the hope that General George S. Patton would come to their aid but were brutally put down by German units in the city. Throughout the remains of Third Reich, huge numbers of people were on the move, creating a surrealistic tableau: death marches of concentration-camp inmates crossed paths with retreating Wehrmacht soldiers and groups of refugees; columns of POWs encountered those of liberated slave laborers and bombed-out people returning home.
  • A taut, propulsive narrative,
  • Eight Days in May
  • takes us inside the phantomlike regime of Hitler’s chosen successor, Admiral Karl Dönitz, revealing how the desperate attempt to impose order utterly failed, as frontline soldiers deserted and Nazi Party fanatics called on German civilians to martyr themselves in a last stand against encroaching Allied forces. In truth, however, the post-Hitler government represented continuity more than change: its leaders categorically refused to take responsibility for their crimes against humanity, an attitude typical not just of the Nazi elite but also of large segments of the German populace. The consequences would be severe.
  • Eight Days in May
  • is not only an indispensable account of the Nazi endgame, but a historic work that brilliantly examines the costs of mass delusion. 20 illustrations

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(472)
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(197)
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(118)
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Most Helpful Reviews

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End Game

A German historian looks back with a clear eye on the final chaotic days of World War II as experienced by the Germans. This fairly short book is mainly a social and political history, rather than a detailed military overview.

The author sometimes strays from the strict timetable of eight days in May and covers other events either before or after, for example, about many future East and West German political figures such as Willy Brandt, Helmut Schmidt, and Erich Honecker. He also goes afield when relating the somewhat interesting , but not too relevant tale, of the actress Marlene Dietrich and her Nazi-tainted sister.

Most American readers will appreciate the detailed factual descriptions of several underreported atrocities at war's end and, also, how the main Nazis, including Hitler, ended their nefarious careers either by the rope, suicide, or by quietly blending back into society.

(As an aside, this book is another useful reminder that, within a democratic society, loosely tossing terms around such as "Fascist" against those with whom you merely disagree with on policy matters is wildly inappropriate.)
37 people found this helpful
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Not as Final as it seems

I have recently become very interested in all aspects of the third reich and ww2. I was born in 1958 and often wondered why we never learned much about ww2 in history class. It seemed to be limited to concentration camps and atomic bombs. The more I read, the more I realize how much this was changed the entire world.
I have not read any of Vollker's other books, but they are on my wishlist. Between May 1 and 8, 1945 many things happened. The Donitz government tried to establish itself and move into negotiations with the Allies. German citizens experienced the beginnings of the prices they would pay for the actions of the Hitler government, the inaction of German citizens. Many people took action to deny involvement or knowledge of anything the Nazi regime did. Many who once supported Hitler, now denied it and claimed coercion. Some did stick to their beliefs and stated so.
I learned some interesting things: the origin of the phrase "iron curtain", Himmler's timeline from the time of Hitler's death until his own, the ultimate demise of some important Nazi leaders, the true extent of people who were directly involved with crimes against humanity, atrocities and either received a slap on the wrist or were not punished at all.
The book seems well researched. It is well written. I highly recommend for anyone with an interest in the period of time from 1900-1945 and beyond. So much of what happened post ww2 can be directly attributed to actions the Nazis took. It is so incredibly pervasive.
28 people found this helpful
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A short book on the end of the long World War II as the Nazi government went down to total defeat

I have read both long and comprehensive books on Adolf Hitler by the eminent Dr. Ullrich placing him on the top rung of modern day biographers of that evil monster as Peter Longerich (writing in German) and Ian Kershaw the British scholar. Eight Days in May is Ullrich's short book on the final week of Nazi rule. He includes a brilliant insight into the last sigh of the Third Reich. The 271 page book is well translated into English from the original German and includes period photos.
During the momentous last week of the Nazi regime:
a. Adolf Hitler and his wife Eva (he had married Miss Braun only a few hours earlier in a macabre ceremony performed in the Dantean depths of the Reich Bunker in Berlin). committed suicide on the afternoon of April 30, 1945 as Russian bombs fell on Berlin.
b. Millions of Displaced Persons within Germany were forced into Allied controlled camps and travel great distances on the roads of the Reich.
c. The Soviets conquered large swaths of Eastern Germany and conquered Berlin. Berlin would later be divided into four zones of occupation controlled by the USA, United Kingdom, France and the Soviet Union.
d. Nazi bigwigs such as Himmler committed suicide to avoid punishment. Nazi criminals were captured and war trials crimes began.
5. The author tells stories of various individuals from freed concentration camp inmates to celebrities such as Marlene Dietrich
6. It was a time of harsh living for Berliners. Thousands of German women were raped by Soviet soldiers and members of the Allied nations. There was hunger, violence and fear abroad in Germany and throughout Europe.
7. Nothing was left but rubble in many major German cities due to bombing and combat damage.
8. Hunger and fear were ruling Germany.
9. Local government was in chaos. Many of new government officials had been complicit in the horrors of Nazi Germany.
This devastating portrait of a defeated nation and people is well done and deserves a wide readership.
22 people found this helpful
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Monsters implode.

A good rule is to read at least one book a year about Nazi Germany as a reminder of the unthinkable days when Monsters were in charge.

Eight Days in May uses those first days of May 1945 as a grizzly bulletin board on which to pin micro biographies of the Nazi Monsters. Many wore uniforms. Others did not. Some were capable of machine-gunning three thousand “prisoners” then just walking away. Another number of the demented — less than a month before surrender — lock 1,100 people in a barn then burn it. Anyone who tries to escape is shot. The book tells of war’s-end death marches with no destination or purpose other than death itself.

Depravity seems to attract volunteers from among the German population, and soon thereafter from the avenging oppressed.

In the eight May day frame of disintegration, the Reich dies. The war stops. Papers are signed. The mechanized killing ends. A number of the poisonously arrogant and blindly defiant will face punishment. Many other monsters will dig deep into anonymity and vanish. Apart from these, among the smashed cities and displaced millions, a whole continent sees itself in the shattered glass. It is a broken world sentenced to a common horizon. So very many have been ripped from civility and must deal with disfigured ethics, damaged reason, and an unbalanced conscience.

Vanquished and “victor” alike stare ahead to brutal years of sunsets marked by a tormenting climb out of the chaos, pulling themselves “up” to a blight of despair and disorder, and eventually to mere deprivation.

Volker Ullrich tells this bleak story in his powerful book about the collapsing hours of the planet’s darkest night of human rule. It is all the more frightening to think this madness once rampant might now be dormant rather than gone altogether.
20 people found this helpful
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A new classic on The Third Reich’s collapse

I am a student of WWII history, and collect books on the subject. Eight Days in May is another great work by Volker Ullrich and has my highest respect and appreciation.German Translator Jefferson Chase, deserves immense credit in helping to make making Ullrich’s work a success that will certainly endure the test of time. This is a refreshing point of view from a notable German historian.
16 people found this helpful
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Interesting addition to my WWII knowledge.

I was stationed in Stuttgart, Germany in 1970-71 as part of the US Army. My wife and I learned to enjoy the German people we met. This book brought to light what many of these people had faced at the end of the war. We have returned to Germany frequently over the years and always have a good time.

WWII seemed like ancient history to me then, but at only 25 years since May 8, the remnants of the war were still around. My wife and I visited Dachau in 1970 and witnessed a TV show production. We visited Berchtesgaden, rode in Hitler’s elevator to enjoy a beer at Hitler’s Keilstein. We toured his bunker. We visited his stadium in Nuremberg and stayed at the Berchtesgaden HOF Hotel (since torn down) that Hitler used to house visiting dignitaries. Later in a subsequent visit in the 90s we found the ruins of his Berghof. Some of the foundation was still there. This book was enjoyable to me as it fleshed out those spots with the people that were there.

In 1970 we were ordered by the Army to never wear our uniform anywhere unless on Army business. I guess it upset the people. I was never treated unwell until my last day in country. I was in my dress greens in the Stuttgart train station waiting to travel to Frankfurt, report in and catch my flight home to be discharged. An elderly gentleman walked up to me as I was eating a sandwich. He pointed his finger on my uniform, rattled out some German along with Hitler’s name and looked very upset. I just responded that I was not born then and he walked away. Some of the old Nazi’s were still around, I guess.

I recommend this book to anyone that reads about WWII
14 people found this helpful
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A quick summary of the immediate aftermath of the horrors of Nazism

I read the two-volume Hitler biography from Volcker and found it valuable if hardly groundbreaking. It reiterated much of what one may glean from the more comprehensive volumes of Kershaw, among others. Still, Volcker here offers a brief series of vignettes, describing the first eight days in Germany after Hitler's Berlin suicide. He emphasizes the "fact" that many Germans suddenly had a sort of amnesia or ignorance concerning the terrors of the 12-year regime, it being difficult to find many Nazis in the post-war country. Still, he does note how many of those deeply implicated in that reprehensible government found new lives in the recovery and ultimate growth and power in the new Germany. The book is well-written (i.e. well-translated) and is worth a read for those of us who are steeped in the ideas of Nazism and its reprehensible impacts on societies then and now.
5 people found this helpful
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Not So Good

Unlike the author's previous two two books on Hitler Ascend and Downfall, this book was a major letdown . The book was too general on the subject at hand Sorry guys but I recommend not to invest into this book
4 people found this helpful
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WW11 History

A great book with many facts and an easy read. Highly recommended .
3 people found this helpful
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A SUPERB ACCOUNTING OF THE THIRD REICH FOR THE NINE DAYS AFTER HITLER'S DEATH

Many people mistakenly believe that German, Nazism, the Third Reich, even WWII in Europe, ended on April 30,1945 when Hitler committed suicide. It didn't! It continued for nine more days with tens of thousands more military and civilian dead. This is, as far as I know, the third book in English dealing with that fascinating period-the others, obtainable by interlibrary loan as they're long out of print, are by German historian Marlis Steinert and Grand Adm. Karl Doenitz's aide-de-camp, Walter Ludde-Neurath; I've read them both.
Now one of Germany's most acclaimed historians has tackled writing his history of that time.
It is a superbly written book, beautifully translated into English, and fascinating to all who are interested in the subject. I join the other reviewers' comments on the substance of the book. It is factually very accurate and Dr. Ullrich deals with the entire panoply of the collapse of Germany on all front. I am especially impressed by the solidity of his caustic analyses of most of the leaders of the rump Flensburg regime headed by Doenitz all of whom sought to drape themselves with personal innocence for any and all of their complicity in the crimes of the Hitler regime which they served with diligent dedication for years. Reading this book I am mindful of just how leniently the arch criminals Doenitz, Speer and Schwerin von Krosigk (a name unknown to almost all Americans but a Reich cabinet minister from the first day of Hitler (earlier even) were treated in the subsequent war crimes trials. They deserved far worse than they got.
3 people found this helpful

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