The Final Solution

The devastating events that occurred during the Germans “Final Solution” of World War II left an imprint on history that embodies the most atrocious crimes capable of the human spirit. Whatever could have led the Germans to the abominable events of WWII? The Germans written by Gordon A. Craig takes a detailed and complex look at the Germans throughout history covering every aspect of German life from the rise and fall of Hitler to the centuries of achievements produced by German scientists, artists and philosophers alike. Craig takes a small step away from the carnage of the Holocaust and reveals that the Germans have had more to offer the world than their worst moment in history. Craig’s argument throughout his book explains, “that Germans aren’t like anyone but the Germans and in their view of history, can hardly expect to be” and that “no people is harder to generalize about than the Germans”. Craig’s main conclusions as established in his introduction are that:

The year 1945 represented a caesura in German history that was sharper and more conclusive than any previous break in modern times, infinitely 1918. In the aftermath of the Second World War and the tensions of the Cold War, two German States were born with political and economic systems that were radically different from those of the past, and their development upon these new foundations has been so marked that chances of reversion to the past, on the other side of the wall, are all but negligible

He takes his thesis by first applying it to a historical overview of Germany and then to politics, Hitler, religion, money, relationship between Germans and Jews, women’s roles, professors and students, the Romantics, literature and society, soldiers, the etiology of Berlin, democracy and nationalism and the German language in a thoughtful overview of German history.

The foundation of Craig’s research is rich with primary documents from the many German eras he describes which is well demonstrated in each chapter. For example in Chapter 6 “Germans and Jews”, Craig inserts an excerpt from a document titled “Concerning the Jews and Their Lies” written in 1543 by Martin Luther during the Reformation. Craig uses this excerpt to demonstrate the existence of Anti-Semitic thought centuries before the Holocaust. Another example of Craig’s extensive use of archival documents is found in Chapter 13 “Democracy and Nationalism” in which he uses an excerpt from The Muses Almanach for the Year 1797, which addresses the hostile views of other nations towards Germany:

You hope – vain Germans, to make

Yourselves a nation.

Train yourself rather – you can do it-

To be freer human beings.

Craig also includes many extracts from the contemporary newspaper, the prominent Hamburg weekly Die Zeit, and the weekly news magazine Der Speigel as primary documents to represent the spirit of the times. He also incorporates many poems and passages from literature especially in Chapter 9 “The Romantics” and Chapter 10 “Literature and Society” in which he successfully creates an ambiance of the time periods in which he describes. Craig executes an outstanding application of primary documents ...

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You hope – vain Germans, to make

Yourselves a nation.

Train yourself rather – you can do it-

To be freer human beings.

The Germans is a book that works to form a synthesis and successfully implements a balanced assessment of the topic, which is the understanding of the German people, and the history that has led to their uniqueness and individuality as a nation. The Germans opens in an introduction which reveals Craig’s thesis and is then divided into three parts: Part One “Past and Present”, Part Two “Change and Continuity” and Part Three “Present and Future” and concludes in an Afterword written nine years after the initial publication. Every part is followed by a number of chapters that relate to the title of the section. Each chapter follows a specific and well-organized structure that begins with an opening introduction and is separated into sections that are chronologically arranged.

The Germans is geared towards general audiences but those who have a reasonably good understanding of the history of Germany. The Germans is not a book that can be simply ‘skimmed’ – it is a book that requires complete attention to detail as the superfluity of historical dates, places and significant people embodies its general essence and it is very easy to get lost in dates if attention wavers.

Gordon A. Craig is a highly reputable writer of German history. When The Germans was published he was a Professor of Humanities Emertius at Stanford University. Craig has written a large number of books on German history, his classic books Politics of the Prussian Army, 1640-1945 and Germany, 1866-1945 have won him the Historian’s Prize of the City of Munster and the Gold Medal of the Commonwealth Club of California. Among these awards Craig has also been nominated for a National Book Award. Steering away from his awards, Craig first went to Germany in the mid-1930’s thereby adding an element of personal experience to his credibility on the German topic.

In comparison to other works about the German people, Craig submits valid and reliable information. His bibliography proves this in that 15-20 books or articles have been referenced to support each chapter. Further analysis of articles that were not referenced in The Germans also provides verification of Craig’s historical evidence. For example the article “Mothers and Citizens” written by Suzanne Rouette is concurrent with Craig’s information about women’s roles post-World War I. For example, Craig states: “the male Reichstag members showed a startling tendency to say that if women wouldn’t stay at home where they belonged, they deserved no consideration”. In Rouette’s article, she states that “works councils and trade union representatives on the local demobilization commissions acted according to the maxim that “… one should not give too much support to women, since we all have agree with the view that women should be removed from the plants whenever possible”. Although each author speaks of different political groups, concurrence is shown in the general attitude of male members of political parties of the role of women in society: in the home.

Further evidence of Craig’s validity is shown in comparison with another article not found in his bibliography titled “Hitler the Statesman: War and Peace in Balance”. The article explains that Hitler’s positive actions in intimidating and achieving ground above other nations without bloodshed before World War II had a large effect on the German people’s reasons for putting such intense trust in his leadership “the popular image of Hitler was far removed from reality. While he berated the longing for peace among the population, his own prestige was reaching new heights through attaining another triumph without bloodshed”. Craig alludes to a similar subject and states: “the devotion that Hitler won from the Germans by the positive achievements of the years before the war was remarkably resistant to reason and reality.” Examination of these two articles in comparison to the information in The Germans proves that Craig’s information is legitimate and consistent with other works relevant to his topics.

In relation to biases, The Germans is completely removed from biases of any sort. Craig provides a comprehensive view of the Germans in every angle possible. While comparing Craig’s work with other articles it became very evident that there was no bias in his work and a notable amount of biases in other works concerning the same topics. His exclusion of bias delivers a more established and credulous piece of works that adds to the greatness of The Germans. Although Craig’s book was first published in 1982, his work is timeless as the information and comparative analysis he provides is a remarkably complete breakdown of German history. His Afterword, published in 1991 concludes his thoughts and valuable insights on the re-unification of the two Germanys finalizing his brilliant piece.

The Germans written by Gordon A. Craig has contributed an immense wealth of information to my previously existing knowledge about the German people. The Germans has furthered my understanding towards how and why the German people ever succumbed to the evil dictatorship of Adolf Hitler and the carnage of the Holocaust – which Craig explained by giving examples of previously existing Anti-Semitism, Hitler’s positive effects and triumphs for the German people pre-war and the economic and social strife the German people had experience post-WWI and their diminished hopes and nationalism that was temporarily restored by Nazi rule. Beyond the Holocaust, Craig’s book has advanced my understanding as to why Germany has always been a country that has differed from the rest of the world. In the first part of The Germans, Craig brings together a synthesis of events starting from the tenth century to the twentieth century. Craig’s fusion and examination of the historical events of Germany throughout centuries furthered my understanding about how Germany being known as das Lande der Mitte (country in the middle) has influenced the way she has developed in relation to the nationality of her people and her isolation from the rest of Europe. The Germans is a valuable book for anybody who wishes to further his or her knowledge on the complicated and intricate German people.