Book description
In September 1938, Hitler had been in power for more than five years,
and had abrogated most of the constraints placed on German militarism
by the Treaty of Versailles. Earlier that year he had forced Austria
into his Third Reich without a single shot fired, and his sights were
set on Czechoslovakia. It was in this climate that a coup was born,
led by Lieutenant Colonel Hans Oster of German military leaders,
members of the Berlin police, local troop commanders, civil
authorities, religious leaders, and a courageous group of resisters
who assembled in a mission to unseat, and even kill, Hitler.
The Oster Conspiracy of 1938 mines the cultural and political
milieu of post-WWI Europe, the forces and personal histories that
motivated the group to such decisive and dangerous action, and the
catalyst of their ultimate failure. This is narrative history at its
best: revelatory, well documented with archival material, people with
a rich cast of characters, fast-paced, and highly provocative.
Terry Parssinen is professor of history at the University of Tampa
and a specialist in modern European history. He lives in Tampa and
Philadelphia.
