The Legacy of the Second World War

by John Lukacs

• ISBN13: 9780300171389
• ISBN10: 0300171382
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2011-02-22
• Publisher: Yale University Press

Summary

Sixty-five years after the conclusion of World War II, its consequences are still with us. In this probing book, the acclaimed historian John Lukacs raises perplexing questions about World War II that have yet to be explored. In a work that brilliantly argues for World War II's central place in the history of the twentieth century, Lukacs applies his singular expertise toward addressing the war's most persistent enigmas. The Second World War was Hitler's war. Yet questions about Hitler's thoughts and his decisions still remain. How did the divisions of Europeand, consequently, the Cold Warcome about? What were the true reasons for Werner Heisenberg's mission to Niels Bohr in Copenhagen in September 1941? What led to "Rainbow Five," the American decision to make the war against Germany an American priority even in the event of a two-ocean world war? Was the Cold War unavoidable? In this work, which offers both an accessible primer for students and challenging new theses for scholars, Lukacs addresses these and other riddles, revealing the ways in which the war and its legacy still touch our lives today.

Author Biography

John Lukacs is the author of some thirty books of history, including the acclaimed Five Days in London and Last Rites.

Table of Contents

Seventy Years Later: The Legacy of the Second World War	p. 1
The Place of the Second World War-At the End of an Age	p. 16
The Division of Europe	p. 54
Hitler, Questions Still Extant	p. 86
The Germans' Two Wars, Heisenberg and Bohr	p. 109
Rainbow Five	p. 133
The Second World War and the Origins of the Cold War	p. 161
Acknowledgments	p. 193
Index	p. 195
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.