{"title":"Volker Ullrich","description":"\u003cp\u003eVolker Ullrich offers a profound exploration of pivotal moments and figures in modern German history. His works, rich in detail and narrative depth, provide insightful biographies and gripping accounts of events that shaped the 20th century.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReaders can expect meticulously researched histories that blend \u003cem\u003ebiography and military history\u003c\/em\u003e, uncovering the complexities behind influential personalities like Bismarck and Hitler, as well as the turbulent years of the Weimar Republic and World War II.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"hitler-volume-i","title":"Hitler: Volume I","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHitler: Volume I\u003c\/em\u003e by Volker Ullrich is a landmark biography that delves deep into the uncharted territories of Adolf Hitler's early years, shedding light on the man behind one of the most infamous figures in history. This compelling first volume meticulously chronicles Hitler's life from his humble beginnings to the precipice of the Second World War, presenting readers with a comprehensive, multidimensional portrait.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSelected as a Book of the Year by prestigious publications such as the New York Times, the Times Literary Supplement, and The Times, this biography stands out in a field with surprisingly few serious studies of Hitler since the 1930s. Ullrich distinguishes his biography by shifting focus from Hitler’s political rise and tyrannical leadership to examining Hitler as a human being. The book challenges the view that the Führer had no private life, portraying him not as an austere political machine devoid of personality, but as an individual with complex traits.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn his detailed exploration, Ullrich uncovers Hitler’s charming yet repulsive characteristics, his innate talents contrasted with glaring weaknesses, and the deep-seated insecurities that fuelled his brutal ambitions. By drawing on a wealth of previously neglected or unavailable sources, Ullrich provides the most rounded and nuanced portrait of Hitler to date. The biography paints Hitler not merely as a psychopath but as a master of seduction and deception, someone whose magnetic influence over the German populace defies the simplistic cliché of an unfeeling monster.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMoreover, Ullrich's insightful analysis helps explain the enigma of Hitler's spellbinding hold over his followers. Offering fresh perspectives, the book corrects long-held perceptions, suggesting that understanding Hitler's multifaceted personality is crucial to grasping the broader historical context of his rise to power.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHitler: Volume I\u003c\/em\u003e is an essential read for anyone seeking to comprehend the complexities of Hitler’s character and the dark forces he unleashed upon the world. With its authoritative research and engaging narrative, this definitive biography is certain to change forever how we view the man who led the world into one of its darkest periods.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45657942491372,"sku":"9780099590231","price":48.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780099590231.jpg?v=1724846696"},{"product_id":"hitler-volume-ii","title":"Hitler: Volume II","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe long-awaited second volume of Volker Ullrich's acclaimed biography of one of history's most notorious figures, \u003ci\u003eHitler: Volume II\u003c\/i\u003e, delves deep into the war years. This gripping account takes readers from the early triumphs of the Blitzkrieg, the lightning-fast military campaigns that saw Nazi Germany conquer vast territories, through to the fateful decline that culminated in Hitler's suicide in his Berlin bunker in April 1945.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBy the summer of 1939, Hitler had reached the summit of his power. The narrative traces his initial successes, fuelled by strategic ingenuity and ruthless ambition. However, as the war dragged on, the Führer's fortunes began to shift dramatically. The sustained conflict exposed the limitations and inherent flaws in his leadership, ultimately leading to catastrophic defeat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eVolker Ullrich meticulously documents how, realising the inevitability of defeat and with Soviet troops encircling Berlin, Hitler chose to end his life. This act of suicide, occurring just one week before Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender, marked the end of a regime responsible for unparalleled devastation and the deaths of millions across Europe. Ullrich outlines how Hitler's grandiose dreams and brutal methods not only led to the ruin of his country but also had profound global repercussions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn this definitive volume, Ullrich argues that the very traits that catapulted Hitler to power—his undeniable charisma, strategic thinking, and ruthless ambition—were intrinsically linked to his downfall. The book explores his deep-seated insecurities, his propensity for gambling on perilous ventures, and his tendency to scapegoat subordinates for his own failures. As Hitler's quarry face loomed more frequently in the Berlin bunker, his ability to lead effectively disintegrated, leaving a legacy of destruction in his wake.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDrawing on an abundance of new sources and cutting-edge scholarship, \u003ci\u003eHitler: Volume II\u003c\/i\u003e offers an unsettling yet comprehensive portrait of a man whose actions irrevocably altered the course of history. This authoritative account not only chronicles the rise and fall of Adolf Hitler but also provides a nuanced examination of the psychological and tactical dimensions of his notorious tenure.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDominic Sandbrook of the \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e remarks, \"Meticulous... Probably the most disturbing portrait of Hitler I have ever read,\" capturing the profound impact of Ullrich's work. Esteemed for its scholarly depth and gripping narrative, this biography is an indispensable resource for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of Hitler's character and the catastrophic consequences of his rule.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45657944162540,"sku":"9780099590248","price":40.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780099590248.jpg?v=1724846729"},{"product_id":"eight-days-in-may-by-volker-ullrich-9780141994109","title":"Eight Days in May","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA gripping history of Germany's 'zero hour', the eight days between Hitler's death and the war's end.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e1 May 1945. The world did not know it yet, but the final week of the Third Reich's existence had begun. Hitler was dead, but the war had still not ended. Everything had both ground to a halt and yet remained agonisingly uncertain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eVolker Ullrich's remarkable book takes the reader into a world torn between hope and terror, describing how each day unfolds. With Hitler dead, Berlin in ruins and the war undoubtedly lost, the process by which the fighting would end remained horrifyingly unclear. Many major Nazis were still on the loose, wild rumours continued to circulate about a last stand in the Alps and the Western allies falling out with the Soviet Union.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAll over Europe, millions of soldiers, prisoners, slave labourers and countless exhausted, grief-stricken and often homeless families watched and waited for the war's end. \u003cem\u003eEight Days in May\u003c\/em\u003e is the story of people, in Erich Kästner's striking phrase, stuck in 'the gap between no longer and not yet'.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46337769898220,"sku":"9780141994109","price":27.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/14743073482238.jpg?v=1743718217"},{"product_id":"germany-1923-by-volker-ullrich-9781324095651","title":"Germany 1923","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the great Austrian writer Stefan Zweig confided in his autobiography, written in exile, \"I have a pretty thorough knowledge of history, but never, to my recollection, has it produced such madness in such gigantic proportions.\" He was referring to the situation in Germany in 1923. It was a \"year of lunacy,\" defined by hyperinflation, a political system on the verge of collapse, and separatist movements that threatened Germany's territorial integrity. Most significantly, Adolf Hitler launched his infamous Beer Hall Putsch in Munich—a failed coup that nonetheless drew international attention and demonstrated the Nazis' ruthless determination to seize power.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eGermany 1923\u003c\/em\u003e, award-winning historian Volker Ullrich draws on letters, memoirs, newspaper articles, and other sources from the time to present a captivating new history of those explosive twelve months. The crisis began when the French invaded the Ruhr Valley in January to force Germany to pay the reparations it owed under the Treaty of Versailles, which had ended the Great War. For years, German leaders had embraced inflationary policies to finance the costs of defeat, and, as Ullrich demonstrates, the invasion utterly destroyed the value of the German mark. Before the war, the exchange rate was 4.2 marks to the dollar. By November 20, 1923, a dollar was worth an incomprehensible 4.2 \u003cem\u003etrillion\u003c\/em\u003e marks, and a loaf of bread cost 200 billion. Facing the abyss, many ordinary Germans called for a national messiah. Among the figures to vie for that role was Hitler, a thirty-four-year-old veteran who possessed a uniquely malevolent personal magnetism. Although the Nazi coup in November was put down and Hitler arrested, the putsch showed just how tenuous the first German democracy, the Weimar Republic, was at its core.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs Ullrich's panoramic narrative reveals, other Germans responded to the successive crises by launching a cultural revolution: 1923 witnessed the emergence of a multitude of new movements, from Dada to Bauhaus, and of such iconoclasts as Bertolt Brecht, George Grosz, and Franz Kafka. Yet most observers were amazed that the Weimar Republic was able to survive, and the more astute realized that the feral undercurrents unleashed could lead to much worse. Publishing a century after that fateful year, \u003cem\u003eGermany 1923\u003c\/em\u003e is a riveting chronicle of one of the most challenging times any modern democracy has faced, one with haunting parallels to our own political moment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46796293865708,"sku":"9781324095651","price":45.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/11640903482659.jpg?v=1757089194"},{"product_id":"germany-1923-by-volker-ullrich-9781324093466","title":"Germany 1923","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the great Austrian writer Stefan Zweig confided in his autobiography, written in exile, \"I have a pretty thorough knowledge of history, but never, to my recollection, has it produced such madness in such gigantic proportions.\" He was referring to the situation in Germany in 1923. It was a \"year of lunacy,\" defined by hyperinflation, a political system on the verge of collapse, and separatist movements that threatened Germany's territorial integrity. Most significantly, Adolf Hitler launched his infamous Beer Hall Putsch in Munich—a failed coup that nonetheless drew international attention and demonstrated the Nazis' ruthless determination to seize power.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eGermany 1923\u003c\/em\u003e, award-winning historian Volker Ullrich draws on letters, memoirs, newspaper articles, and other sources from the time to present a captivating new history of those explosive twelve months. The crisis began when the French invaded the Ruhr Valley in January to force Germany to pay the reparations it owed under the Treaty of Versailles, which had ended the Great War. For years, German leaders had embraced inflationary policies to finance the costs of defeat, and, as Ullrich demonstrates, the invasion utterly destroyed the value of the German mark. Before the war, the exchange rate was 4.2 marks to the dollar. By 20 November 1923, a dollar was worth an incomprehensible 4.2 \u003cem\u003etrillion\u003c\/em\u003e marks, and a loaf of bread cost 200 billion. Facing the abyss, many ordinary Germans called for a national messiah. Among the figures to vie for that role was Hitler, a thirty-four-year-old veteran who possessed a uniquely malevolent personal magnetism. Although the Nazi coup in November was put down and Hitler arrested, the putsch showed just how tenuous the first German democracy, the Weimar Republic, was at its core.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs Ullrich's panoramic narrative reveals, other Germans responded to the successive crises by launching a cultural revolution: 1923 witnessed the emergence of a multitude of new movements, from Dada to Bauhaus, and of such iconoclasts as Bertolt Brecht, George Grosz, and Franz Kafka. Yet most observers were amazed that the Weimar Republic was able to survive, and the more astute realized that the feral undercurrents unleashed could lead to much worse. Publishing a century after that fateful year, \u003cem\u003eGermany 1923\u003c\/em\u003e is a riveting chronicle of one of the most challenging times any modern democracy has faced, one with haunting parallels to our own political moment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46833048486124,"sku":"9781324093466","price":66.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/11619053482659.jpg?v=1758432482"},{"product_id":"bismarck-by-volker-ullrich-9781913368371","title":"Bismarck","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAn accessible biography of Otto von Bismarck, Germany’s first chancellor.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOtto von Bismarck (1815–1898) has gone down in history as the Iron Chancellor, a reactionary and militarist whose 1871 unification of Germany put Europe on a path of disaster leading up to World War I. But, as this new edition of his accessible biography shows, the real Bismarck was a far more complex character.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA leading historian of nineteenth- and twentieth-century history, Volker Ullrich demonstrates that Bismarck—the “Founder of the Reich”—was, in fact, an opponent of liberal German nationalism. After the wars of 1866 and 1870, Bismarck spent the rest of his career working to preserve peace in Europe and to protect the empire he had created.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDespite his reputation as an enemy of socialism, he introduced comprehensive health and unemployment insurance for German workers, and he was concerned with maintaining stability and harmony far beyond Germany’s newly unified borders.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eComprehensive and balanced, \u003cem\u003eBismarck\u003c\/em\u003e shows us the value of looking anew at this monumental figure’s role in European history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46855736099052,"sku":"9781913368371","price":33.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781913368371.jpg?v=1759275500"},{"product_id":"fateful-hours-by-volker-ullrich-9781805332794","title":"Fateful Hours","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFateful Hours\u003c\/em\u003e tells one of the greatest dramas in world history: the failure of Germany's first democracy, culminating in the horrific rise of the Third Reich.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBut this tragedy was not inevitable. In this gripping new book, celebrated historian Volker Ullrich charts the many failed alternatives and missed opportunities that contributed to German democracy's collapse. In an immersive style that takes us to the heart of political power, Ullrich argues that, right up until January 1933, history was open—just as in the present, it is up to us whether democracy lives or dies.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47932159754476,"sku":"9781805332794","price":59.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781805332794-fateful-hours.jpg?v=1783855390"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.live\/collections\/volker-ullrich.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}