Europe At War
The conventional narrative of the Second World War is well known: after six years of brutal fighting on land, on sea and in the air, the Allied Powers prevailed and the Nazi regime was defeated. But, as in so many things, the truth is somewhat different.
Bringing a fresh eye to bear on a story we think we know, Norman Davies forces us to look again and to discard the usual narrative of Good versus Evil. Powerfully argued, compellingly written and devastating in its conclusions, Davies's re-examination reminds us that the war in Europe was dominated by two evil monsters, not by one. Each of the monsters joined forces to destroy the existing international order, before embarking on a war to the death. The liberators of Auschwitz were servants of a regime that ran still larger concentration camps than those they liberated.
The outcome of the was at best ambiguous. The victory of the West was only partial, its moral reputation was severely tarnished and, for the greater part of the continent of Europe, 'liberation' was only the beginning of more than fifty years of further totalitarian oppression.
First published by Macmillan, 2006
ISBN-13: 978-0-333-69285-1
ISBN-10: 0-333-69285-3