From Soviet to German administration; Soviet soldiers, German women and the problem of rape; reparations, removals and the economic transformation of the zone; the Soviet use of German science; the Soviets and the German Left; the Tiul'panov question and Soviet policy-making in the zone; building the East German police state; the politics of culture and education.
[A] masterly analysis of the Soviet occupation between the end of
the war and the emergence of two German states...[A] startlingly
original book.--Daniel Johnson "New York Times Book Review "
[A] remarkable historical treatment...[This] is a quite splendid
work of erudition, style and humanity, which replaces all earlier
writing in English on the subject...Using primarily the German and
the Russian sources, Naimark sets new levels of archival research
and raises many issues for historians to debate in years to
come...It is unlikely...that his overall study of these few crucial
years will be superseded for a good while to come. In particular,
he has set the scene for a fuller understanding of the regime and
society which followed the occupation.--Jonathan Osmond "Times
Higher Education Supplement "
[Norman Naimark] has produced a richly textured and important
story, delving into subjects usually ignored in the longer
narratives of postwar eastern Germany, including the sensitive
issue of Red Army rape during the period of conquest and early
occupation, the seizure of scientific materials and talent, and the
organization of popular culture. From my perspective, Naimark's
perspective and conclusions are both sensitive and sensible...This
book represents one of the first important results of multiarchival
work that draws on records so unattainable until recently but so
critical to historical reconstruction. The Soviet archives will
never finally resolve issues of historical intention and
responsibility, any more than American archives, but they are the
basis for informed inference and argumentation. Naimark uses them
precisely in that scholarly spirit. "The Russians in Germany" will
remain one of the exemplary contributions to the unfolding
post-1989 historiography of Europe under c
An outstanding analysis of the ruthless Stalinization of East
Germany in the early postwar years, and of its economic and
scientific exploitation. Using newly released East German and
Soviet archives, [Naimark] gives us a complete picture of what has
been called Stalin's "march to the west."--Amos Perlmutter "Wall
Street Journal "
The best study of the making of Communist East Germany, based on
remarkable archival research and invaluable for anyone seeking to
understand the psychological as well as the political origins of
the German Democratic Republic.--Tony Judt "New York Review of
Books "
What makes this book superior to anything that has been written
about the Soviets in early postwar Germany...is its
comprehensiveness. It contains important chapters on reparations
and economic transformation, the use of German scientists, culture
and education, and the construction of an Orwellian police state.
Finally, there is a lengthy and daunting chapter on "Soviet
Soldiers, German Women, and the Problem of Rape," For many years,
this remained a taboo subject, and when Naimark began his research,
it took some courage to venture into this field...This excellent
study of the encounter between Russians and Germans after the
defeat of Nazism contains a wealth of insights for all historians
of postwar Europe.--V. R. Berghahn "American Historical Review
"
When the Berlin Wall blocking access to East German and USSR
archives came tumbling down, historians had the grand opportunity
to discover what had transpired in its ominous shadows. This study
shows the wondrous potential for revolutionizing Cold War
history.--Edward N. Peterson "German Studies Review "
gives us a complete picture of what has been called Stalin's "march
to the west."
particular, he has set the scene for a fuller understanding of the
regime and society which followed the occupation.
potential for revolutionizing Cold War history.
Germany" will remain one of the exemplary contributions to the
unfolding post-1989 historiography of Europe under communism.
ÝA¨ masterly analysis of the Soviet occupation between the end of
the war and the emergence of two German states...ÝA¨ startlingly
original book. -- Daniel Johnson "New York Times Book Review"
ÝA¨ remarkable historical treatment...ÝThis¨ is a quite splendid
work of erudition, style and humanity, which replaces all earlier
writing in English on the subject...Using primarily the German and
the Russian sources, Naimark sets new levels of archival research
and raises many issues for historians to debate in years to
come...It is unlikely...that his overall study of these few crucial
years will be superseded for a good while to come. In particular,
he has set the scene for a fuller understanding of the regime and
society which followed the occupation. -- Jonathan Osmond "Times
Higher Education Supplement"
ÝNorman Naimark¨ has produced a richly textured and important
story, delving into subjects usually ignored in the longer
narratives of postwar eastern Germany, including the sensitive
issue of Red Army rape during the period of conquest and early
occupation, the seizure of scientific materials and talent, and the
organization of popular culture. From my perspective, Naimark's
perspective and conclusions are both sensitive and sensible...This
book represents one of the first important results of multiarchival
work that draws on records so unattainable until recently but so
critical to historical reconstruction. The Soviet archives will
never finally resolve issues of historical intention and
responsibility, any more than American archives, but they are the
basis for informed inference and argumentation. Naimark uses them
precisely in that scholarly spirit. "The Russians in Germany" will
remain one of the exemplary contributions to the unfolding
post-1989 historiography of Europe under communism. -- Charles S.
Maier "Journal of Modern History"
Naimark has produced a brilliant history of the first four years of
what was to become the German Democratic Republic...Highly
recommended.
Naimark's work is an important study of nation-building in the
Eastern bloc and will also be of interest to students of German
politics, history, and reunification...This is likely to be the
standard text on the early years of GDR.
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