This is the first volume in English of a comprehensive ten-volume history of the Second World War, written from the German perspective by the foremost German historians in the field. They have combined a full synthesis of existing material with the latest research to produce what will be the definitive history of the Second World War. This volume surveys the forces both inside and outside Germany which paved the way for Hitler. The book demonstrates that, despite
Nazi propoganda and in stark contrast to 1914, most Germans in 1939 opposed a war which they nevertheless endured with such tragic consequences.