The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law [Hardcover]

Devin O. Pendas (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2005 | ISBN-10: 0521844061 | ISBN-13: 978-0521844062

The Frankfurt Auschwitz trial was the largest, most public, and most important trial of Holocaust perpetrators conducted in West German courts. Drawing on a wide range of archival sources, Devin O. Pendas provides a comprehensive history of this momentous event. Situating the trial in a thorough analysis of West German criminal law, the book argues that in confronting systematic, state-sponsored genocide, the Frankfurt court ran up against the limits of law. This book provides a compelling account of the divided response to the trial among the West German public.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In his book, Devin O. Pendas meticulously examines every phase of the trial. He provides an in-depth account of the complex, lengthy legal and political machinations that preceded the trial, moves on to an exhaustive analysis of the actual courtroom proceedings and concludes with an assessment of German public reactions. The extremely detailed narrative will certainly satisfy readers who prefer encyclopedic rigor, although others might consider the book's reconstruction of the procedural maneuvers during the trial to be denser than necessary, despite the author's formidable lucidity. The impressive archival research on which the book is based is well reflected in its extensive citations, which Cambridge University Press admirably continues to print at the bottom of the page."
- Alan E. Steinweis, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, H-NET

"He has written an important, elegantly argued, and meticulously researched book that enriches our understanding of a crucial legal event."
-Lawrence Douglas, American Historical Review

"...provides a meticulously detailed and comprehensive analysis: from the pretrial history to its public repercussions; from the courtroom proceedings to their wider political and legal contexts (the Cold war, the politics of the past in the Federal Republic, German criminal law, and so on)."
-Journal of Genocide Research

Book Description

The Frankfurt Auschwitz trial was the largest, most public, and most important trial of Holocaust perpetrators conducted in West German courts. Drawing on a wide range of archival sources, Devin O. Pendas provides a comprehensive history of this momentous event. Situating the trial in a thorough analysis of West German criminal law, the book argues that in confronting systematic, state-sponsored genocide, the Frankfurt court ran up against the limits of law. This book also provides a compelling account of the divided response to the trial among the West German public.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (November 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521844061
• ISBN-13: 978-0521844062
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,185,114 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fascinating narrative, superbly researched, August 5, 2006

By 

Harold Marcuse "professor of German history" (Santa Barbara, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law (Hardcover)

I picked up this book while writing a review of Rebecca Wittmann's on the same subject, and found that I couldn't put this one down. Pendas used a wide array sources and secondary literature as the basis for this book, and he has a knack for clear and engaging narrative. Telling anecdotes, like the dramatic arrest of former Auschwitz commandant Baer in 1960, and the Frankfurt court's visit behind the Iron Curtain in Auschwitz in December 1964, make this book well worth the purchase price. My detailed review can be found on my university web site.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scholarly and compelling, June 21, 2007

By 

S. Gilsdorf (Amherst, MA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law (Hardcover)

Pendas's book does something rare in academic publishing: it deals intelligently and responsibly with a very complex topic (the intersection of German law, crimes against humanity, and the Cold War) in a way that is accessible and even compelling to read. His understanding of the German legal context is nicely passed along to his readers, and makes the outcomes of the Auschwitz Trial (often confusing and disappointing to Anglo-American observers) much more understandable. (It is worth noting, btw, that a number of those who managed and staffed Auschwitz, including its first commandant, were arrested and tried (and many executed) by the Polish government in the immediate aftermath of the war.)

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars inadequate justice, June 10, 2007

By 

W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, 1963-1965: Genocide, History and the Limits of the Law (Hardcover)

This book can be gainfully read in conjunction with Whitmann's book, Beyond Justice: The Auschwitz Trial. Both cover the 1963-5 Auschwitz trial, held in Frankfurt.

Pendas' account is heavily footnoted, demonstrating a lot of scholarship in this terrible subject. The entire book tends to focus on the legal maneuverings of the trial. By comparison, the actual events at Auschwitz seem to take second place. The biggest shortcoming was the inadequacy of German law, which at that time was largely the case law as existed before the war, to fully prosecute genocide. There is a stark and dreadful contrast between the measured and protracted tactics used by the defense and the mass murders summarily conducted at Auschwitz.

Also greatly inadequate were the numbers of SS prosecuted. In part due to some reluctance by Germans at that time to fully confront their recent past. Under these conditions, the Frankfurt prosecutors did a commendable job with the resources they had.