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Resistance with the People: Repression and Resistance in Eastern Germany, 1945-1955

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Very well-researched and well-written account of both repression by the Soviet/German Communist organs of terror and of various forms opposition and resistance to the Communists. This book, which is based primarily upon the now-opened East German archives, especially the records of the East German People's Police together with interviews of individuals from that period.

This book covers the period from the end of the World War Two in 1945 to the June Uprising of 1953. Besides for offering fascinating details about a little-known chapter of German history, Resistance with the People makes three important contributions to the historiography of East Germany. There are 1) contrary to some accounts, both the Soviet occupation and the East German regime were never regarded as legitimate by the majority of the population 2) the principle reason for popular opposition to the Communists, whatever they be Soviet or German was not due to low living standards (through that also fueled discontent), but was rather due to the Communist terror and repression and 3) that opposition to the Communists, culminating in the June Uprising was not as some historians would have, a "worker's uprising" involving only the working-class basically sympathetic to the regime, but only driven to revolt by the regime's economic policies, but rather a "people's uprising" involving the majority of the East German people, driven to revolt by political concerns, and explicitly rejecting Walter Ulbricht's regime and his ideology.

All said, an very well-written and moving account of a little-known chapter of history, indispensable for anyone interested in modern German and/or the Cold War history.