Soldat: Reflections of a German Soldier, 1936-1949 [Mass Market Paperback]

Siegfried Knappe (Author), Ted Brusaw (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 9, 1993

A German soldier during World War II offers an inside look at the Nazi war machine, using his wartime diaries to describe how a ruthless psychopath motivated an entire generation of ordinary Germans to carry out his monstrous schemes.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This engaging, introspective memoir, coauthored with Bruslaw ( The Business Writer's Handbook ) offers insight into the thinking and attitudes of a Wehrmacht officer. Knappe served in the artillery during the invasions of Czechoslovakia, France and the Soviet Union and as a staff officer during the Italian campaign and the defense of Berlin. Though he had moral reservations about the Czech campaign and was troubled by his government's betrayal of its non-aggression pact with Russia, Knappe believed that his participation in combat was honorable and that the overriding purpose of the war was to correct the injustice perpetrated against Germany by the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. Only after he was captured by Soviet troops in 1945 did he begin to understand that he had been an "unthinking cog," accepting without question Hitler's might-makes-right philosophy. The memoir closes with an account of his release from a Soviet prison camp in 1949 and his reunion with his family in Leipzig. Knappe came to America in 1955 and is now a retired corporate executive in Ohio. Photos.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Knappe's Wehrmacht career began in 1936. He participated in the final collapse of the Eastern Front, then spent more than four years as a Russian POW. Readers may doubt Knappe's insistence that he fought not for National Socialism but for Germany, but this mindset, common among his generation, cannot be dismissed out of hand as special pleading or selective memory. His memoir, based heavily on a wartime diary, shows a talented professional soldier and unreflective patriot who initially regarded Hitler as fulfilling legitimate German aspirations; by the time he began probing beneath the regime's surface, it was far too late to take action. Soldat makes a worthwhile companion to Hans von Luck's Panzer Commander ( LJ 10/15/89). Both works highlight an unresolved paradox: never did soldiers perform better in a worse cause than the men who served Adolf Hitler.
- D.E. Showalter, U.S. Air Force Acad., Colorado Springs
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Dell (August 9, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440215269
• ISBN-13: 978-0440215264
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.2 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (83 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #117,715 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #12 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science > Agricultural Sciences > General
  • #18 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > Military > Strategy
  • #19 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > Military > World War II > General

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

68 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The story of a great leader and lucky survivor!, April 24, 2000

By 

Ross Schlichting (San Antonio, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soldat: Reflections of a German Soldier, 1936-1949 (Mass Market Paperback)

Out of every war there are survivors, and it is sometimes amazing how they make it through their ordeals. This is truly a picture of just how a commander's whim, school selection or being wounded can take you out of a potentially deadly situation (or stick you right back into one!) It shows just what a crapshoot surviving combat is.

It is also a great insight into the German indoctrination process of young men and how they were eventually turned into soldiers. Another plus is the insight into the training of the German non-mechanized artilleryman (I've read enough about Panzers) and how the peacetime German soldier acted and thought. It is nice to read another interesting viewpoint of the last days of the Fuehrer Bunker as well. This book is also one of the very few that discusses in some detail being held prisoner by the Russians after the war.

In response to other reviews, I don't think it was Knappe's goal to do any soul searching for what had happened during the war. He was an officer and a soldier. He did not allow himself to be put in questionable war crime offense situations. He treated his soldiers and prisoners with respect and dignity.

German soldier autobiographies do not need reflection, soul-searching or some kind of apology to tell how they feel now after having time to think about the war. Knappe was a soldier doing the best he could for his country, just like the men from other nations. He was not a member of the Nazi Party, or a fanatical facist, just a soldier.

Knappe did not agree with everything that Germany did, from both a tactical and philosophical standpoint, but this is a soldier's tale. He did what he had to do to complete his missions and survive.

Being a former soldier, one thing that I respect Knappe more for than anything else is that he never shirked his duties or deserted his men or family. He could have disappeared and headed to the west many times during the Battle of Berlin, but he stayed with his men and did his duty to the end, knowing that the end was inevitable. That is the mark of a true leader, no matter what nation he or she is from.

Don't pass this one up!

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First person account of a German soldier, from 1939 to1949., February 8, 2003

By 

Michael Valdivielso (Alexandria, VA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Soldat: Reflections of a German Soldier, 1936-1949 (Mass Market Paperback)

Follow a German soldier from his training, to the battlefield, from Russia to Italy, to the Battle for Berlin and then to his capture by the Russians. The details of life both on the front and at home really brings us into the war, allowing us to see how conditions change and how his view on war and the Reich also change. A few extras, like a small glossary and a organizational chart are not really needed. The book is about life in the Reich as much as the battles the Wehrmacht fought. Lots about the daily life of the German soldier, from their food, how they dealt with the weather, how they dealt with the horror of battle.
A must for seeing the war from a PERSON's point of view.

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Among The Best!, September 28, 2002

By 

D. Brown (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Soldat: Reflections of a German Soldier, 1936-1949 (Mass Market Paperback)

I have read several military memoirs. Some were great, and others were self serving, egotistical garbage. Richard Marcinco's books fall into the latter category. Siegfried Knappe's Soldat is on the other end of the spectrum. Knappe has written an entertaining, and very engrossing book that covers his distinguished career in the German army. If you want an honest German perspective of World War Two, look no further than Soldat.