Hitler, Chamberlain and Appeasement

by Frank McDonough

An engaging range of period texts and theme books for AS and A Level history. This book examines the key roles played by Adolf Hitler and Neville Chamberlain in the events that led to the outbreak of the Second World War. It looks at Hitler's foreign-policy aims, why appeasement became British foreign policy and, most extensively, the role of Chamberlain and appeasement in the unfolding international crisis of the late 1930s. Using a wide range of primary sources, Frank McDonough offers a generally critical interpretation of Chamberlain and appeasement, and suggests that standing up to Hitler earlier may have prevented war. The book also features a detailed analysis of the historical debates surrounding the issue of appeasement.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics

98 pages, Paperback

First published April 8, 2002

About the author

Professor Frank McDonough is an internationally renowned expert on the Third Reich. He was born in Liverpool, studied history at Balliol College, Oxford and gained a PhD from Lancaster University.

He has written many critically acclaimed books on the Third Reich, including: The Gestapo: The Myth and Reality of Hitler’s Secret Police (2015). Hitler and the Rise of the Nazi Party (2012), Sophie Scholl: The Woman Who Defied Hitler (2009), The Holocaust (2008), Opposition and Resistance in Nazi Germany (2001), Hitler, Chamberlain and Appeasement (2002), and Hitler and Nazi Germany (1999). He has also published many other books, most notably, The Origins of the Second World War: An International Perspective (2011), The Conservative Party and Anglo-German Relations (2007), Chamberlain, Appeasement and the British Road to War (1998) and The Origins of the First and Second World Wars (1997).

Reviews

[Cgcang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite basic, but that's what it aims to be. Nice overview overall.

[Trish · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not quite what I expected, as it's more study notes than specifically history, but it serves as a reasonable introduction to the subject

[David Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start off by stating that I am in no way a history buff!
However, I was curious about the interwar period and what lead to the Second World War.
Often, I would find very little information about Chamberlain's appeasement and why it ultimately failed.

However, this book answered a whole host of questions that I had and made me think of several different points of view. What an interesting period, and one that any history enthusiast, politician, and/or Senior Manager should study. The book highlights Chamberlain's failings, his dogmatic view of appeasement at almost any cost, surrounding himself with 'yes men' and 'spin-doctors' which ultimately failed and nearly doomed Europe.

I ain't no history buff, but I am very much enjoying the "Cambridge Perspectives in History" Series.

[Emily ⋆˙⟡♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

useful

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful for A Level History.