The Devil's Disciples: The Life and Times of Hitler's Inner Circle

by Anthony Read

The Nazi regime was essentially a religious cult, relying on the hypnotic personality of one man, Adolf Hitler, and it was fated to die with him. But while it lasted, his closest lieutenants competed ferociously for power and position as his chosen successor. This deadly contest accounted for many of the regime's worst excesses, in which millions of people died, and which brought Western civilization to its knees. The Devil's Disciples is the first major book for a general readership to examine those lieutenants, not only as individuals but also as a group. It focuses on the three Nazi paladins closest to Hitler - Goring, Goebbels and Himmler - with their nearest rivals - Bormann, Speer and Ribbentrop in close attendance. Others who were removed in various ways - like Gregor Strasser, Ernst R-hm, Heydrich and Hess - play supporting roles. Perceptive and illuminating, The Devil's Disciples is above all a powerful chronological narrative, showing how the personalities of Hitler's inner circle developed and how their jealousies and constant intrigues affected the regime, the war, and Hitler himself.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Biography, Germany, War, Politics

1385 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 6, 2003

About the author

Anthony "Tony" Read (born 21 April 1935) was a British script editor, television writer and author. He was principally active in British television from the 1960s to the mid-1980s, although he occasionally contributed to televised productions until 1999. Starting in the 1980s, he launched a second career as a print author, concentrating largely on World War II histories. Since 2004 he regularly wrote prose fiction, mainly in the form of a revival of his popular 1983 television show, The Baker Street Boys.

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whew! What a crew! 923 pages worth! What makes it grimly worthwhile is that Read is an excellent writer who has an eye for the character or period revealing anecdote. At times this can be quite dramatic, even cinematic, when packaged in Read's flowing prose. An early example that caught my eye was when Goering met his first wife, Carin, in 1920. On a dare, Goering, the war ace, flies a nobleman to a castle, lands on a frozen lake during a blizzard, and decides to stay the night. Goering, a fan of castles since he was a boy, takes in the environment:

This was his natural habitat. A blazing fire welcomed them into the great hall where the walls were hung with old weapons and armour, family portraits, rich tapestries depicting heroic Nordic myths, and countless hunting trophies. A huge stuffed bear stood at the foot of the stairs, killed with a spear by the head of the house. In the hearth, two large iron swastikas hung on either side of the fire -- at the time the swastika had no political significance for either Rosen or Goring, but was merely an ancient Nordic good luck symbol which Count von Rosen had discovered on rune stones in Gotland and adopted as his personal emblem

. (p. 62-63)

It's at this moment, while Goering and his host are sipping brandy by the fire, that Carin appears at the top of the steps. Anyone familiar with the interior sets from the castle scenes in Son of Frankenstein can appreciate the gothic composition of this scene. And with the extra foreshadowing in the iron swastikas to boot! Beware of those Nordic good luck symbols! (Interestingly, Hitler would later refer to Goering as his "Iron Man.")

This of course is a minor incident in a big book, but it does provide a sample of the kind of writing to be found througout Read's history. The title of the book, The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle, is a bit misleading, since the book comes very close to being a biography of Goering (the book both begins and ends with him). But in a 900 page book, Read has room to roam, and the reader will get significant mini-biographies on Goebbels (a despicable and improbable ladies' man), Himmler (kept human body part trophies in his attic), Heydrich (the coldest killer of them all), Ribbentrop (seemingly an idiot who somehow -- even Read can't explain it -- found himself at the top of the heap), Borman (utterly sinister), and a number of other lesser lights from the Nazi world.

Looking back at this mammoth read, I suspect there is nothing really new in Read's account of the Nazi regime's rise and fall. The familiar and murderous arc is the same. What does make the book different however is how Read has assembled (and written) his never-dry history. Hitler is always there of course, but now the reader sees him through the eyes of his brutal lieutenants. And they all have different perspectives, different wants, different turfs to protect, heightened by Hitler's tendency to play one off against another. Fear was in the air, always. But also devotion. One of Read's contentions (with which I agree) is that the Nazi phenomena was less a political movement and more a religious one, with Hitler as its messiah. Each of these figures, whenever one fell out of favor with Hitler, was just devastated until the wheel of fortune turned again. Goering, Goebbels, Ribbentrop, and Himmler, were all the time taking to their beds for various ailments whenever Hitler's gaze became baleful (which, as things melted down, became quite often). This devotion stayed with them to the end of the regime. And for some, even beyond that.

[Jill H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 900+ page book delves into the machinations of the Third Reich's most dangerous men, the four acolytes of Hitler and their mad grasp for power. It is not so much a history of the war but more an insight into what the usual history books don't tell us regarding the in-fighting and paranoia of Himmler, Goring, Goebbles, and Ribbentrop. Based on letters, meeting minutes and the testimony of Goring at the Nuremburg Trials, it is a magnificent telling of how these men rose to power and fought to keep it.
The author gives more attention to Goring.........this may be because he is the only one (besides Ribbentrop, who was negligible at the trials) who made it to Nuremburg. His testimony, however horrific, held the court in thrall and the author utilizes it to advantage. (Of course, Goring cheated the hangman by his own hand.)He is presented a little more sympathetically than the remaining three and in fact, may have been much more intelligent than the image he presented to the world.. This is not to say that he wasn't evil....he was... but Goebbles was an insecure madman, Himmler was a psychotic with no scruples, and Ribbentrop was shallow,vain, and stupid. This inner circle shaped the "Thousand Year Reich" for 12 years and left their county in ruin and desperation. This book is a must read for all who are interested in an inside look at what made these men initiate and carry out unbelievable crimes against humanity.

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The devils disciples is a cold and chilling look into the inner circle of third reich and the rise and fall of Adolf hitlers sycophant madmen.

The inner circle of the Nazis was a evil cult of men who would stop at nothing for complete power! The insanity of it was that each one Goering, Himmler, Ribbentrop, Goebbels etc all had different agendas towards the Nazi movement and there loyalty’s were only to themselves each one truly had no care factor for Germany or the nation it was strictly a personal game. Even though they did share common threads towards the Jews, and a greater Aryan world but overall the power was the main objective.

I really enjoyed how Anthony Read showed the inner play between the high ranking Nazis how they saw one another and there goals of outplaying each other for Hitlers spoils and gaining rank within the Nazi party.

It’s truly hard to gather that this is apart of our human history it almost plays out like a fantasy book almost to surreal for the modern world that these men were given high positions Of power and committed the worst atrocities known to man these men were truly as the book says they were the devils disciples.

This is one of the best books I’ve read on Nazi Germany highly recommend!!

[Katherine Addison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Massive (nine hundred plus pages), extremely readable history of the second-tier Nazis: Göring, Goebbels, Himmler, Ribbentrop, Heydrich, Bormann. After finishing this, I never want to hear anybody going on about how men are more rational than women and aren't controlled by their emotions and all the rest of that chauvinist bullshit, because these guys? In-fighting and backbiting and temper tantrums and hysterics . . . no set of teenage girls could be worse.

Read has an unfortunate tendency to accept the "homosexual"="morally bad person" equation (Ernst Röhm and Walther Funk were morally bad people, true, but is that really about their sexual preferences?), but he's very good at deconstructing the self-presentations, both public and private, of Göring and Goebbels, who are the only two Nazis smart enough to make it difficult.

[David Prager · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb history of the Nazis with the focus on Hitler's followers rather than on Hitler himself: Goering, Goebbels, Himmler, Ribbentrop, Speer, etc. Author Anthony Read is just such a good writer, that you remain utterly absorbed throughout, despite the 900+ page length.
This volume had been sitting on my shelf for some time, mainly because of its length, but I decided to start it after Trump's election in order to look for parallels. There are many, especially in the sections after Hitler takes power but before the war. Propaganda techniques, attacks on the press, lying, scapegoating, promotion of violence by non-state party actors against vulnerable populations, beefing up of police forces; it's all there. You can see how the present US administration is following the playbook.

[Pirate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A masterpiece. I would give it 10 stars but not possible here five being the limit. The best book of many very good ones I have read this year. Superbly written so that the 900+ pages don't seem long enough. Brilliant insight into the paladins who surrounded Hitler and shocking in the sheer ordinariness of Himmler, the pomposity and stupdity of Hitler's 'new Bismarck' von Ribbentrop 'he married his money and bought his title' was Goebbels's acidic remark about him and the hysterical poisonous little boy that was Goebbels,lovely dry comment late in the book 'He (Goebbels) saw himself dying a hero's death on the barricades, swastika in hand. His staff were less inclined to indulge in such theatrics. Few of them had any appetite for suicide: they saw themselves as civil servants, not samurai warriors." Speer is thankfully not given too much space his creepy opportunism exposed. It is perhaps surprisingly Hermann Goering who emerges with relative credit. Not the public image of a fat drug addicted art thief -- the morphine addiction legend is debunked he just popped codeine pills as a habit -- but a First World War hero, highly intelligent, energetic for the most part, humorous -- in the dying days of the war he ended up in an air raid shelter and told jokes against himself -- and who possessed the common touch, and to my surprise actively pursued a peace not war policy prior to 1939 and also did not want Hitler to invade the Soviet Union. However, he had fatal flaws and went willingly along with the foullest measures of the regime, but unlike his fellow defendants, including the odious Speer, at Nuremberg he put up a feisty and impressive performance. His character is best summed up by one of the British judges the future Lord Birkett who looked on as Goering destroyed the reputation of the US Attorney General Robert Jackson despite the wealth of evidence against him. Birkett wrote:"It has been obvious that a personality of outstanding, though possibly evil qualities, was seated there in the dock......suave, shrewd, adroit, capable, resourceful he quickly saw the elements of the situation, and as his confidence grew, his mastery became more apparent." If anything these qualities make his fawning acquiescence in the appalling crimes worse but his presence makes the book the masterpiece that it is.

[Studvet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sensationally good. Very easy to follow and a thrilling read. Captivating and gives a really intimate feel about the Nazis, the main characters and the war. Really interesting and you get a real feel for characters and personalities and their foibles and a fascinating tale of all the episodes of the war fitting together in a giant, coherent tapestry. The best book on the topic I have read by far.

[Travis Schulz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely breathtaking Historical analysis and storytelling. Anthony Reed did a fantastic job describing the rise and fall, good and bad, public and private lives of Hitler's top henchmen.

I'd say it Rival's William Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.

[Maarten Van Elburg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Één van de beste boeken die ik gelezen heb aangaande dit onderwerp. Anthony Read weet elke bladzijde vol te stoppen met anekdotes, verbanden en historische context. Na het lezen van dit boek heb je een veel dieper begrip van de Nazi-top. Er ontstaat een duizelingwekkend beeld van de hoogste Nazi-kopstukken en hun onderlinge verhoudingen. Dit alles is het gevolg van de 'verdeel en heers' strategie waarmee Adolf Hitler zijn handlangers onder controle houdt.

Indien geïnteresseerd in het onderwerp is dit boek een aanrader. Neem er wel de tijd voor want het boek is dik en de letters zijn klein. Het leest niet als een roman en ik heb regelmatig stukken moeten herlezen om andere delen van het boek beter te begrijpen.

[Grindy Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great stuff - most histories of the Third Reich fail because the narrative of the early days of the early Nazi party stalls out trying to keep track of the various factions’ abbreviations and the long German words. Read keeps the focus on the people without cutting corners in what is a comprehensive history. This is one of the best books out there on the Nazis.

[Rebecca Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book, seeing the inner workings of the Nazi hierarchy is fascinating. My favourite part was in the lead up to the second world war as you know its coming and you can almost feel the tensions at the time. Its a big book 900 pages, but definitely worth it and did not feel like a chore.

[Stephen John Horne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Other earlier reviewers have provided some superb long detailed reviews on this book.
Therefore , all I can add is that is clearly an outstanding and extremely well written piece of work on this dark period in our history.

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a difficult book to review because it is not bad, just not very good, or more accurately a quarter century after it was written it is no longer a good book.

Anthony Read was, amongst other things, a very good popular historian of, mostly, books on the WWII era. I do not use the term 'popular historian' in any negative way nor with disrespect, my love of history was nurtured by good popular historians and histories, but popular historians and their histories have limitations which militate against longevity. In the case of Anthony Read it is a lack of any formal historical training, his use of secondary sources not archives and the lack of the use of non English language works. In 1992 Anthony Read wrote a book 'The Fall of Berlin', I haven't read it but I would think anybody who reads that book instead of Antony Beevor's 2002 'Berlin: The Downfall 1945' is being stupid or perverse. The same must be said of anyone reading 'The Devil's Disciples' today.

In 1970 the German journalist Joachim Fest wrote 'The Face of the Third Reich' which presented personal profiles of the Nazi leaders in the Third Reich, focusing on their monstrous psyches and their corruption of political and moral standards. I thought that 'The Devil's Disciples' was going to be work of the same nature and at over double Fest's 420 pages I was expecting much from this book. Unfortunately this was not so much the 'Life and Times' of Hitler's inner circle but a history of Germany from the end of WWI through to the end of WWII told through the biographies of only some members of Hitler's inner circle such as Goering, Goebbels, Speer and Himmler who get all the attention while those like Frank and Shirach barely a mention. This is a new way of telling an old story in an old fashioned way. You would get more profit from reading Shirer's 'The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich'.

This was Read's penultimate non fiction book and clearly he has drawn on his experience and knowledges gained writing about Nazi history since the mid 1980s. This is reflected in the 'Select Bibliography' at the back of the book. Although Kershaw's massive two volume work on Hitler is included the biography most referenced is Alan Bullock's 'Hitler a Study in Tyranny' (originally published 1952, revised 1962). 'The Devil's Disciples' was published in 2003 the year the first of Professor Richard Evan's trilogy Germany came out. It was too early to benefit from other works like those of Peter Longerich on Himmler or Goebbels. Oddly, and disappointingly, 'The Devil's Disciples' still gives David Irving's works prominent mention in the select bibliography even though his reputation as a historian had been destroyed back in April 2000 (see Richard Evan's 2002 'Lying About Hitler').

The point I am making is not to criticise Anthony Read or this book but to put the question is there any reason in 2024 to read an 800+ pages book on Nazi Germany published in 2003, based largely on secondary sources of the mid twentieth century, rather then works by authors like Longerich or Evans. Even if you are going to read an older work on Nazi Germany Joachim Fest is better author to chose or, and highly recommend it, 'Albert Speer his Battle with the Truth' by Gitta Sereny.

When it was published this was a good history, very well written, but almost immediately it became obsolete even as a popular history. Because I have great respect for Anthony Read I am still giving this history three stars but would seriously as anyone contemplating reading it now to have a serious think about how best to employ their reading hours.

[Rachel Heil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me first begin by saying that Anthony Read has done an outstanding job in giving a history about Hitler's most trusted men! A lot of the information is information I had never read before and found it very interesting. The 900+ book follows the lives and careers of Hermann Goring, a classic case of never wanting to grow up; Joseph Goebbels, the biggest kiss up imaginable; and Heinrich Himmler, the man almost everyone underestimated. It is unbelievable about what happened in the inner circle during those horrifying years and Read does a fantastic job in explaining the situation as best as anyone could. This book comes highly recommended!!!

[Simon Dobson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A history of Nazi Germany from the different perspective of the first tier of Hitler's followers, mainly focussing on Goebbels, Goering, and Himmler. That's actually a slight limitation, in that there are huge contributions from other, second-tier Nazis that remain to be explored, and that might have made this book even more distinctive. But it still manages to put a lot of detail into the personal lives and deeds of its chosen subjects which are often missed in more "standard" histories, and this sheds a lot of light onto many of their motivations and key decisions. A very useful addition to the literature.

[Asher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good intro for somebody looking to know more about the political structure of the Third Reich, especially since it was organized around “characters.” I knocked off a star in my rating only because it felt like nothing happened after Hitler’s suicide. The entire captivity of his lieutenants and the Nuremberg trials only got three pages.

[Diana Kullman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of information over the 923 pages....

[Di Youssef · Rating 4 out of 5]

I it is informative ..but can't help feeling it is not realistic
There were just people with very evil views
They were not the first in history nor will they be the last

[Gregory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, well written and easy to read. Informative!!

[Jason Glynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very engrossing, was never dull...Learned so much... A truly great book...

[Kyli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Their rivalry [Hitler's inner circle] was therefore at the root of many of the worst excesses of Nazi policy. Hitler, of course, was not only aware of this rivalry, but actively encouraged it, constantly fomenting insecurity and mutual mistrust among his lieutenants. The ancient principle of divide and rule was an essential element in his modus operandi: a little healthy competition is inevitable among ambitious politicians, but while a democratic leader may seek to create harmony among his immediate subordinates in order to facilitate consensus, a dictator needs dissension, to prevent their combining to overthrow him. While they were always quick to close ranks in the face of any external threat, each member of Hitler's inner circle owed his loyalty to the Fuhrer alone. Each of them in his own way was in love with him, deeply and totally besotted, desperate to please him, and bitterly jealous of any attention he bestowed on other suitors.

I think the quote above perfectly sums up the basic gist of Hitler's inner circle and the main points of the book. As you read through the history of the Nazi party and its leadup to the Second World War, you are treated to a full view of the increasing paranoia, betrayal, and horrible crimes these men committed as acts of service to their Fuhrer. There are many anecdotes that Read provides that somewhat humanize the men but to me a Nazi is a Nazi and all of these guys were horrible.

It was fairly riveting to read because of some of those personal dramas between the men but it's especially important to remember the terrible, terrible crimes these people also committed as that's the main thing we don't want to see again. While I was reading this book, I also was reading The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House by Seymour M. Hersch and I couldn't help but notice some of the similarities in pleasing the main leader of both governments; in this case being Hitler and Nixon. Now I'm not saying Nixon was basically Hitler but the way they both handled the men around them and acted as if every minor inconvenience to them was a personal attack struck me as very similar. The petty bickering and political backstabbings are prevalent in both books but definitely on a much higher stake scale in The Devil's Disciples.

I mean, the Nazis were killing men that fell out of favor with the main party heads, men like Ernst Rohm and others, which wasn't happening in Nixon's era as much. I was especially interested in Goebbel's marriage troubles as it kept happening throughout the book and each time they fell out with each other, Hitler would often side with Magda, Goebbel's wife, over him, which struck me by surprise. Like these little contradictions with some of these men really pointed out the fact that they were human men who committed horrible atrocities, not just cartoon villains as shown in many WWII movies. For example, Goring hated when animals were harmed in any way but also stood by silently in the slaughtering of millions of Jews. Goebbels loved movies but was a violent misogynist and actively pushed German society towards the Holocaust, printing and recording millions of propaganda pieces denigrating the Jewish people. And I'm not trying to sympathize with these men in any way, I'm just pointing out that anyone can become like these men, even if they seem harmless at first.

If you would like to know more about Nazi Germany and the relationships between Hitler and his underlings then this is a great book for that, just a tad bit long, but I would recommend it!

[Davidg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A long and powerful read. You do wonder how such a bunch of misfits, constantly warring with each other could control and run the expanding Nazi empire. Of course, in the long run, they couldn’t, but, as the book shows, much of that was down to the increasingly irrational man at the top. Hitler was also responsible for playing his different lieutenants against each other.

It is clear that much of the book comes from the Goebbels diaries (though the author makes it clear that they aren’t to be trusted), the testimony of Goering at Nuremberg, and Speer’s post-war writings. There are also first-hand accounts, such as those from William Shirer. Of course, the Nazis were also very good at keeping records.

If the book has a weakness, it is one that can’t be helped. There is very little on Martin Bormann, who by the end had become more powerful than either Goering or Goebbels. But that is because he kept no diary, died as Berlin fell and left no account of his thoughts or actions. Compared to the others, he becomes a shadowy figure.

A compelling read of monstrous human beings.

[Johan Blok · Rating 3 out of 5]

A detailed background on many of Hitler's inner circle. With over 900 pages, only for the seriously interested.

[Gail Hedlund · Rating 4 out of 5]

Long read, thought at times I was packing around a dictionary. Gave me the idea that maybe e-books would be the way to go on this one. However, it was a really interesting book. I learned a great deal about Hitler & his inner circle. What I still didn't get is what made him such a hypnotic person that people would basically sell their souls, families & freedom to follow him. Course I guess that could be said about people like Jim Jones of the People's Temple.

What I also found interesting is that it never explained WHY Hitler had such a drive to want to wipe out the Jews & others. I really wanted the basic answers. With the answers to basic questions such as WHY did he want the Jews eliminated, WHY some followed him to their graves, WHY did he felt that he was "the all-powerful". I learned a lot, but I also learned I have even more questions to be answered. I guess I need to track down another book or two to see if I can find more detailed answers.

By the way, most all of his men were basically cowards. Many took the easy way out, by following his example of suicide. They fought so hard to make the Nazi way of life the only way and when it didn't happen, a bullet to the head or cyanide. Pathetic. Instead of facing the music for their actions, they bailed out just like Hitler did.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

finding the first part of the book to be hard to follow, with all the different political parties and individuals..I also didn't realize that the Nazi's conflicted so much with the Communists and unions. The book would have been aided by some maps that showed the location of many of the towns / regions mentioned throughout the text...in fact, I'm not sure why more books don't include maps that at least pinpoint each of the obscure (and sometimes renamed) places. I found myself having to consult Google to discover where there places were. The last part of the book seemed harried, compared to the first half, and seemed to brush over large amounts of time. But still enjoyed this one! I found myself wondering about Goring's art treasures, and what eventually happened to them.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read many Nazi-era books, by many authors--some well known, others not so much. I'll get the niceties out of the way and say Ian Kershaw and William Shirer stand alone.

Read, though, writes a wonderful book. Very rich on the profiles of the leading Nazis that surrounded Hitler, then meshes them together to show how they created Nazi Germany and how they destroyed it in perfect biographical form.

If you want to become and expert on Nazi Germany but don't want to invest money or time, get a legal pad, some hilighters, and read this book.

This is my review. One of my favorite books. Buy it.

[Martin Sander · Rating 5 out of 5]

The amount of detail and the sheer perfection of Anthony Read's writing technique makes this book one of my favourites.
The over 900 pages should definitely not discourage you, as it is so vividly explained and written in a sense that you do not notice how much you have actually read before you stop to notice.
It is a true masterpiece and very informative.
Read's choice to make the whole book follow events and explain the characters as the events unfold was, in my opinion, the best way to write this book.
5/5 stars for me.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up when I started Larson's In the Garden of Beasts.

It's a solid academic treatment of the subject and very informative. It really details the personalities of Hitler's lieutenants and helps one understand what kind of mindsets they had in the era of Nazi Germany.

[Damián · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excelente relato que prologa desde la prisión en Nuremberg de los pocos cabecillas nazis atrapados tras la guerra y empieza desde el servicio de Hitler en la primera guerra mundial hasta su caida. Relata no solo datos biográficos e históricos de Hitler sino las maquinaciones, celos, envidias, juegos de poder y trampas de sus seguidores para ver quien se quedaba con parte del Tercer Reich cuando Hitler ya no estuviera.

[Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing understanding of how Hitler would never have become HITLER without the right setting created through the harsh restriction placed on Germany after WW1 and a very specific group of ambition men who were captivated and entranced in Hitlers carisma and believes that had been cultivated throughout his entire life.