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Memoirs
The sensational memoirs of Alfred Rosenberg, the Third Reich’s leading ideologue, Minister of the Occupied Eastern Territories, and author of the Myth of the 20th Century, written while in prison at Nuremberg.
These memoirs contain a no-holds barred overview of his political life, from the time of his earliest involvement in the NSDAP, right up to the Nuremberg Trials. Here the reader will find astonishing revelations on, inter alia, the following topics:
- The Jewish Communist Revolution in Munich;
- The Spirit behind National Socialism;
- How the Storm Troopers were organized in Response to Communist Violence;
- Christianity and National Socialism and The Myth of the 20th Century;
- Publication of The Myth of the 20th Century the Reason for Rosenberg’s Exclusion from Hitler’s first Cabinet;
- Racial Respect and the Jewish Question;
- A Prediction of the Racial Dissolution of America;
- Race and Racial History;
- The Euthanasia Program: Justified but Badly Implemented;
- Oswald Mosely’s Mistake in Choosing the Word “Fascist”;
- The Strasser Brothers and Conflict within the Party;
- Himmler’s Ahenerbe and debate over Use of “Nordic”;
- The Mistake of letting the Police Fall under Political Control;
- Ernst Röhm, Homosexuality, and the SA;
- Artur Axmann and the Alpine Redoubt;
- Artistic Side of Hitler Led to his Downfall in Foreign Affairs;
- Hitler, Art, and Architecture;
- Hitler Rejected Christianity;
- Did Hitler Risk the Existence of the Reich by Going to War?;
- Hitler Made Same Mistake as Napoleon in Russia;
- Rosenberg’s Attempts to Stem Anti-Slavic Attitude;
- Time will be Needed to Resurrect the Ideal from the Rubble of the Reich; and
- Rosenberg’s political testament, in which he outlined how a future democratic, National Socialist state should be constructed, in which there would be press freedom, democratic elections, and much, much more.
An eye-opening work which provides an unparalleled insight into the thinking of one of the most senior figures of the Third Reich, and unquestionably the single most important National Socialist ideological leader after Hitler.
This new edition contains over 200 explanatory footnotes and is fully indexed.
These memoirs contain a no-holds barred overview of his political life, from the time of his earliest involvement in the NSDAP, right up to the Nuremberg Trials. Here the reader will find astonishing revelations on, inter alia, the following topics:
- The Jewish Communist Revolution in Munich;
- The Spirit behind National Socialism;
- How the Storm Troopers were organized in Response to Communist Violence;
- Christianity and National Socialism and The Myth of the 20th Century;
- Publication of The Myth of the 20th Century the Reason for Rosenberg’s Exclusion from Hitler’s first Cabinet;
- Racial Respect and the Jewish Question;
- A Prediction of the Racial Dissolution of America;
- Race and Racial History;
- The Euthanasia Program: Justified but Badly Implemented;
- Oswald Mosely’s Mistake in Choosing the Word “Fascist”;
- The Strasser Brothers and Conflict within the Party;
- Himmler’s Ahenerbe and debate over Use of “Nordic”;
- The Mistake of letting the Police Fall under Political Control;
- Ernst Röhm, Homosexuality, and the SA;
- Artur Axmann and the Alpine Redoubt;
- Artistic Side of Hitler Led to his Downfall in Foreign Affairs;
- Hitler, Art, and Architecture;
- Hitler Rejected Christianity;
- Did Hitler Risk the Existence of the Reich by Going to War?;
- Hitler Made Same Mistake as Napoleon in Russia;
- Rosenberg’s Attempts to Stem Anti-Slavic Attitude;
- Time will be Needed to Resurrect the Ideal from the Rubble of the Reich; and
- Rosenberg’s political testament, in which he outlined how a future democratic, National Socialist state should be constructed, in which there would be press freedom, democratic elections, and much, much more.
An eye-opening work which provides an unparalleled insight into the thinking of one of the most senior figures of the Third Reich, and unquestionably the single most important National Socialist ideological leader after Hitler.
This new edition contains over 200 explanatory footnotes and is fully indexed.
216 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1949
18 people are currently reading
223 people want to read
About the author
Alfred Rosenberg
50 books66 followersAlfred Ernst Rosenberg was the head of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories and a war criminal during the Nazi era. A Baltic German, he was a theorist and an influential ideologue of the Nazi Party.
Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart. He held several important posts in the Nazi government. He is considered one of the main authors of key Nazi ideological creeds, including its racial theory, persecution of the Jews, Lebensraum, abrogation of the Treaty of Versailles, and opposition to "degenerate" modern art.
He is also known for his rejection of Christianity, playing an important role in the development of Positive Christianity, which he intended to be transitional to a new Nazi faith.
At Nuremberg he was tried, sentenced to death and executed by hanging as a war criminal.
Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart. He held several important posts in the Nazi government. He is considered one of the main authors of key Nazi ideological creeds, including its racial theory, persecution of the Jews, Lebensraum, abrogation of the Treaty of Versailles, and opposition to "degenerate" modern art.
He is also known for his rejection of Christianity, playing an important role in the development of Positive Christianity, which he intended to be transitional to a new Nazi faith.
At Nuremberg he was tried, sentenced to death and executed by hanging as a war criminal.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 21, 2009
A mandatory read for those interested in the Third Reich. In his memoirs, Alfred Rosenberg criticizes everyone from Joseph Goebbels to the fuehrer Adolf Hitler. Alfred Rosenberg was one of the first “Nazis” and undeniably a very important player in the rise of National Socialism. Rosenberg’s masterpiece “The Myth of Twentieth Century” is the most important and definitive philosophical work of the Third Reich.
The only real problem with the memoirs of Alfred Rosenberg is the added commentary. I could have done without all the ad hominem attacks against Rosenberg and historical inaccuracies from the commentator. I would have preferred the memoirs to have been in their entirety, the way Alfred Rosenberg intended them.
It is a shame that the memoirs have been out of print over half a century. If you can get a hold of this book, make sure to read it.
The only real problem with the memoirs of Alfred Rosenberg is the added commentary. I could have done without all the ad hominem attacks against Rosenberg and historical inaccuracies from the commentator. I would have preferred the memoirs to have been in their entirety, the way Alfred Rosenberg intended them.
It is a shame that the memoirs have been out of print over half a century. If you can get a hold of this book, make sure to read it.
April 18, 2020
This was a very interesting book. Unlike his magnum opus, The Myth of the 20th Century, Alfred Rosenberg's "Memoirs" is an easy read. I felt like I got to know the man quite well after reading both works, but especially after reading "Memoirs". I believe it is a terrible crime that this man was executed, not for committing any crime, but simply for his political beliefs.
July 25, 2021
Rosenberg's memoirs from prison as he awaits execution by the allies to appease the communist.
August 18, 2018
QUOTES:
Although no specific crimes could be attributed to him, he was generally held responsible for creating the National Socialist ideology, and it was clear that his execution was for this “crime” alone.
I have explained in many speeches that the veneration of Germanic blood does not imply contempt for other races but, on the contrary, racial respect. Since races, as the core of nations, are created by nature, the very respect for nature itself demands respect for such creations.
Anti-Semitism began with war profiteering; it grew with growing usury; and it became widespread after the revolt of November 9, 1918.
At the end of the 18th century London had replaced Paris as the center of Jewish world politics. Great Britain has always been generous in her attitude toward Western Jewry, especially since the days of Edward VII.
The war against Jewry came about because an alien people on German soil arrogated the political and spiritual leadership of the country, and, believing itself triumphant, flaunted it brazenly.
The Americans will have to decide whether they want a white America or whether they want to make the choice of their President ever more a question of additional concessions toward mulattoisation.
The day will come when the grandchildren of the present generation will be ashamed of the fact that we have been accused as criminals for having harbored a most noble thought, simply because of its deterioration in times of war through unworthy orders.
Never will a Hottentot, believer though he may be, build cathedrals; never will a Negro write a Fifth Symphony, nor even understand it. And it is actually unfair to expect it of them.
During the Party Day of 1937, I, as the first among the living, received the new National Prize for Arts and Sciences.
In the beginning Hitler seemed not disinclined to accept my proposals that the East be ruled with three-quarters psychology and only one-quarter force.
The Nuremberg show trials will presently be over and our fates decided. Let my confession stand behind them: National Socialism was the European answer to a century-old question. It was the noblest of ideas to which a German could give all his strength. It made the German nation a gift of unity, it gave the German Reich a new content.
It was a social philosophy and an ideal of blood-conditioned cultural cleanliness. National Socialism was misused, and in the end demoralized, by men to whom its creator had most fatefully given his confidence. The collapse of the Reich is historically linked with this.
Although no specific crimes could be attributed to him, he was generally held responsible for creating the National Socialist ideology, and it was clear that his execution was for this “crime” alone.
I have explained in many speeches that the veneration of Germanic blood does not imply contempt for other races but, on the contrary, racial respect. Since races, as the core of nations, are created by nature, the very respect for nature itself demands respect for such creations.
Anti-Semitism began with war profiteering; it grew with growing usury; and it became widespread after the revolt of November 9, 1918.
At the end of the 18th century London had replaced Paris as the center of Jewish world politics. Great Britain has always been generous in her attitude toward Western Jewry, especially since the days of Edward VII.
The war against Jewry came about because an alien people on German soil arrogated the political and spiritual leadership of the country, and, believing itself triumphant, flaunted it brazenly.
The Americans will have to decide whether they want a white America or whether they want to make the choice of their President ever more a question of additional concessions toward mulattoisation.
The day will come when the grandchildren of the present generation will be ashamed of the fact that we have been accused as criminals for having harbored a most noble thought, simply because of its deterioration in times of war through unworthy orders.
Never will a Hottentot, believer though he may be, build cathedrals; never will a Negro write a Fifth Symphony, nor even understand it. And it is actually unfair to expect it of them.
During the Party Day of 1937, I, as the first among the living, received the new National Prize for Arts and Sciences.
In the beginning Hitler seemed not disinclined to accept my proposals that the East be ruled with three-quarters psychology and only one-quarter force.
The Nuremberg show trials will presently be over and our fates decided. Let my confession stand behind them: National Socialism was the European answer to a century-old question. It was the noblest of ideas to which a German could give all his strength. It made the German nation a gift of unity, it gave the German Reich a new content.
It was a social philosophy and an ideal of blood-conditioned cultural cleanliness. National Socialism was misused, and in the end demoralized, by men to whom its creator had most fatefully given his confidence. The collapse of the Reich is historically linked with this.
May 13, 2016
I was really hoping this book would be more interesting, but it was very wanting. A friend described it to me as "Rosenberg bitching about petty office politics from the 1920s and 1930s" and that pretty well sums it up.
It's interesting that, as a political theory, national socialism stands as a one-time-experiment. Unlike fascism, communism, totalitarianism in general, or a simple military dictatorship, this form is almost formless. It has no empirical expression other than its test run in Germany from 1933-1945, yet its intellectual backbone is said to have been formed by Rosenberg. Yet in these memoirs, there is precious little about political theory and much about his disdain for Goebbels and Bormann. It causes one to wonder whether there was any fundamental philosophy behind the country and movement other than leader worship.
As a student of history, this book doesn't offer much. As one interested in political philosophy, this book will not deliver much. It goes into some detail about Rosenberg's personal life, though admittedly not much. It gives a somewhat catty assessment of various individuals, which perhaps has some value. For the most part, though, this book feels indulgent and vapid. It's settling scores with people who, even by 1946, were already dead. It captures pointless details about personalities who are long gone.
Rosenberg, staring down the hangman's noose in 1946, would have been wiser to spend his time defining more the contours of the political theory he tried to craft. With the exception of the last chapter that reads like a basic primer in constitutional republicanism, it has little to nothing to offer. Skip the drama, this memoir isn't worth it.
A notorious individual who could have written an epic work, it's not worth the trouble.
It's interesting that, as a political theory, national socialism stands as a one-time-experiment. Unlike fascism, communism, totalitarianism in general, or a simple military dictatorship, this form is almost formless. It has no empirical expression other than its test run in Germany from 1933-1945, yet its intellectual backbone is said to have been formed by Rosenberg. Yet in these memoirs, there is precious little about political theory and much about his disdain for Goebbels and Bormann. It causes one to wonder whether there was any fundamental philosophy behind the country and movement other than leader worship.
As a student of history, this book doesn't offer much. As one interested in political philosophy, this book will not deliver much. It goes into some detail about Rosenberg's personal life, though admittedly not much. It gives a somewhat catty assessment of various individuals, which perhaps has some value. For the most part, though, this book feels indulgent and vapid. It's settling scores with people who, even by 1946, were already dead. It captures pointless details about personalities who are long gone.
Rosenberg, staring down the hangman's noose in 1946, would have been wiser to spend his time defining more the contours of the political theory he tried to craft. With the exception of the last chapter that reads like a basic primer in constitutional republicanism, it has little to nothing to offer. Skip the drama, this memoir isn't worth it.
A notorious individual who could have written an epic work, it's not worth the trouble.
July 9, 2017
A valuable historical document, from a man who is about to die.
3 Stars (As a Historical Document)
2 Stars (For Readability)
The memoirs of the senior Nazi officials during World War II are by and large a mixed bunch, valuable as historical documents and primary sources, but by the nature of their writing styles hard to read. Not knowing German, I cannot say whether that is merely a product of the translation or the original texts themselves. Irregardless, the Memoirs of Alfred Rosenberg are useful for the insight they give into the inner workings of the Nazi party and the views of the author himself.
That said, what he says must be taken with a grain of salt due to the circumstances surrounding the writing of the book: It was written while he was on trial, and while awaiting execution at Nuremberg. Therefore this book is by its nature an attempt at justification or explanation for his actions and life, rather than an unbiased critique. With that kept it mind, it remains of value to the historian. It would be very interesting to be able to compare this side by side with his personal diary, which he kept during prior to and during the war.
Ultimately, a useful historical source but definitely not a page turner.
The full text can be found online, without any additional commentary or annotations, which is useful for both the historian and grad student.
https://archive.org/stream/MemoirsOfA...
3 Stars (As a Historical Document)
2 Stars (For Readability)
The memoirs of the senior Nazi officials during World War II are by and large a mixed bunch, valuable as historical documents and primary sources, but by the nature of their writing styles hard to read. Not knowing German, I cannot say whether that is merely a product of the translation or the original texts themselves. Irregardless, the Memoirs of Alfred Rosenberg are useful for the insight they give into the inner workings of the Nazi party and the views of the author himself.
That said, what he says must be taken with a grain of salt due to the circumstances surrounding the writing of the book: It was written while he was on trial, and while awaiting execution at Nuremberg. Therefore this book is by its nature an attempt at justification or explanation for his actions and life, rather than an unbiased critique. With that kept it mind, it remains of value to the historian. It would be very interesting to be able to compare this side by side with his personal diary, which he kept during prior to and during the war.
Ultimately, a useful historical source but definitely not a page turner.
The full text can be found online, without any additional commentary or annotations, which is useful for both the historian and grad student.
https://archive.org/stream/MemoirsOfA...
August 10, 2015
Interesting to read original source material.
Rosenberg has the reputation of being unreadable, that what he writes is convoluted and dense. If his memoirs are anything to judge by, he's not that bad. He's logical, but his thoughts don't flow easily.
The four stars are for access to his memoirs at a cheap price, and for the fact that he's a halfway decent writer.
If you're interested in history, you're not reading it for quality writing anyway. It's worth the read for his take on what went wrong, what he saw as worth keeping in the Nazi system and how he saw Germany's future.
Original source material can be hard to find and very expensive for the armchair historian. That's why I love the wide range of material now appearing on Kindle.
However, it is good to be aware of the people bringing some of these books back into publication. This one is from Ostara Publishing. Their website looks like they support the Nazi viewpoint--in this day and age. Just so you're aware. I didn't discover this until after buying the book. The info is just a link inside.
So that's who gets the money. There are tradeoffs, access vs money going to them. Frustrating.
Rosenberg has the reputation of being unreadable, that what he writes is convoluted and dense. If his memoirs are anything to judge by, he's not that bad. He's logical, but his thoughts don't flow easily.
The four stars are for access to his memoirs at a cheap price, and for the fact that he's a halfway decent writer.
If you're interested in history, you're not reading it for quality writing anyway. It's worth the read for his take on what went wrong, what he saw as worth keeping in the Nazi system and how he saw Germany's future.
Original source material can be hard to find and very expensive for the armchair historian. That's why I love the wide range of material now appearing on Kindle.
However, it is good to be aware of the people bringing some of these books back into publication. This one is from Ostara Publishing. Their website looks like they support the Nazi viewpoint--in this day and age. Just so you're aware. I didn't discover this until after buying the book. The info is just a link inside.
So that's who gets the money. There are tradeoffs, access vs money going to them. Frustrating.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews