Book Review

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Feb 20, 2024

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The book, War and Genocide by Doris L. Bergen is a book that attempts to explain what exactly was behind the Holocaust. The author uses the analogy of a burning house requiring dry timber, a spark, and favorable weather in order to burn. The house being the Holocaust, Bergan sets the stage of the climate of World War II, the spark of Hitler’s regime, and the preconditions of eugenics, racism, and attitudes towards social outsiders that allowed for the previously mentioned factors. 1 The book begins by questioning how the Holocaust was possible, why was the Jewish community targeted, and if antisemitism was a crucial factor, why were others targeted as well. Another question she tries to answer is the time and place, and she feels political, geopolitical, and military developments need to be focused on as well. Quite early on, Bergen prefaces her book with the idea that what happened to the Jewish community was horrible, however, this group of people were not the only ones that were targeted as Hitler took control and began to engage the horrors of Holocaust. Defining antisemitism was an important thing to begin this book with, as it provides a basic concept of why Jewish people were so very targeted during the Holocaust. It is Bergen’s initial thought that although antisemitism simply means the hatred of Jews, her research shows it is not so easily defined. She does acknowledge there is a connection between the term and the hatred of Jews, but it does not always mean it is hatred towards them only. Bergen 1 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 14

provides her reader with a historical picture of the Jewish faith, their blame for Jesus’ death, and the idea that accusations of treason and conspirators dating back to the Roman period, remained in the forefront until the twentieth century. 2 Bergen uses the first part of her book to trace the continued hatred towards Jews, spanning 300 years. What began as religious resentments turned into social, economic, and political issues. She quickly focuses on the others that seemed to be included in the Holocaust, but interestingly, not mentioned in history. Bergen suggests the Nazis chose groups of people where pre-existing prejudices existed in Europe and built on them. People with disabilities, Sintis, Romas, homosexuals, African Europeans, Poles, and Jehovah’s Witnesses were all a part of the Nazi assaults. 3 Even more interesting was the connection Bergen was able to make regarding Jews and non-Jews when it came to Nazi prejudice. Bergen contends the Nazis targeted groups of people that were already suffering from prejudice and used propaganda to suggest the Jewish community was connected to each group of people. 4 Bergen then points out that the first victims of the Holocaust were disabled people, not the Jewish community. Political changes that resulted in more laws and publicity of homosexuality was touched on, as well as the outlaw of Jehovah’s Witness as religion. The influence of World War I, the Versailles Treaty, and the Great War were outlined as possible contributing factors, in an effort to name some of the 2 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 16 3 Ibid, 25 4 Ibid, 25

preconditions previously suggested. The system of Geo-politics is explained as a system of leadership, political will, and manipulation of ideals, by Bergen, as it was a needed component for the eventual crime of genocide inflicted on so many. 5 Peppering the first chapter of her book with pictures and stories of those who lived the horror of the Holocaust brings the reader a bit deeper into the lives affected by Hitler and his regime. Beginning with the one most think of when discussing the Holocaust, Hitler, Bergen reminds her readers there is much debate as to how large of a hand Hitler had in all that surrounded the Holocaust. 6 Providing a brief glimpse of the man Hitler was, gives the reader a better idea of his beliefs and ideas. Bergen contends that Hitler’s core ideas were “race and space”. 7 Race and space was explained as humanity being engaged in a struggle between races and “communities of blood” and “pure Germans”, known as Aryan, to produce food, future soldiers, and mothers, the race could not grow. A race of people must expand or they will die out. His focus began to be land east of Poland and Russia to bring his expansion to life, which, according to Bergen, caused Jews, Poles, and Russians to become targets. Hitler’s focus on Jews is thought to have began as he felt particularly disenchanged by the Communist party, and felt the Jewish population created it in an effort to destroy Germany. The author does a good job with explaining Hitler’s rise in 5 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 38 6 Ibid, 46 7 Ibid, 52

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politics in Germany and divides his new regime into phases, the Nazi revolution and the routinization of Nazism. 8 Hitler’s target groups were the first to feel the effects of Nazi rule, however Bergen explains Germany’s new government would strike dramatically, then pause to feel out the public’s response. It was a combination of boldness and caution, and it was indicative of the regime for its tenure. 9 This book takes a closer look on how each of these groups were targeted, and what measures the Nazi regime took to facilitate their desire for racial purity. Targeting homosexual men by raiding bars, forcing disabled women to be sterilized, harassing Jews in the street, in their businesses, and at school, and the mistreatment of African Europeans was the Nazi’s first order of business. Focusing on key events leading up to the rise of Nazism and the Holocaust, events such as the Kristallnacht program in 1938, which was publicized as a result of an attack on a German official by a Jewish student. 10 This event and the propaganda surrounding it increased aggression towards the Jews community and so the expansion of concentration camps began. Included in these concentration camps, as Bergen reminds us, were not only Jews, but Communists, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, those who failed to abide by the Sterilization Law of 1933, and even Catholic Popes who didn’t conform 8 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 69 9 Ibid, 73 10 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 109

to Nazism. 11 Bergen breaks up her focus on concentration camps, and discusses them in more detail towards the end of her book, as the expansion of them continued through World War II. Interestingly, Bergen points out that 95% of Jews murdered were from outside Germany. 12 Bergen continues her book by highlighting the ever-evolving mission to remove the Jewish race from the world and conquer other lands in an effort for Hitler to achieve his ideal of “race and space”. Hitler gained the trust of Russian President Joseph Stalin, only to prepare for war against Russia, and attack when anyone least suspected it. Taking us through the Reichstag, which was a focused-on Poland, Bergen takes her readers through the journey of what can only be described as a careful, tactful plan of reaching total domination of Eastern Europe and extermination of all who Hitler deemed inferior. Bergen continues her narration of Hitler’s violence, as she journey’s through the attack on the Soviet Union in 1941, named Operation Barbosa. 13 Taking a walk through the invasion and war, Hitler’s military tactics and goals were discussed, as well as the response from not only the Soviet Union, but surrounding nations. The Soviet Union began to move resources and people east, in an effort to save lives and continue with industrial, military, and agricultural production in the event Germany took control of their western borders. 14 As the book describes, the invasion was 11 Ibid, 115 12 Ibid, 223 13 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 186 14 Ibid, 188

not as easy as Hitler expected, and his military was not prepared for the fight the Soviet Union gave them. The idea of a Reichstag in the Soviet Union, as in Poland was planned, therefore the German military had not planned for winter. 15 Some of Hitler’s plans were highlighted as Germany progressed with its plans, one of which were the horrendous mission of Hitler’s Einsatzgruppen to kill Jews and those identified as involved of anti-German activity. 16 Inclusion of Romania and Ukraine in the killing of Jews was accounted for by Bergen. Bergen continues to follow readers through the Wannsee Conference in 1942, which was interesting in that Hitler nor prominent Nazi leaders attended. 17 As war raged, Bergen discusses Hitler’s intent to win and expand with his “race and space” idea. The General Plan for the East is included in this book, as it shows Hitler’s unrelenting intent to succeed at racial cleansing. As World War II continued, Bergen reviews the Battle of Stalingrad, identifying it as a possible turning point for Germany. Bergen then pens the after effect of this most important battle and details the low morale of German troops and the beginnings of resistance. Reminding her readers that Germany continued with their siege on Jews, they launched a new campaign against Polish Jews called Harvest Festival. As allies joined the war in support of the Soviet Union, Poland, and other countries, Germany began to feel the effects of their eventual losing battle. Her focus on resistance is important, 15 Ibid, 194 16 Ibid, 195 17 Ibid, 208

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as it highlights unknown ways that intelligence was disseminated right under the German military’s noses, whether it came from anti-Nazi organizations or the Jewish themselves. The Jewish ghetto in Warsaw was an unexpecting place of resistance, and Bergen highlights it well. 18 As Bergen’s book concludes, she does well with describing in detail how allied forces began to break the German defenses and mentions Nazi’s continued killing of Jews up until the end. Hitler’s final attempt at victory came with the deployment of all of Germany’s resources in a campaign called Volkssturm. As the war was evident to be lost in 1945, Hitler gave one final order, known as the Nero Order, which was to destroy everything in the German military’s path, so to take all they could with them as they fell. 19 Bergen walks through the end of the war in the conclusion of her book, reflecting on the facts that the end of the war was not the end of the destruction. The book ends reminding its readers of the after shock that remained for decades. 18 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 269 19 Doris L. Bergen, War & Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust (Vancouver, B.C.: University of British Columbia Crane Library, 2017), 281.

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