An investigation that later was written as a book, Hugh Trevor-Roper’s, “The Last Days of Hitler”, is an account of the last days of the Third Reich, the ever increasing dissolution of the Nazi’s during the last stages of WWII, the chaos in the administration, the animosities, rivalries and suspicions among the Nazi officials and of course about Hitler's last days and suicide. In effect, Trevor-Roper paints a vivid, riveting and honest portrait of Hitler in his final days and gives a genuine analysis of the Nazi regime. Many of Trevor-Roper’s findings in the book has been superseded in the subsequent years through research and classified documents from the former Soviet Union, but the book is original, based on facts and an important historical document as Trevor-Roper, as an investigator had unlimited access to information as well as people who lived during that time. Since he wrote the book based on his investigation soon after the war, it makes the book one of the most wonderful examples of a writing on contemporary history.
Trevor-Roper’s book is the result of an investigative report, the task given to him by the British and the allied powers to investigate the death of Hitler. It was done mainly to prevent the myth that Hitler was still alive. The book draws from the interrogations and accounts of the survivors who spent the last ten days with Hitler in the bunker. Trevor-Roper organizes the book chronologically, but instead of adhering strictly to a specific timeline, Trevor-Roper gives a character sketch of the various Nazi officials he interrogated. In writing about the Nazi officials, Trevor-Roper uses irony to devastating effects and exposes the absurdity of the Nazi officials. However, Hitler always remains at the centre of the book, more so his egomaniacal character. Trevor-Roper says that Hitler till the end remained the indisputable head and that his orders were obeyed without any questions. The reader is shown a Hitler, who is broken physically and mentally and who contemplates a heroic death in the face of the collapsing country. Trevor-Roper also writes about the Nazi officials who were completely out of tune with reality and who were still talking about betraying Hitler and taking over the power. Although the anger and disdain a British officer would have felt for the Nazi regime is understandable, Trevor-Roper goes a little overboard when he describes the Nazi officials. He calls them ‘flatulent clowns’, ‘detestable’, ‘monkeys’ and more, remarks about their defects of the mind and does not even spare the apolitical Germans without which the book would not have been possible. Trevor-Roper questions the sanity and the reasoning of the entire German population about their actions and bases his views on the responses of the officials he interrogates and the results of his investigation. His views are not convincing as he cannot judge an entire nation and categorize them all together based on his views of a few fanatical men.
Trevor-Roper only spares Speer in his book from the general verbal insults he showers on the rest of the Germans. Although Speer was later proved to be a fraud, Trevor-Roper completely believes whatever Speer tells his during the interrogation. Trevor-Roper got to question Speer, the Armaments minister in the early stages of his investigation and chose to believe Speer’s version of himself as a technocrat with no political leanings. Even though Trevor-Roper spared Speer in his book, in later years he has admitted that he was misled by Speer and that Speer, although intelligent was a power hungry, corrupt Nazi official. Though it might seem incongruous to see Speer spared, the mistake on the part of the author is understandable as wrote the report as well as the book soon after the war and the fall of HItler’s Germany. Confident of his interrogative skills, Trevor-Roper could be forgiven for believing what he heard. The book should also be seen in the light of the time it was written. When Trevor-Roper wrote the book, he was not privy to many of the secrets that later researchers and scholars could lay their hands on. The book is not the end product of sustained research over a number of years but rather the result of an official investigation. It was written within a year of the investigation (when many sources were still not available) and is instant history.
Trevor-Roper makes a lot of catholic references in his book while describing Hitler as well as the Nazi officials. The style of the language that he uses in the book makes it an interesting read. Although his references to the church did get some bad reviews, it nevertheless makes for some very interesting reading. In the book, he compares Himmler to a Grand Inquisitor for his mentality and Goebbels’ propaganda to that of the Jesuits. This could be because he had thought that Goebbels was taught by the Jesuits at the time he wrote his book. He has rectified this mistake in the later editions of the book after he found out that Goebbels was not taught by the Jesuits. He also likens the Third Reich to a court and says that the capacity for intrigue found among the officials was as incalculable as that of any sultanate of the orient. Himmler is a simpleton, Goering is a kook (who almost like Nero enjoyed in luxury while the country was falling apart) and Goebbels is a nefarious propaganda machine. Trevor-Roper writes the book from a position of power, he was the investigator and the people he wrote about or spoke to could no longer speak for themselves or sometimes told him what he wanted to hear. Speer remains a classic example of how the author was manipulated into thinking that Speer was passive, brave and intelligent (based on different circumstances that Speer confessed to).
The book is a genuine historical work which in some places is tempered by the bias of the author against the Germans. Trevor-Roper’s work, although accurate in its reporting of events is also passionate and is not as balanced as a work of history should be. The book was written as soon as the war ended and as the Third Reich was falling apart. Hitler was dead and many officials were dead, on the run and the ones who surrendered were willing to work with the allies if it would been they could escape. Some were hoping to control the country now that Hitler was dead not knowing or failing to understand that it was impossible. It is these characteristic sketches of the Nazi officials, the portrait of Hitler culled from his personal assistants, cook and people close to him, and the vivid description of the swan song of Hitler’s regime that makes the book brilliant. Trevor-Roper could be however forgiven for the vitriolic insults he places On the Germans. The war had taken a huge toll on everyone and the confessions could have made anyone mad at what the Germans had been capable of. Even though it colors the book to a certain extent, the book cannot be taken lightly. It is a historical work in spite of the personal touches of the author and is an account of what went on during those fateful ten days. The world, thanks to the work of Trevor- Roper got to read about the Hitler who was not just the enigmatic leader of Nazi Germany but was also a raving maniac who in his last days was willing to destroy his own country if it meant his enemies would not get it. As an account of history when it happened and as a character analysis of the actors of the Nazi regime, the book is a good read. The popularity of the book decades after it was published stands testament to the authenticity of the book. Trevor-Roper offers a fascinating account of the “Flensburg Government” that lasted only a week after the Fuhrer. The book on top of being a historical document also offers insightful accounts of how power corrupts people. Hitler and his men were so gone with power that they began to see themselves as being invincible and unbeatable and couldn’t understand reality even when everything was falling apart around them.
Works Cited
Trevor-Roper, Hugh. The Last Days of Hitler. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1992.
