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Evaluate the influence of 'Vergangenheitspolitik', the motives of collective memory, its effect on the post-World War II war crimes trials and judgments of the 'Wehrmacht' and subsequent shaping of the wider historical narrative

2013; Historical Association; Volume: 47; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

0040-0610

David Kyle Johnson,

German History and Society

My investigation began with the intention of simply investigating the historiography surrounding a polarised historical figure. I selected Field Marshal Albert Kesselring (supreme commander of the Mediterranean theatre) as my subject as, in my wider reading, I had formed the conclusion that this was a commander of high regard who had suffered under the prejudice of post-war Allied 'victor's justice': a phrase popular in the popular literature surrounding Kesselring. The realities of this figure, however, connoted that an historical injustice had been done, but on a scale that far out-weighed the considerations of a single man.