German History – Page 14 – General History

Rich in history: the Rothschilds

Nathan Rothschild, who ‘organised’ the purchase of those Suez Canal shares / texemarrs.com

Whole books have been published about this world-famous banking family. Some of the authors have indulged in hagiography, others have been perhaps unconsciously anti-Semitic. The latter view is particularly irritating, as it is the very Jewishness of the Rothschilds that makes their family history so interesting. Here, we can engage in a brief potted biography of the family. For further reading, I consider the best and most intimate biography is by Frederic Morton. It is probably out of print by now, but ransack the libraries for The Rothschilds – a family portrait. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-09-20T12:21:49+00:00 September 20th, 2012|Austrian history, British History, English History, French History, German History, Italian History, Jewish History, Today, US History, World History|0 Comments

Great War Commanders: Hans von Seeckt: who?

Hans von Seekt / zh.wikipedia.org

I am not being frivolous. If you were to ask even German or Austrian nationals of below a certain age, say seventy, who Hans von Seeckt was, you might well get a blank expression. But it was Seeckt who prepared and made the German Army of which Hitler was so proud, and which he could use so effectively in France, Holland, Norway, Denmark, Poland etc. in the early years of the Second War. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2014-04-01T14:27:48+00:00 September 17th, 2012|A History of Poland, Austrian history, Dutch History, French History, German History, Russian history, US History, World History|0 Comments

Great War Generals: Erich Ludendorff

This dynamic and very physical soldier was born in 1865. Obviously destined for the Army, he did singularly well as a cadet, passed through the junior ranks at panther’s speed, and by the timeEuropewas (not) ready for World War I he was already on the German General Staff.

First off he led his troops with verve and bravery to capture the Belgian fortress at Liège. Promoted instantly to general, he became Chief-of-Staff of the 8^th Army under Hindenberg (q.v.) who was busy at the time dealing with the Russian invasion of East Prussia.

Ludendorff rapidly became known as a master of strategy, the most important quality in a fighting general. Using this talent he smashed two Russian armies at Tannenberg and theMasurianLakes, and keptGermanysupreme on the Eastern Front until September, 1916. Falkenhayn (q.v.) was dismissed and replaced by Hindenberg as Supreme Commander. Erich became his most senior Quartermaster-General, a vital post. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-09-05T10:51:25+00:00 September 5th, 2012|English History, French History, German History, Russian history, US History, World History|0 Comments

Great War Leaders: Erich von Manstein

Erich von Manstein / amantesdelahistoriabelica.blogspot.com

The future field marshal was born in 1887, destined for the Army because of his Junker background. When World War II started Manstein was Chief of Staff to General von Rundstedt, and it was he who drew up plans for the invasion of France. Hitler accepted them, the armies set out, and the invasion was successful from the start. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-09-02T16:30:17+00:00 September 2nd, 2012|British History, English History, German History, World History|0 Comments

Great War Commanders: Joffre, a Victorian Frenchman

Marshal Joffre / reformation.org

Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre was born in 1852, at the beginning of the Victorian epoch in Britain. He eventually became a Marshal of France, but first came to France’s notice when he took part as a very junior officer in the (weak) defence of Paris during the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71). Having survived Bismarch’s onslaught he went on to serve in the French colonial service. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-08-29T11:34:54+00:00 August 29th, 2012|British History, French History, German History, World History|0 Comments

Great War Leaders: Kitchener needs YOU!

Horatio Herbert Kitchener was born in 1850. At school in Switzerland he learned perfect French, and later went to Palestine where he picked up near-perfect Arabic. After military college and commissioning he got to Egypt (where his knowledge of languages was useful for a junior officer).

The British were occupying Egypt in 1882, but this was the time of the Mahdi, an almost mythical religious and military leader who caused consternation in Britain by the brilliance of his strategy, and the blind faith in him showed by his followers. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2023-12-21T15:04:13+00:00 August 28th, 2012|African History, Austrian history, British History, Dutch History, French History, German History, History in The Balkans, History of Egypt, History of India, The Arab races, World History|0 Comments

Great War Commanders: Falkenhayn the honest Junker

Erich von Falkenhayn / wereldoorlog.be

Eric von Falkenhayn was born in 1861, scion of a typical ‘Junker’ family, which means ‘powerful, noble, landowning, and, not infrequently, bullying and proud as well’. At school he showed intelligence, honesty, self-reliance and bravery, qualities that did not desert him either at military college or later when he was commissioned. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-08-27T09:32:18+00:00 August 27th, 2012|A History of Poland, Austrian history, British History, French History, German History, History in The Balkans, Romanian History, Russian history, World History|0 Comments

Great War Commanders: the despised Haig

Douglas Haig / therooms.ca

Despised he was by most historians, many journalists, more idealists, and especially pacifists, Douglas Haig was born in 1861. He served under Kitchener at the Battle of Omdurman in 1898, and continued successful fighting in the colonial South African War. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-08-23T09:46:31+00:00 August 23rd, 2012|British History, English History, French History, German History, Philosophy, US History, World History|0 Comments

World War II: resistance movement in Russia, France & Italy

The ‘Resistance’ was a term coined for underground movements that fought a courageous but sometimes useless battle against Nazi Germany during the Second World War. The movements aided the Allies in at least four strategies: first, the providing of intelligence; second, sabotage; third, helping Jews and escaped prisoners of war to escape capture from the Gestapo (q.v.) and the SS (q.v.); and fourth, fighting in the open during the latter stages of the war. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-08-15T10:13:59+00:00 August 15th, 2012|French History, German History, Italian History, Russian history, World History|0 Comments

The Krupp family: influences

A scene from the film The Damned (1969) a story about the Krupp family / todossobre2webcindario.com

The family was based in the industrial Ruhr, in Essen. Their business was founded in a small way, in 1811, and was unable to expand in any significant way until the railway boom of the 1850s. In 1859 Krupps received a big order for cast steel cannon barrels from Prussia. The starter’s gun had gone off.

In a remarkably short time the family firm was the largest supplier of arms in the world. Krupps extended its operations to include mining in the Ruhr and shipbuilding. Socialists will admire the family’s paternalistic philosophy: they introduced a welfare scheme for the workers which included a sickness and burial fund, a pension scheme (in 1855) and a housing fund in 1861. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-08-10T10:07:19+00:00 August 10th, 2012|German History, History of the Cinema, World History|0 Comments