Hitler's Second Book: German Foreign Policy

A new translation of the Nazi leader's second book, unpublished in his lifetime, on foreign affairs and other matters. Translated into English, introduced and now with over 90 footnotes contextualizing and explaining references in the text for the present-day reader.

 

Written in 1928 at the height of a political crisis between Fascist Italy and Weimar Germany over the region of South Tyrol, Hitler meant this book as an explanation of his position on that matter-namely that friendship with Italy was more important than German control over the region. The manuscript however quickly expanded into a general overview of what German foreign policy should be and then expounded on some other ideas from his first book, "Mein Kampf."

 

Before the book could be published, Hitler and his party were plunged into a series of elections which lasted deep into 1932, and, which ultimately resulted in his coming to power in January 1933.

 

There was then no need for the book to be published, and only two copies of the draft remained, one in Hitler's safe in Berchtesgaden and another in the safe of his Munich publisher. It was the latter manuscript which was seized by American forces at the end of the Second World War, and which ended up being misclassified as a draft of his first book until 1958, when an alert American archivist realized it was the infamous missing "second book."

 

Topics covered in this book include:

 

The South Tyrol question; Peace and war as means of waging the struggle; Morality of conquest; Export trade vanishing as other nations modernize; Weapons on hand no gauge of national strength-National will the decisive factor; Leadership superior to mass democracy; Ideas valueless unless translated into action; German colonial policy a blunder, led to conflict with England; America has upset balance of power; American racial immigration policies; Italy promising as German ally; and much more.

 

Also contains in a new appendix the article "How America Entered the War," by F.W. Elven, correspondent of the "Münchener Neuesten Nachrichten," June 1928, to which Hitler referred in the body of the manuscript and which he intended to be added to the book.