Léon Degrelle
Translated and introduced by Alexander Jacob. The sensational semi-autobiographical work from the Waffen-SS’s most famous foreign volunteer, translated into English for the very first time.First published in French in French as Hitler pour 1000 ans in 1969, this suppressed work was Degrelle’s personal account of his pre-war political career, his personal interactions with Hitler, the formation of what became the Walloon SS, the war on the Eastern Front against the Soviet Union, his dramatic escape to Spain in 1945, and his life in exile.Along the way, Degrelle provides insight into some of the most pressing questions of World War II: why Hitler invaded the Soviet Union when he did; how Mussolini’s invasion of Greece wrecked Hitler’s plans; how lower-ranking German military commanders deliberately disobeyed Hitler’s orders on industrial production which directly affected the war’s outcome; how the defeat at Stalingrad occurred because the Sixth Army’s commander refused to follow Hitler’s orders to break out to the west; the turning point battle of Kursk, and much more.Degrelle also provides a fascinating personal view of Hitler, gained from a personal friendship. Finally, Degrelle describes the vision of a united Europe, which, he says, was Hitler’s ultimate vision. This belief in a strong united Europe gave rise to the saying of Hitler for a thousand years, the title of this book.'If objective historians still existed, I could be for them a very valuable witness with regard to their documents. Who, among the survivors of 1945, knew Hitler or Mussolini more directly than I? Who could explain with more precision than me, explain what type of men they were, men as they really were?'This ’essential thing’ in the great tragedy of the Second World War, what was it for us? How did the ’fascisms’ - which have been the essential thing of our lives - arise? How were they deployed ? How did they collapse? And, above all, after a quarter century: what balance sheet can one draw up of this whole gigantic affair?'ContentsPreface - Alexander JacobChapter I - The Muzzling of the VanquishedChapter II - When Europe was FascistChapter III - Towards Power at the Age of Twenty Five Chapter IV - Europe Explodes Chapter V - Hitler, for a Thousand Years Chapter VI - Alongside the Germans Chapter VII - The Tramways of MoscowChapter VIII - The Russian infernoChapter IX - Who was Hitler?Chapter X - From Stalingrad to San SebastianChapter XI - The ExiledChapter XII - And if Hitler Had Won?Select Bibliography - Degrelle’s Post-war Writings
