In the year immediately preceding the outbreak of the Second World War, the German foreign office launched an unprecedented campaign in Britain to explain the inner workings of Nazi Germany.
The highpoint of this campaign was this book, a four part set of 21 essays by leading party and state officials, each explaining in detail the practical implementation and rationale of their policies. Contributors include Otto Dietrich, Fritz Todt, Robert Ley, R. Walther Darré, Wilhelm Frick, Ritter Von Epp, and many others.
The first part deals with the foremost political issues: the state structure, population growth, race, Jews, the judicial system, women's rights, the educational system, and the role of propaganda. This section includes a detailed account of the eugenic measures adopted by the state to prevent the spread of heritable diseases and to boost marriage and childbirth rates.
The second part explains the Reich's economic system, its agrarian, social, labor, and welfare policies.
The third part details the organization of day-to-day life in the Third Reich: sport, culture, entertainment, and a fascinating exposition of the motoring industry and autobahn construction program.
The final part discusses Germany's foreign policy, and includes world economics, colonies, trade, the world press, and politics, and finally, a plea for lasting peace between Germany and Britain in particular.
Some extracts:
"The Chancellor wants peace not only for his own country's sake, but also because a European war would be the end of the white races and of white civilisation. Not only Central Europe, but France, Italy and Great Britain also, would perish, whilst Bolshevism would be the real victor."
"Most open to misinterpretation are National Socialist views on the relations between the various races of the world. It has been questioned whether the fundamental racial principles of the new world theory must not breed condescension, even contempt of people of different race. Quite the contrary; these very principles offer the very best guarantee for mutual tolerance and for the peaceful cooperation of all."
"We appreciate the fact that those of another race are different from us. Whether that other race is "better" or "worse" is not possible for us to judge. For this reason, we have nothing in common with chauvinism and imperialism because we would extend to other races peopling the earth the same privileges we claim for ourselves: the right to fashion our lives and our own particular world according to the requirements of our own nature."
"We do not wish our people to intermarry with those of alien race since through such mingling of the blood the best and characteristic qualities of both races are lost. But we will always have a ready welcome for any guests who wish to visit us whether of kindred or foreign civilisation, and our racial views only lead us to a fuller appreciation of their essential peculiarities in the same way as we would want our own peculiarities respected."
