A Mighty Fortress: A New History of the German People – Beyond World War II: Germany's Full Portrait from Antiquity to Present

German history is, I think, hard to grasp for many, primarily since for much of it’s history the German countries, or the German people, have lacked the same political cohesiveness present in other European domains, such as England, France and Spain. This book not only explains how and why Germany, the distinct cultural and political entity, came into being, but also how that journey shaped the culture and character of the German people. Whether you’re a German-American curious about the saga of your ancestors, a student of history interested in the story of one of the worlds more prominent countries or simply a fan of Deutsch Kultur, this book is an interesting and informative read.

I found this history of Germany to be very interesting in so many ways. Ozment traces the roots of Germany back to earliest times, up through Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire, through the Reformation and up to the Third Reich. But this is not about the Nazis, although they are briefly mentioned, but more the Germanic people and their secular and religious rulers over the Millenia. Especially interesting to me was the inheritance laws of the Germanic nations versus the Franks (French) allowing great concentration of Estates in French up the chain of feudal rule to the King himself, while the plethora of Germanic States remained small and relatively powerless. Only Bismark solved this problem but it left the modern German post 1870 perhaps with a sense of inferiority vis-a-vis French relations. But I digress, if you have any interest at all in understanding how modern Europe came to be, or Germany in particular, then I highly recommend it to you.

This is a good, quick history on the German people and area that moves nicely. There are a few too many typos, but still worth reading.

I have read very many books about German history, especially just prior to World War I to just after World War II, trying to understand just how it all could have happened, but those books never revealed the complexity of the German society prior to those events that apparently played a critical role in the evolution of those events, but "A Mighty fortress" has shed a lot of light on the factors which contributed to the events which took place. For that I am most appreciative.

The in depth re-orientation introduction to a balanced and objective view of the actual historical facts, healthy open minded whole system view of 2000+ years of actual Germanic history instead of the so common narrow propagandistic stereo typical 20 years Nazi focussed rendition of German history

This book is abysmal. It's hard to decide which annoying propensity is worse: (1) the insistence upon talking about the interests of the working class in crypto-Marxist terms in every single epoch to no obvious end (or maybe the punch line comes later in the book, but I"m not sticking around to find out) or (2) the flights of fancy on Duhrer (and his foreskin), Bach, Voltaire, etc., etc. that are as abrupt as they are irrelevant. The chapters in which Ozment attempts to couch Germany within the Enlightenment or almost too painful to bear and hopelessly inconsistent. Germany was swept away with regard for the French, but not so much so that they were willing to give up the aristocracy. German society became meritocratic, but it really wasn't. I'm not saying that these things are mutually exclusive, but it would be nice if Ozment was able to make a concise, consistent, and coherent point. I've tried making my way through this book twice, largely because there are so few comprehensive histories of Germany. I understand why - it's difficult to write about a modern-day country that has been the theatre of ever-shifting borders, kingdoms large and kingdoms small. But Ozment is not trying to address that difficulty. It's hard to determine what he's trying to do, other than maybe write Zinn for the Germans. As I am traveling, I've decided to lighten my load by leaving this book in my hotel. I don't want to be tempted to work my way through it a third time.

It’s a very good read, author did a great job and it’s simply good history.

like you read reviews, history nerd. Get the book you need something for the trip to the DMV...

Slow starter,but in general good basic untaxing history of Germany.

THE NAME OF THE BOOK IS PART TAKEN FROM A BEAUTIFUL HYMN BY MARTIN LUTHER,ONE OF THE GREATEST PEOPLE OF ALL TIME .THE BOOK ITSELF IS SUPERB,COMPREHENSIVELY COVERING THE HISTORY OF THE EARLY GERMANIC TRIBES,THROUGH TO THE PRESENT DAY(THANKFULLY DWELLING ON THE NAZI PERIOD FOR AS SHORT A TIME AS POSSIBLE) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Well written and clear.

In most stories the tellings about German history are overshadowed by the Nazi rule in the 20th century. The collective guilt that is on us Germans due to our monstrous deeds in these 12 years of darkness leaves little room for anything else. A mighty fortress tell the German history from a different angle. From the Germanic tribes two thousand years ago, to the modern day Germans a consistent story is told. For me as a German this book helped me to understand some of the traits deeprooted in our people, things that are so perfectly normal for a German and thus overlooked in everyday life. If you are a German on your personal quest to give sense to things that does not seem to fit, yet are perfectly normal, this book might give you some clues. At least for me it was eye opening. It is therefore also one of my favourite gifts to friends from abroad who want to learn something about German history that they cannot find in the history channel.