This is a new edition of a major document from World War II with additional, previously unavailable texts assembled from the stenographic record of Hitler's informal conversations ordered by Martin Bormann. These texts remain the classic collection of Hitler's nighttime monologues with his entourage, covering mostly nonmilitary subjects and long-range plans. Hitler lets his thoughts wander, never failing to provide an opinion on every subject. Additional documents from various archives make this the most complete English-language edition in print.

These transcripts of wiretapped conversations between Nazi officers reveal “a fascinating—and chilling—insight into the German view of the war” (Financial Times). Between 1939 and 1942, the British Directorate of Military Intelligence created a number of POW interrogation camps in and around London where they secretly recorded private conversations between senior German staff officers. In this extraordinary work, historian Sonke Neitzel examines these transcripts in depth and presents the private thoughts, opinions, and secrets of Nazi officers during the Second World War. These transcripts address important questions regarding the officers’ attitudes towards the German leadership and Nazi policies: How did the German generals judge the overall war situation? From what date did they consider it lost? How did they react to the attempt on Hitler’s life in July 1944? What knowledge did they have of the atrocities? By turns insightful and horrifying, this unprecedented research is a must for any serious scholar of the period. “A goldmine of information about what the German High Command privately thought of the war, Adolf Hitler, the Nazis and each other.” —Daily Mail