Berlin 1936: Fascism, Fear, and Triumph Set Against Hitler’s Olympic Games (2016) | Book Review
Berlin 1936: Fascism, Fear, and Triumph Set Against Hitler’s Olympic Games by Oliver Hilmes Genres: History, Non-Fiction
Original Publication Date: 2016
Source: I purchased this book
Find the Author: Goodreads, Amazon
Berlin 1936: Fascism, Fear, and Triumph Set Against Hitler’s Olympic Games takes the reader through the sixteen days of the Olympic Games, describing events in the German capital through the eyes of a select cast of characters: Nazi leaders and foreign diplomats, sportsmen and journalists, writers and socialites, nightclub owners and jazz musicians.
Table of Contents
Berlin 1936 Olympic Games Promoted Nazi Propaganda
In 1931, Germany was awarded the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.
In 1933, Adolph Hitler became Chancellor of Germany.
Despite ominous warnings of authoritarianism, Berlin was still allowed to host the 1936 Olympic Games.
Hitler wanted the Games to go well for propaganda purposes.
He wanted to “prove” the greatness of Germany, Aryan supremacy, and his dictatorial reign.
Although the first few years of his reign should have alarmed the world:
In terms of foreign policy, up to the summer of 1936 Hitler’s regime has been characterized by risk, political provocation, and blackmail. In mid-October 1933, Germany announced it was quitting the League of Nations and the Geneva Convention, signaling the start of a massive rearmament initiative.
By 1936 Hitler was breaking the Treaty of Versailles:
In March 1936, Hitler achieved his greatest coup to date as he sent troops into the demilitarized Rhineland.
Despite all this, Hitler was still trying to promote his supposed agenda to the world of “peace” while he was still planning to invade other countries.
The Olympics are the high point of Hitler’s massive hypocrisy. Despite the crass contempt he has displayed for agreements in the preceding months, he’s able to assume the mantle of the peace-loving statesman.
The world barely responded, and the Games were set to begin in August.
The First Truly Modern Olympics
The 1936 Olympic Games were also the first truly modern Olympic Games.
According to Wikipedia:
To outdo the 1932 Los Angeles Games, Reichsführer Adolf Hitler had a new 100,000-seat track and field stadium built, as well as six gymnasiums and other smaller arenas. The Games were the first to be televised, with radio broadcasts reaching 41 countries. Filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl was commissioned by the German Olympic Committee to film the Games for $7 million. Her film, titled Olympia, pioneered many of the techniques now common in the filming of sports.
The Festival of Nations in Olympia:
Final Analysis
This book is fascinating reading.
It brings in an interesting group of characters: not only the Nazis, but author Thomas Wolfe, a man who ran a famous Berlin restaurant, and various other people.
It takes the reader through the 16 days of the Games and explains why these Olympics were so important to the Nazis.
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