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In August 1945 Great Britain, France, the USSR, and the United States established a tribunal at Nuremberg to try military and civilian leaders of the Nazi regime. G. M. Gilbert, the prison psychologist, had an unrivaled firsthand opportunity to watch and question the Nazi war criminals. With scientific dispassion he encouraged Göering, Speer, Hess, Ribbentrop, Frank, Jodl, Keitel, Streicher, and the others to reveal their innermost thoughts. In the process Gilbert exposed what motivated them to create the distorted Aryan utopia and the nightmarish worlds of Auschwitz, Dachau, and Buchenwald. Here are their day-to-day reactions to the trial proceedings; their off-the-record opinions of Hitler, the Third Reich, and each other; their views on slave labor, death camps, and the Jews; their testimony, feuds, and desperate maneuverings to dissociate themselves from the Third Reich's defeat and Nazi guilt. Dr. Gilbert's thorough knowledge of German, deliberately informal approach, and complete freedom of access at all times to the defendants give his spellbinding, chilling study an intimacy and insight that remains unequaled.… (more)
User reviews
Another quibble is that the account presented is strongly biased towards coverage of conversations with Goering, Schact, Von Shirach, Ribbentrop, Frank and Speer - whether this is because the others (e.g. Frick, Funk, Kaltenbrunner) refused contact with Gilbert, coverage was simply omitted or if they were not approached at all is not made at all clear. Finally, I would also agree with the sentiment expressing a desire for more (some!!) coverage of the scientific psychological examination of the defendants.
This is, however, a very engaging account of the trial and the personalities of some of its protagonists, which is, by definition, unique. Those seeking a thorough description of the history of the trial, the legal issues, geopolitical wrangling and the prosecution characters will be better served with the excellent 'The Nuremberg Trials' by Ann and John Tusa. That said, this book really should not be overlooked, as it is an excellent read.