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Resistance within the Military Authorities against the Third Reich

Lee, Byong Chol 1

1홍익대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

The German military welcomed Hitler gaining control over the regime in 1933. This is because Germany’s military, which was crippled due to the Treaty of Versailles, gained the opportunity to become revived by the Nazi’s rearmament policy. But Hitler wanted to use the military as a tool for expanding based on its foreign policy. The German military that lost in World War I was transforming into a dangerous threat through the reorganization in the Wehrmacht that could once again push Europe into war. And in response, a small group opposing this began to form within the military. Military opposition first began as a struggle to gain power between the organizations reshuffled within the Third Reich, but it soon developed into a movement that opposed the war policies of Hitler. Even prior to the start of World War II, resistance movements were being organized and reinforced among the opposition who believed they could save Germany from a reckless war by overturning the regime within the military. As the first major attempt, the ‘September Conspiracy’ of 1938 within the military authority could not be executed due to the deceptive Munich Agreement that appeared as if Hitler wanted to avoid war. But as the Second World War became a racist war of annihilation, those who had oppositions in the military ranks became morally rearmed and attempted a resistance on July 20, 1944 with the goal of overthrowing the criminal regime and to erect the ‘other Germany’ different from that of the Third Reich. This plot had a tragic as the assassination of Hitler failed, but it served as the mental basis for Germany’s new start following the war, and its historical significance continues even to this day. In particular, the spirit of ‘July 20’ is continuing in terms of military history during the course of the Wehrmacht transforming into the Bundeswehr.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.