Julia S. Torrie Books

The book offers a comprehensive comparative analysis of civilian evacuations in Germany and France during World War II, revealing the tensions between state policies and public sentiment. Through extensive archival research, it uncovers how ordinary citizens' objections, driven by familial concerns, influenced Nazi policies. By highlighting the interactions between the two nations, the study challenges the notion of a singular, powerful Nazi state and provides valuable historical insights into the effects of aerial bombing and military occupations on civilian life.

The early twentieth-century advent of aerial bombing made successful evacuations essential to any war effort, but ordinary people resented them deeply. Based on extensive archival research in Germany and France, this is the first broad, comparative study of civilian evacuations in Germany and France during World War II. The evidence uncovered exposes the complexities of an assumed monolithic and all-powerful Nazi state by showing that citizens' objections to evacuations, which were rooted in family concerns, forced changes in policy. Drawing attention to the interaction between the Germans and French throughout World War II, this book shows how policies in each country were shaped by events in the other. A truly cross-national comparison in a field dominated by accounts of one country or the other, this book provides a unique historical context for addressing current concerns about the impact of air raids and military occupations on civilians.

For four years, German soldiers not only stood guard over and fought in France, but also lived their lives. While the everyday experiences of the occupied French population are well-documented, we know much less about the occupiers. The lives of ordinary German soldiers offer new insights into the occupation of France and the history of Nazism.