How Did It Happen?: Understanding the Holocaust

Lithuanian author Ruta Vanagaite's book explores the causes and consequences of the Holocaust in Lithuania, considering the perspectives of all central groups involved—Jews, Lithuanians, and Germans. Historian Christoph Dieckmann argues that the Holocaust cannot be isolated from other mass crimes against Soviet prisoners of war and forced refugees and that existing antisemitism was radicalized from the 1930s onward, turning Jews into perceived deadly enemies. The authors' searching exchanges illuminate the most profound questions we have as we struggle to understand the Holocaust.

Format: Hardback
Length: 416 pages
Publication date: 15 October 2021
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

In this captivating book, Ruta Vanagaite engages in a profound and thought-provoking conversation with renowned historian Christoph Dieckmann. Through his meticulous exploration of the causes and consequences of the Holocaust in Lithuania, Dieckmann offers a comprehensive overview that considers the perspectives of all the central groups involved—Jews, Lithuanians, and Germans. Drawing upon a vast array of sources in key languages such as Yiddish, Ivrit, Lithuanian, and German, Dieckmann delves into not only the Berlin-based orientation of the German perpetrators but also the societal context in which the Shoah unfolded—Lithuanian society with its Jewish minority under German occupation. He argues compellingly that this "space" of mass crimes is intrinsically linked to warfare and occupation. While acknowledging the unprecedented nature of the Holocaust, Dieckmann makes a strong case that it cannot be isolated from the other mass crimes that occurred simultaneously in the same space against thousands of Soviet prisoners of war and forced refugees from the Soviet territories.

Dieckmann demonstrates that the Holocaust could not have unfolded across German-dominated Europe without the conditional cooperation of non-Germans in each occupied country. He highlights how existing antisemitism was radicalized from the 1930s onward, transforming Jews into perceived deadly enemies under the immense stress of relentless warfare and often unstable conditions of occupation. Understanding the Holocaust requires a broader context, and the authors' engaging exchanges shed light on the most profound questions we grapple with as we seek to comprehend this tragic chapter in history.

Weight: 717g
Dimension: 239 x 161 x 30 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538150313