The First Nazi: Erich Ludendorff, the Man Who Made Hitler Possible

Military scholar Brownell (So Close to Greatness) and business executive Drace-Brownell have come together to explore the motivations and long-range impact of controversial German Gen. Erich Ludendorff (1865–1937), a career military man best known for leading his command during the Battle of Liège, the first battle in World War I. By tracing Ludendorff's rise to power first as a lieutenant, then as a colonel, and ultimately as a general during the Great War, and the evolution of his worldview to include blaming the tragedy of the war on anyone except himself (especially Jews and Bolsheviks), the authors have depicted Ludendorff as a dangerous progenitor to Adolf Hitler. While there is sound evidence that Ludendorff's views influenced Hitler, some of the authors' assertions call for clarification (was Hitler possessed by the devil, for example?).