Seeing Hitler's Germany

Seeing Hitler's Germany is the first fully researched, wide-ranging study of commercial tourism under the swastika. The book demonstrates how effectively the Nazi regime coordinated all German tourism organizations. At the same time, it emphasizes the apparent 'normality' of many everyday tourist experiences after 1933. These certainly helped some Germans and many foreign visitors to overlook the regime's brutality. However, tourism also celebrated the most racist, chauvinist aspects of the 'new Germany', which in turn became a normal part of being a tourist under Hitler. While violence and terror have continued to dominate many recent studies of the Third Reich, this book takes a different view. By investigating a range of 'normal' experiences - such as taking a tour, visiting a popular sightseeing attraction, reading a guidebook or sending a postcard - Seeing Hitler's Germany deepens our understanding of the popular legitimization of Nazi rule.

'Thoroughly researched and lucidly written, this is an original and impressive contribution to our understanding of the relationship between the Nazi regime and German society.' - Professor Jeremy Noakes, Department of History, University of Exeter

'Semmens has provided an original and accessible discussion of a thought-provoking and under-researched subject of historical enquiry.' - Reviews in History

KRISTIN SEMMENS is a Research Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Victoria, Canada. She holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge. Her dissertation was awarded the 2003 Fraenkel Prize in Contemporary History and the German Historical Institute (London) Annual Thesis Prize.