Master Plan, The: Himmler's Scholars and the Holocaust - Softcover

Pringle, Heather

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0786887737 ISBN 13: 9780786887736

Publisher: Hyperion, 2007

Synopsis

Now in paperback, the groundbreaking history of the Nazi research institute whose work helped lead to the extermination of millions

For those who thought the zealous Nazi archaeologists in Raiders of the Lost Ark were a screenwriter's fabrication, journalist Heather Pringle has the chilling, real story. In 1935, Heinrich Himmler--chief of the SS and architect of the death camps--founded the Ahnenerbe, a research institute that manufactured archaeological evidence to support the notion of Aryan superiority. His team of adventurers, mystics, and reputable scholars was charged with traveling the globe to compile "proof" that a race of blondhaired, blue-eyed conquerors had dominated the world in prehistoric times. The identification of their descendants and the eradication of all others became the cornerstone of the Nazi agenda.

Drawing on Pringle's extensive original research, including interviews with surviving members of the Ahnenerbe, The Master Plan is a page-turning story of delusion and excess, of scientific and political abuse on a global scale.

About this title

Review:

'Do we really need yet another book on the Nazis? The answer, it turns out, is yes. Heather Pringle's engrossing book, “The Master Plan”, explores a little-known corner of Nazi history: the story of the Ahnenerbe. Pringle's eye for detail means that “The Master Plan” is rich in such bizarre characters, ridiculous theories and colourful anecdotes. Massively researched and engagingly written.' Daily Telegraph

'Pringle has delved diligently on her own account into this murky corner of Nazi history. Her conclusions are grim, and her message is deeply disturbing. I closed the book with the nagging feeling that what Churchill called in a famous speech Nazism's “perverted science” may still be with us today.' Nigel Jones, Sunday Times

'The real strength of Pringle's book lies in her close description of the few major overseas expeditions mounted by the Ahnenerbe. This is virgin territory, where she has been able to dig up a good deal of new material. The stories have that Indiana Jones ring to them.' Literary Review

About the Author:

Heather Pringle is the author of The Mummy Congress. Her work as a journalist has appeared in Science, Geo, New Scientist, and Discover, where she is currently a contributing editor. She has lectured across the United States and Canada--from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., to the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Ottawa. She lives in British Columbia.

About this edition

• Publisher: Hyperion
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0786887737
• ISBN 13: 9780786887736
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 502