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For many years, the post-war recovery of Germany was an inspirational story. All of Europe looked on with admiration and envy as the nation rebuilt and set standards for the rest to follow. Companies such as Mercedes-Benz, Siemens and Bayer rose to become global titans, while the country's political leaders earned respect around the world – even their football teams were the best. Such was its success that when the Berlin Wall fell, it appeared to reunify almost seamlessly. Where Germany led, the rest followed.

On a bright summer’s day in June 1887, a procession of mounted kings and princes moved sedately through the streets of London in celebration of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. Amid such illustrious company, all eyes were drawn to the ‘towering Lohengrin-like figure’ of the future German Emperor Frederick III in his imperial helmet, silver breastplate and the brilliant white uniform of the Cuirassier Guards. The cheering crowds could never have believed that he had less than a year to live, or that ‘our Fritz’, the hero of Koniggrätz, Worth and Sedan, would soon appear as ...

Throughout the war on the Eastern Front, there were two consistent trends. The Red Army battled to learn how to fight and win, while involved in a struggle for its very survival. But by 1944 it had a leadership that was able to wield it with lethal effect and with far more effective equipment than before. By contrast, the Wehrmacht had commenced a slow process of decline after the invasion of the Soviet Union. Hitler became increasingly unwilling to delegate decision-making to commanders in the field, which had been crucial to earlier success.

Sommer 1945: Nichts ist mehr, wie es war: In den vier Monaten von Mai bis September 1945 bricht die alte Welt zusammen, und eine neue tut sich auf ...