Field Marshal Albert Kesselring

The Life and Legacy of Nazi Germany's Most Popular Commander

By: Charles River Editors

Narrated by: Colin Fluxman

"A soldier's first duty is to obey, otherwise you might as well do away with soldiering." (Kesselring)

Albert Kesselring holds a strange place in the history of World War II. A commander in the Luftwaffe, he is remembered as much for the skill with which he oversaw the German armies as for his mastery of the air fleets. Called "Uncle Albert" by many of his men and "Smiling Albert" by the Allies, he was widely respected by men on both sides of the war and loved by many of his troops, yet he was responsible for massacres in occupied Italy for which he was condemned to death during the post-war trials. Ultimately, his sentence was commuted to one of life imprisonment, making him one of the few top Nazi leaders to pen memoirs after the war, but it goes without saying that Kesselring's time was marked by controversy.

Kesselring had the skills of a politician and a diplomat, as well as those of a soldier, which carried his career through both World War I and World War II, and during the Second World War, he served in almost every theater of the fighting in Europe. He was undoubtedly a gifted commander, but one who served at a time when the German military was tainted with the evils of Nazism.

Who was Albert Kesselring, and what made this seemingly contradictory man tick? Field Marshal Albert Kesselring: The Life and Legacy of Nazi Germany's Most Popular Commander analyzes the life and career of the controversial military leader. You will learn about Kesselring like never before.

©2017 Charles River Editors (P)2017 Charles River Editors

Interesting but Not Detailed

I suppose I should not complain considering I knew this audiobook would be brief, but it was pretty cursory. There were a few new points I learned about Kesselring from this book, but I would say that if you are enough of a WWII history student to be searching from a topic as singular as a German Field Marshal, you probably will not find much new material here. Despite all that the book was well paced, well narrarated, and kept me interested. I just would have liked a little more detail about Kesselrings actions in any phase of his career.

brief overview

nice brief overview of one of Germany's best military leaders who was respected by his men and allies