I am reading Tuchman again. I did not retain the description of German attrocities in Belgium the first time around. A Belgian guy I met in the 70’s was really, really hack at them, understandably so it seems. Do the Belgians still bear antipathy towardss the Geramns for murdering their townspeople and burning their cities?
Don’t know about the Belgians, but a business associate is Dutch, and says THEY sure hate the Germans.
THe Dutch hate the Germans from WWI? I’m sure everyone has an issue with WWII. Now, THAT’S politic! 
Do you mind if I ask which Tuchman book you’re reading? The only one I’ve read is The March of Folly and I loved it. It would give me a good book to continue my reading with.
Only the less intelligent Dutchmen, really.
The Dutch (generally speaking) do NOT hate the Germans. There are a lot of cultural differences between the two countries, even though they are neighbours. And there is only one good reason for animosity towards the Germans: they unfairly beat us in the 1974 World Cup final.
That’s it. WWII? Anyone under 70 who still hates “the Germans” because if WWII is, IMHO, a complete idiot.
Same goes for the Belgians. I’m sure there are some dumb Belgians still carrying a grudge because of WWI.
But to whom? Who am I supposed to hate? Schröder, Lothar Matthäus, or Franz Beckenbauer?
August 1914.
A Distant Mirror is also very good, concerning the 14th century in Europe.
Er, the kids passing out pictures of Adolph on the bus?
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*Originally posted by carnivorousplant *
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No, no! The Italians cops at the eight who yelled “Heil Hitler” as they beat the portesters.
You must mean The Guns of August ?
BTW, The Zimmermann Telegram is also quite good.
“The Proud Tower” is also a great Tuchman book that brings 19th century European history to life. Lots of politics including the story of the anarchist movement.
Oops.
Boy, do I have weiner schnitzel on my face!
Technicically the Germans were allied to the Irish Rebels of 1916 providing arms, so there is some good karma to them because of this.
Being of Irish Protestant descent, and ignorant of the situation there, should I think this is a good thing?
For an Irish Protestant? No.
“The Proud Tower” the way she wrote was almost a prequel to “Guns of August” so if you liked “Guns” first time through, you might get a kick out of “Tower”.
The only one of hers I didn’t like was “Stillwell and the American Experience in China.”
Thanks for clearing that up. Now, what is this Huguenot thing?
Ah yes, The Proud Tower. Finding it in a box made me read it again and then August…er, The Guns Of August. Where the Germans would invade Belgium, line the villagers up against the wall to be shot and the Kaiser had remarked during the initial mobilization, “If Grandmother (Victoria) were here!”
The Proud Tower’s description of America acquiring territory by force was also an eye opener.
Of course, German actions in Belgium during WWI were pretty heavily exaggerated.
They didn’t destroy Louvain or line people up and shoot them?
-Guns of August, p. 320
Yes, they did both of those things. The Belgians had placed machine gun emplacements in the town square, and the German shelling of those positions started fires. Later, after they had occupied the town, Belgian partisians shot at them, so troops grabbed people that were partisians or that they thought were partisians and shot them.
“The library included among its 230,000 volumes…750 midieval manuscripts and over a thousand incunabula.”
The machine guns were in the library?
Do have a cite? I would like to read another point of view.