William Sheridan Allen
Encyclopedia
William Sheridan Allen (* 1932) was born in Evanston, Illinois
, and studied at the universities of Michigan
, Connecticut
, and Minnesota
, and in Germany at the Free University of Berlin
and the University of Göttingen. The Nazi Seizure of Power (1965) was his first book. He also wrote The Infancy of Nazism and is at work on studies of the effectiveness of Nazi propaganda and of the Social Democratic underground in the Third Reich. He is now professor of history at the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Allen wrote two books on Adolf Hitler
debunking the point of view that he came to power through violence. Rather, Allen claims, Hitler's Nazi
movement "seized power" in an act akin to democratic tactics.
One of his books, The Nazi Seizure of Power: The Experience of a Single German Town 1922-1945, was written to explain how one city, (Northeim, Germany) fell into the Nazi trap. Fed by Nazi propaganda, many people of Northeim, especially in the middle classes, in the midst of the Depression
saw the Nazis as a way to get their country back to greatness that Hitler and the Nazis promised they would do.
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
, and studied at the universities of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, Connecticut
University of Connecticut
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually...
, and Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
, and in Germany at the Free University of Berlin
Free University of Berlin
Freie Universität Berlin is one of the leading and most prestigious research universities in Germany and continental Europe. It distinguishes itself through its modern and international character. It is the largest of the four universities in Berlin. Research at the university is focused on the...
and the University of Göttingen. The Nazi Seizure of Power (1965) was his first book. He also wrote The Infancy of Nazism and is at work on studies of the effectiveness of Nazi propaganda and of the Social Democratic underground in the Third Reich. He is now professor of history at the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Allen wrote two books on Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
debunking the point of view that he came to power through violence. Rather, Allen claims, Hitler's Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
movement "seized power" in an act akin to democratic tactics.
One of his books, The Nazi Seizure of Power: The Experience of a Single German Town 1922-1945, was written to explain how one city, (Northeim, Germany) fell into the Nazi trap. Fed by Nazi propaganda, many people of Northeim, especially in the middle classes, in the midst of the Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
saw the Nazis as a way to get their country back to greatness that Hitler and the Nazis promised they would do.