Why does the Third Reich attract so many collectors?

[drmessimer]

Greimers: That is an interesting post and not so far afield as one might think. I infer that yours was a family that immigrated intact after WWII to Australia, in which case an interest in Third Reich artifacts and history would probably be a natural development of the offspring of that family, especially given your personal experiences with bullying. But your post has touched on a much wider aspect of this thread, which is the historical relationship of the Third Reich within Germany's history up to 1945. I would love to go into that subject, but it would take way too much space and be a major divergence from the theme of the thread. But I will say this much, briefly.

Many aspects of the Third Reich reflect German national values and social identity that first appeared collectively in 1871, but had existed independently in the various German states prior to that date. Many historians, I among them, see the period 1900-1945 as an essentially uninterrupted historical period in German history. We believe that WWI was fundamentally an economic/trade war, and the treaty of Versailles was an aspect of that war. We call WWI and WWII "the Thirty-Years War," with WWII simply being the second round of the struggle that opened with the outbreak of WWI. Within the context of that historical approach, your comment that you, "...hold Third Reich militaria...to commemorate and respect the honorable military service my family members have completed according to their ruling government" is a reason that many collectors share. Thanks for your very interesting post. Dwight

[stuka f]

Exactly (one of ) the reason (s) why I collect Belgian Congo stuff, because I stand and lived so close to that historical event.
TR also is part of my family's history, like I mentioned before; I had relatives fighting on both sides.Mother's family mainly collaborated , father's family wasn't to much involved.
How ever I suspect my granfather (father of my father) played it double !
On the other hand I once met the son of the first Flemish SS officer to graduate at the SS Junkerschule Bad Tölz and he didn't collect ...!?
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[goodbuys]

I posted about this book once before.Taking into consideration as to the members who posted about family and other related things i was happy to read about them!I suggest you pickup Adrian Foreman's book called 'BRAVERY,COURAGE and VALOUR.If you want to see the beautiful Decorations and Awards of the Third Reich.Their is a section on R.M.GORING including the G.C of the iron cross and the magnificent award document!! Then there is a color section on a man most have read about the pilot and hero of the Luftwaffe Commodore Oberst Hans Ulrich Rudel and the award KC of the IC with Golden Oak Leaves and Brilliants.Their is an entire section to this magnificent award.Their is a huge amount of text and also the awards to Oberst Molder and then Oberst Galland to name a few and the award documents and many more.Also a complete section on the Spainish Cross w/Measurements and number awarded including General Major Wolfram von Richthofen cross w/ brilliants.Book is 420 pages and you will see items of course that cannot be sold or collected and some like the KC of the IC which can.If any of you are thinking of collecting a KC or Spainish Cross you will gain great knowledge in our hobby filled with copies!If you wish to contact Mr. Foreman its in the U.K. 01271-860-991 24 hour answering sevice or e-mail adrianforeman4bks@aol.com

[drmessimer]

Goodbuys: Thanks for posting the title. I checked Amazon and found it offered in a new single volume edition for $150 and in a two-volume edition, with a used 1st vol. for $75 and a new 2nd vol. for $262.38. The range in prices suggests that one should search several dealers to bet the best price & combination. Thanks for posting. Dwight

[goodbuys]

Yes the book that i have i was lucky to from a collector who was getting rid of some of his books.I paid $65 or a few bucks more and its a book you might search Ebay for but no certainty that they have it.Yes its expensive but look at the Iron cross book at $130 and this book has wonderful shots of pieces we will never see,but ones we can see and buy.My copy was published in 2008.Hope you can pick it up for $75 as i paid as i stated a few last dollars less a little over a year ago

[goodbuys]

drmessimer,Check Amazon again as there are two new listings one on top at $15 seems abit cheap and out of line,would check before buying!!Second one for $70 is a fine price.Those other one for $150-$262 are greedy dealers who will never sell at those prices unless its from the unweary!! P.S. They are all from 2008 same as mine!

[drmessimer]

Goodbuys: Thanks. I agree that $15 is probably too low and something might not be quite right. I'll continue to look around until I find a combination of reasonable price and reliable dealer. Dwight

[sunsetIE]

Its quite simple, like many others that have previously posted, I have a penchant for history and the Third Reich was such a dark period in time that it caught my fascination from an early age, although my heritage is German aswell. My Grandfather spent two years in the ETO and brought home a few pieces of history with him, which when given to me some years ago, threw gas on the fire that was my interest in the events, uniforms and personnel that commanded such attention during those years.

While some see those items as taboo, or label us that collect such as nazis and racists, I see the remnants of a nation that had aspirations of greatness and nearly succeeded until they started making unwise decisions and were crushed by the Allies. If we do not remember history, we are doomed to repeat it.

[drmessimer]

SunsetIE: That is a well put explanation and contains the most common elements expressed on this thread. The individual answers might express the sentiments differently, but they all seem to agree with the points you cite. It is unfortunate that there are people who are so narrow-minded that they accuse those of us who show an interest in the history of the Third Reich in any form as being some sort of Nazi or fascist. Fifteen years ago I contributed a chapter to an anthology titled, Silent Hunters: German U-Boat Captains of WWII (Savas Publishing, 1997). My topic was Heinz-Wilhelm Eck, captain of the U-852. Eck has the unenviable historical significance of being the only U-Boat commander in WWII who was charged, convicted, and executed for war crimes. When the publisher sent the manuscript out to selected historians and writers for comment, one of them--a noted, best-selling author, refused to provide a "jacket blurb" because, he objected to "that Nazi-apologist Messimer." I certainly am not a "Nazi-apologist," but the experience underscored the reality that anyone who deals with the history of the Third Reich is expected to express a certain degree of negative attitude about the subject. Fortunately, the publisher didn't think that I am/was a "Nazi-apologist" and he kept the chapter in the book, which sold strongly in the US and Europe. The chapter, titled "Heinz-Wilhelm Eck: Siegerjustiz and the Pelus Affair" has been posted for reading on the U-Boat Net. You can access it here. http://www.uboat.net/history/peleus.htm SunsetIE, since we both live in California, I wonder if you feel that the onus associated with collecting and dealing in Nazi memorabilia and history is greater in California than in other places? Thanks for the post. Dwight

[sunsetIE]

I do indeed, we live in such a diverse state, Third Reich items and the history associated with them are looked down upon in the media and other places. I graduated High School a few years ago, but during those 4 years, I had been assigned a side project in my history class relating to that time period, and I intended to use Mein Kampf as part of my presentation. My English teacher then was african american and highly objected to me taking the book out in her class, and one day sent me to the disciplinary office and attempted to have me suspended for "bringing racist materials to school". The report was dropped when my history teacher was contacted and vouched for me. Some people find it far too easy to cry wolf instead of being tolerant to others interests if it offends them!