German National Socialism and the Quest for Nuclear Power, 1939–49

A fascinating account of how the Germans tried to develop nuclear fission before and during World War II.

Mark Walker (Author)

9780521438049, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 17 December 1992

304 pages
22.6 x 15 x 1.6 cm, 0.4 kg

'This view of Walker's seems more accurate and is vitally important because subsequently, prominent German physicists, particularly Heisenberg, were to claim that, not only were they 'only doing their duty' but that they actually slowed down the Nazi bomb.' Michael Hindley, Morning Star

This a paperback edition of Professor Walker's full-scale examination of the German efforts to harness the economic, military and political power of nuclear fission between 1939 and 1949. The book explains clearly, in terms that the non-specialist can understand, what was involved in the Germans' quest, and in what ways the German scientists succeeded or failed in the development of 'the bomb'.

Introduction
Part I. Lightning War: Nuclear fission
The German nuclear power project
Moderators, isotope separation, and uranium machines
Nuclear power and lightning war
Part II. The War Slows Down: The end of the lightning war
Nuclear power conferences
National Socialism and German physics
Progress and infighting
Part III. The War Comes Home: Wonder weapons
Uranium machines in Berlin-gottow
Greater Germany and cultural imperialism
Death from above and betrayal from within
Part IV. The War is Lost: Evacuation and self-preservation
The heavy water dries up
Harteck's circle, centrifuges, and special experiments
Uranium machines and rock cellars
Part V. The German Achievement in the American Shadow: The Alsos MIssion
Farm Hall
The Smyth Report
Part VI. The Legacy of German National Socialism: The occupation of Germany
Nazification and denazification
The Goudsmit/Heisenberg controversy
Part VII. The Myth of the German Atomic Bomb: Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], European history [HBJD]