The Art of Occupation: Crime and Governance in American-Controlled Germany, 1944-1949

by Thomas J. Kehoe

Overview

The literature describing social conditions during the post–World War II Allied occupation of Germany has been divided between seemingly irreconcilable assertions of prolonged criminal chaos and narratives of strict martial rule that precluded crime. In The Art of Occupation, Thomas J. Kehoe takes a different view on this history, addressing this divergence through an extensive, interdisciplinary analysis of the interaction between military government and social order.

Focusing on the American Zone and using previously unexamined American and German military reports, court records, and case files, Kehoe assesses crime rates and the psychology surrounding criminality. He thereby offers the first comprehensive exploration of criminality, policing, and both German and American fears around the realities of conquest and potential resistance, social and societal integrity, national futures, and a looming threat from communism in an emergent Cold War. The Art of Occupation is the fullest study of crime and governance during the five years from the first Allied incursions into Germany from the West in September 1944 through the end of the military occupation in 1949. It is an important contribution to American and German social, military, and police histories, as well as historical criminology.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780821446812
Publisher:	Ohio University Press
Publication date:	10/15/2019
Series:	War and Society in North America
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	382
File size:	7 MB

About the Author

Thomas J. Kehoe is postdoctoral research fellow in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of New England, Australia. He completed graduate degrees in history and genocide studies at the universities of Sydney and Melbourne, and has published articles on crime and policing in occupied Germany, Nazi propaganda, Arab servicemen in the Wehrmacht, and the Wehrmacht judicial system.

Table of Contents

Contents Acknowledgments Introduction PART I: Tradition and an Unprecedented Enemy: Planning and First Steps 1: Crime and Control in American Military Thought 2: A Conflict of Visions? 3: A Violent Transition PART II: Destruction, Disorder, Fear, and Fantasy: The Direct Military Occupation of Germany, 1945–1946 4: Order and Disorder 5: Common Enemies 6: Thieves and Gangs 7: Power and Discretion PART III: Enduring Legacies, 1947–1949: Threat, Policing, and a Culture of Anxiety 8: Civilianization, Germanization, and the Rise of German-Led Policing 9: Winters of Discontent 10: Myth Formation and the End of Military Government Conclusion Appendix: The Military Government Legal Code Glossary of Terms Notes Bibliography Index

Editorial Reviews

In clear and readable prose, Kehoe sets out to prove that perceptions of widespread social disorder and crime, especially at the beginning of the U.S. occupation of post–World War II Germany, had no grounding in reality. His outstanding exploitation of archival military government court records supports his juxtaposition of perceptions and rumors about the nature, frequency, and severity of crimes and their reality.”—Bianka J. Adams, author of From Crusade to Hazard: The Denazification of Bremen, Germany


“Kehoe convincingly describes the nature of postwar crime and disorder in the U.S. zone and adds nuance to our understanding of the crucial early period of American occupation. His argument in favor of the continuity in authoritarian policing between the Third Reich and the occupation was equally persuasive and original.”—Jay Lockenour, author of Soldiers as Citizens: Former Wehrmacht Officers in the Federal Republic of Germany, 1945–1955


“The Art of Occupation is an admirably clear yet sophisticated examination of the tumultuous German-American encounter after 1945. This book helps us to look beyond the mythology and better understand the lived experiences of occupiers and occupied.”—Adam R. Seipp, Texas A&M University

From the Publisher