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The Phoney Victory

The World War II Illusion

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The Phoney Victory

By: Peter Hitchens
Narrated by: Peter Hitchens
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About this listen

Was World War II really the 'Good War'? In the years since the declaration of peace in 1945, many myths have sprung up around the conflict in the victorious nations. In this audiobook, Peter Hitchens deconstructs the many fables which have become associated with the narrative of the 'Good War'.

Whilst not criticising or doubting the need for war against Nazi Germany at some stage, Hitchens does query whether September 1939 was the right moment or the independence of Poland the right issue. He points out that in the summer of 1939 Britain and France were wholly unprepared for a major European war and that this quickly became apparent in the conflict that ensued. He also rejects the retroactive claim that Britain went to war in 1939 to save the Jewish population of Europe. On the contrary, the beginning and intensification of war made it easier for Germany to begin the policy of mass murder in secret as well as closing most escape routes.

In a provocative but deeply researched book, Hitchens questions the most common assumptions surrounding World War II, turning on its head the myth of Britain's role in a 'Good War'.

©2018 Peter Hitchens (P)2019 Audible, Ltd 20th Century Europe Great Britain Military Modern Politics & Government World War Royalty Imperialism Winston Churchill Mythology Interwar Period

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All stars
Most relevant
A well written and clever book that pulls apart the spin of ww2 and phoney relationship between the UK and the USA.

Great listening and I shall read to book too!

Hitchens at his best

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Glad the author narrated this book himself. I always enjoy how he phrases things.
Very engaging.

Dark but enlightening.

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The book told a different story to that which is generally found in the public consciousness in Britain, and whilst I do not agree with some of Mr. Hitchens’ opinions about other issues, I found him convincing on this issue. I am one of the under-informed that Mr. Hitchens occasionally refers to and so I was grateful for his information and different perspective. Sadly, what he said did not really surprise me, but I found the book very interesting and informative. I recommend it to others.

Very informative; different perspective

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Thought provoking if slightly off target in places. A refreshingly honest look at the so called 'special relationship'.

Interesting But Flawed.

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I'm a fan of eloquent and intelligent contrarianism, and Peter Hitchens has a talent for it that he displays persuasively in this volume. I've suspected for some time that the popular account of "the good war", shrewdly and pluckily fought in defence of a high ideal - was mostly fiction. Curiously this notion seems to have grown stronger rather than weaker as our distance from the war has increased, and one of the most hard-hitting sections of the book is that which demolishes the cynical exploitation of the legends of world war two to try to justify military adventurism ever since. Starting from there, he proceeds to dryly and effectively smash every popular notion widely held and often repeated to this day. It's also an act of considerable moral courage given his own upbringing and familial ties to the British armed forces.

I suspect some of the negative reviews of this books stem for dislike of Hitchens and his political views rather than what they have actually read. I've also seen reviews that complain that much of what he says is already known to history buffs. But that complaint is missing the point of this book - it is not aimed at professional historians. Hitchens is a journalist whose target audience is the general reader who believes the popular clichés repeated about the 39-45 war. For such an audience, this is a highly effective polemic that I (a lifelong history nerd) also found it compelling and absorbing.

The only weakness of the book is it glosses rather lightly over the question of whether or not Britain would have found itself at war with Nazi Germany sooner or later regardless, and what the consequences of British neutrality might have been. Perhaps it's not fair to ask a history book to indulge in counter-factual speculation, but I think it probably deserved at least a consideration since Hitchens (rightly) identifies the war as a large cause of the massive decline in British power and prestige ever since.

The author does a particularly excellent job of reading his own work, which when done well is one of the greatest advantages of audio vs paper books.

Well argued demolition of popular myths.

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