Christian Hardinghaus
German WW2 historian, media scholar and author
I write nonfiction, biographies and novels about the Second World War, about crime and about propaganda. It started with my grandparents’ stories from East and West Prussia. That curiosity turned into a degree in history, a doctorate in propaganda research and more than a hundred conversations with people who lived through the war.
- Dr. phil., M.A., M.Ed.History and media studies
- 100+eyewitness interviews
- Specialist journalistFreie Journalistenschule, DFJV
- 12 books in EnglishGerman editions with Piper and Europa Verlag
Why I write about war and expulsion
My grandparents came from East and West Prussia. They lived through the war, flight and expulsion, and their life stories are what first drew me to history.
My grandfather, himself a historian with a doctorate, gave me an early fascination for the subject. Out of that curiosity came a way of working: I listen to eyewitnesses, and I check what they tell me against letters, files and archival sources.
The men and women I interviewed were soldiers, child soldiers, women, refugees and civilians. Their accounts are not a substitute for the documents, and they do not excuse the Nazi dictatorship. They are personal evidence that has to be recorded, compared and placed in context. That is what adds human experience to the historical record without giving up critical distance.
The six-volume series World War II from a German Point of View brings these testimonies to English-language readers, with the context they need. The aim is understanding, not glorification.
Education and journalism
History, media studies and specialist journalism
My doctorate, completed in 2011, brought history and media studies together: it dealt with propaganda and prejudice research. I also studied psychology, pedagogy and didactics and passed the German state examination to teach history and German at secondary schools. That training still shapes how I explain history in books and talks.
I started out as a journalist at the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung. In 2011 I completed my training as a specialist journalist at the Freie Journalistenschule, where I still work as a lecturer and study advisor. As a member of the German Association of Specialist Journalists (DFJV), I work according to the German Press Code.
- Doctorate
- Dr. phil. (2011), propaganda and prejudice research
- Degrees
- M.A. and M.Ed.; state examination in history and German
- Further study
- Psychology, pedagogy, didactics
- Journalism
- Specialist journalist (Freie Journalistenschule, 2011), lecturer and study advisor there; member of the DFJV
How I research
Every project needs different sources. One rule stays the same: I keep what is documented, what is plausible and what remains open clearly apart.
Oral history
More than 100 recorded interviews with German eyewitnesses of the Second World War. They are the basis of my “Generation” books.
Archives and files
Letters, diaries, official correspondence, investigation files. For every document I ask: who wrote it, for whom, and why?
On-site research
Some questions only resolve on location: how long a path really is, what could be seen from where, what the terrain is like.
Media analysis
How language, images and editing suggest an interpretation without stating it, in Nazi propaganda as much as in today’s true crime formats.
Biography
Connecting individual lives with the larger structures, without reducing people to their role in a single event.
Sensitive subjects
With victims, relatives and unsolved cases: no speculation about individuals, no dramatization at the expense of facts.
What I write about
World War II and Nazi Germany
Everyday and military history, flight and expulsion, the years after 1945; medicine under the dictatorship, as in my biography of the surgeon Ferdinand Sauerbruch.
World War II hub →True crime and forensics
Cold cases, missing persons and websleuths who investigate online. I have spent the most time on the case of Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon.
True crime hub →Propaganda and media
War propaganda, framing, disinformation, and narrative deception in film and fiction, from mindfuck movies to the unreliable narrator.
Propaganda hub →In nonfiction and biography, what counts is what can be documented. In my novels I invent characters to show how a time might have felt; the historical facts stay the same.
Talks, interviews, appearances
I read in bookshops and museums, speak on panels and give interviews for television, radio and podcasts.
On WW2TV with Paul Woodadge
A conversation about The Cursed Generation and the German veterans I interviewed for it, some of them for the last time.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Christian Hardinghaus?
Christian Hardinghaus is a German historian, media scholar, specialist journalist and author. He writes nonfiction, biographies, historical novels and thrillers, mainly about the Second World War, crime and propaganda.
What are his qualifications?
He holds a doctorate (Dr. phil., 2011) for research on propaganda and prejudice, an M.A. and an M.Ed., and passed the state examination to teach history and German. In 2011 he completed his training as a specialist journalist at the Freie Journalistenschule.
How does he research?
Depending on the project: eyewitness interviews, archival records, investigation files, scholarly literature, media analysis and research on location. Documented facts, interpretations and open questions are kept explicitly apart.
Which of his books are available in English?
Twelve titles, among them the six volumes of World War II from a German Point of View, the true crime book Still Lost in Panama with Annette Nenner, and the novels The Charité Spy and The Tunnel Beneath the Wall. All titles are on the books page.
Can he be booked for interviews, podcasts or talks?
Yes. Interviews are possible in English and German. Requests go through the contact page.
Start with the books
Twelve titles in English, from eyewitness history to the Berlin Wall. New books, interviews and eyewitness footage also appear on my YouTube channel.
