"Prevailed morals and behavior much like during the 30 Years War" - The 1st years of the German Soviet war reflected in papers of General Gotthard Heinrici

The letters and diary entries of General Gotthard Heinrici, a representativ e selection of which are given here, reflect the mentality of a high rankin g German officer and his perception of warfare during the first year of the German-Soviet war. They show the pressures of a war of unparalleled hardne ss placed upon a commanding officer of an army corps and later, of an entir e army. They also manifest Heinrici's preoccupation with questions that wen t beyond the daily routine of military life. From the general's point of vi ew a broad picture of this war is presented. The brutalization resulting fr om the battles against the Red Army and partisans are dealt with, as is the treatment of civilians. That a general, such as Heinrici, permitted himsel f to such ruthless conduct of war was not only based on National Socialist strictures or on-the-spot observations, but also, on political and military experiences going back much further. It would appear that the unchecked es calation of violence thus released seemed finally comparable only with the situation surrounding the Thirty Years' War. However, the norms of a "respe ctable war," which the military elite had developed over the centuries, wer e no longer valid.