They don't teach at school: how the world covers the history of the Second World War
The main role in the Second World War was played by Great Britain. The key events are the Allied landings in Normandy and the occupation of Manchuria. The United States ended the war. And the wisest of all was Turkey, which "adhered to neutrality." Recently, different countries of the world, including the states of the anti-Hitler coalition, have been showing students the events of those years in a distorted way. Izvestia studied these textbooks.
Thanks to Comrade Churchill
On the pages of English textbooks, coverage of the history of the Second World War occupies a central place. The texts contain many illustrations, tables, diagrams, military maps, photographs of political leaders and army commanders.
At the same time, the authors of textbooks mention the German attack on the Soviet Union in passing. The main focus is on the events after 1942, when the main battles involving British troops took place in North Africa, Italy and Normandy.
The Battle of Stalingrad. Gunners reflect the offensive of Nazi tanks in the tractor factory area
Just a few sentences are devoted to the description of the Battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, without specifying that it was these battles that became pivotal in the war. More attention is paid to the causes and nature of World War II, as well as the policy of Western countries to create a system of collective security, and its impact on the entire system of international relations is analyzed.
Although the role of the Soviet Union is mentioned, the authors of the textbook "Britain in the 20th Century" call it invaluable, but at the same time it is emphasized that Russia made a contribution only on the Eastern Front.
Schoolchildren are told that the subjects of the British Crown fought "to defend liberal values and democracy, against dictatorship and totalitarianism." According to British historians, the main role in the victory over fascism was played by the United Kingdom, which "under the leadership of Prime Minister Winston Churchill set an example to the whole world."
Distance yourself from the Nazis
In German schools, at all levels of education, it is mandatory to study the Nazi period in all its aspects — Hitler's rise to power, his creation of the NSDAP dictatorship, the persecution of Jews, which culminated in the Holocaust, the silence and opposition of German citizens, the outbreak of World War II by Germany.
Prisoners of the Auschwitz concentration camp, liberated by the Red Army in January 1945
For example, in the introduction to the chapter "Nationalism and the Second World War" in the textbook "History and Events" ("Geschichte und Geschehen"), students are asked the questions "How was such an evil as the Second World War and genocide possible? Why was it not possible to prevent these crimes?"
The topic of the Second World War was included in the textbooks of German schools as a separate topic in the late 60s of the twentieth century. The genocide organized by the Nazis is reflected in a fairly objective form, without silence or justification, but at the same time the peaceful nature of Germany's political culture, both past and present, is strongly emphasized, with a view to the future.
The authors focus on how ordinary Germans became involved in the war of annihilation and how they gained the ability to overcome the historical legacy of the Third Reich after 1945. In general, the textbooks are designed in unpatriotic and pacifist tones.
In German books for schoolchildren, there is a clear separation of the nation from the fascist leadership led by Adolf Hitler, while the authors do not try to justify the actions of the ideologists of Nazism.
The main place is given to such topics as genocide, the Resistance movement, a separate paragraph is devoted to the topic of the extermination of the Jewish population "Shoah — genocide of Jews" (Shoah is translated from Hebrew as "catastrophe, disaster" and means the actions of the German Nazis, who systematically destroyed the Jewish people as an ethnic group). Some paragraphs of the paragraphs are devoted to the destruction of the entire "undesirable" population: "The war in the East: exploitation and destruction", "Resistance and retribution". They describe in some detail and truthfully the inhumane actions of the National Socialists. Textbook authors try to avoid value judgments by referring students to sources, scientific literature, and archival documents.
The Americans ended the war
In France, schoolchildren are taught that on the eve of World War II, there was a "threat of fascism and communism" with their "suppression of dissent and totalitarianism." The actions of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition are described by the words "human rights," "democracy," and "liberal values."
The reasons for the full-scale invasion of Nazi Germany on the territory of the USSR in history textbooks in elementary grades are explained by the Nazis' desire to increase their living space by acquiring vast territories of Russia. It also tells about Operation Barbarossa, which involved 4 million soldiers and which became "the largest military operation in the history of mankind."
Students learn more about the history of the Second World War in high school. At the same time, the role of the Red Army in the liberation of Eastern Europe, as well as the Battle of Stalingrad, is given only a few paragraphs.
Liberation of Poland from Nazi occupation
All attention is focused on the opening of the second front. In particular, the textbooks tell about the creation of a Grand Alliance in 1942 under the auspices of the United States, which included all the states fighting against Germany.
The main battles are considered to be the battles on the Pacific Coast and in North Africa, the Battle of Stalingrad comes after them in importance. The main conclusion is that victory in the Second War was made possible by the Americans, "who used nuclear weapons and forced Japan to capitulate."
Japanese textbooks have completely different accents. The school curriculum focuses on the occupation of Manchuria, the northern territories of China, and the Korean Peninsula, as well as military operations in Southeast Asia. The Soviet Union is mentioned only at the end of the chapter on World War II, while Moscow is accused of violating the non-aggression pact at a time when Japan was ready to capitulate.
In addition, it is reported that it was at that time that the USSR received "native Japanese territories," in particular, the Southern Kuril Islands.
According to the precepts of Ataturk
In Turkish schools, the Second World War is studied in the 12th grade as part of the course "The History of the Revolution of the Turkish Republic and Atatürkism." Textbooks cite the conditions of the Versailles Treaty and the policies pursued by Western countries, which, according to the authors, did not take into account the interests of other states, as well as the Great Depression of 1929, as a result of which Germany became impoverished and Adolf Hitler came to power.
In addition, Turkish historians speak of an "imbalance of forces": Germany had violated the terms of the Treaty of Versailles since 1935 by building up its army and seizing Austria and Czechoslovakia, and together with other Axis powers — Italy and Japan—wanted to reshape the world in its favor.
People talk about Hitler and the Nazi regime quite neutrally.: from the pages of textbooks, the Fuhrer appears as a populist who came to power on the wave of promises to improve the economic living conditions of Germans, "abolish the humiliating conditions of Versailles" and give Germans "living space." At the same time, there is no criticism of Nazism, its goals are reduced only to the "fight against capitalism."
In general, the war is presented rather dryly, more attention is paid to Europe and the Pacific Ocean. The turning point in World War II is considered to be the entry of the Soviet Union and the United States into the war. The Battle of Stalingrad is highlighted in one paragraph, while it is called the first defeat of Germany. And the main success of the allies, the Turkish authors call the Normandy landings.
The atomic bombing of Japan is also mentioned. However, they write about them without any moral assessments - only dry facts about the destruction.
Half of the World War II section is devoted to Turkey's diplomatic games. The country's neutrality is presented as a manifestation of the wise policy of the authorities, while providing Germany with strategic raw materials for the military industry is explained by its economic dependence on Berlin.
Atomic bombing of Japan
Turkish schoolchildren are told that the states of the anti-Hitler coalition put pressure on Ankara, demanding that it join the war, but it fought back to the last. Formally, the country joined World War II only in February 1945, and then only because otherwise they would not have been allowed into the UN.
What do the experts think
Natalia Eremina, a professor at St. Petersburg State University, noted in a conversation with Izvestia that there is a real problem with how the events of World War II and the role of the Soviet Union in the victory over Nazi Germany are covered in different European countries.
— After the collapse of the USSR, a ban on communist parties began in European countries. This was followed by bans on so-called totalitarian parties. In the Baltic States and Poland, this was due to the influence of the Soviet Union. After that, the revision of the results of the Second World War began. They began to change the history textbooks, where they collected all sorts of negative points. In many cases, we even observed the deliberate distortion of facts or the use of fakes that never corresponded to reality. For example, some of the statements that Stalin allegedly made," the political scientist said.
Yeremina added that very intensive work on history textbooks in different European countries began in 1991.
"Since 2017, the European Union has been discussing the idea of writing a common, unified history textbook for the EU countries, but this idea is not very popular because the so—called allies have too different interpretations of the events of World War II," the expert summed up.
The motorcycle regiment of the Red Army during the counterattack
Pavel Timofeev, head of the Regional Problems and Conflicts Sector of the IMEMO of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted in an interview with Izvestia that the Second World War was presented in such a way that there were conditionally three regimes: Western democracy, which included Britain and France, the Nazi totalitarian regime and the Soviet totalitarian regime.
— In this case, it is shown that the Soviet Union was an ally of France, Great Britain, and the United States. First, the Nazi totalitarian regime was defeated, and then, due to the collapse of the USSR, history showed that only the liberal Western regime is the only one who eventually survives in all this," the expert noted.
According to him, the Second World War remains a difficult event for the collective memory of the French. She finds herself in the shadow of the First World War, which was a heroic page in French history.
— Then France returned Alsace and Lorraine, weakened Germany, and became the leading state in Europe for the next 20 years. There are ongoing discussions about the role played by the forces that fought the Nazis. But here it should be noted that simultaneously with the fight against the Nazis, they actively competed with each other. There is still a very difficult question about the attitude towards those who worked for the Vichy regime," the expert explained.
He added that the French cannot perceive the Second World War as a heroic milestone. According to the expert, over time, the French increasingly emphasize the role played by the United States and Great Britain, that is, the Western allies, and pay less attention to the contribution of the Soviet Union.
German troops on the streets of Paris
— This is obviously due to the fact that a generational change is taking place, and for younger French people who have been brought up in the spirit of Western solidarity, the importance of NATO and the European Union, there is no specific semantic interdependence between World War II, the Cold War and events related to the Ukrainian conflict. It's gone, they just don't connect these events. This is quite unfortunate," the analyst believes.
He explained that the perception of the outcome of World War II is also strongly influenced by the further history of European integration and, above all, the allied relations between France and Germany.
— This also sets a certain political framework, which publicists try not to go beyond. As a rule, the French generally focus on what concerns only them: the Vichy occupation, the fighting in North Africa, including the landing in Algeria. In Europe, these are the Normandy and Provence landings, the Sicilian operation, etc.," Timofeev said.
He added that the Eastern Front of the Second World War, where the Germans suffered the main losses, is remembered much less in France.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
