Krieg um Öl. Ein Erdölimperium als deutsches Kriegsziel (1938-1943).

by Dietrich Eichholtz

As Hitler’s Einsatzgruppen (mobile SS killing units) marched into the Soviet Union directly behind the advancing Wehrmacht to murder Jews and others, less well-known units were also following in the footsteps of the German armed forces. They were called, among other things, “petroleum units,” “petroleum commissions,” or “technical brigades.” Their mission was to seize and exploit the oil-producing areas of the conquered territories.Having pillaged oil in Poland, France, and the Low Countries, these predatory units were the latest examples of Nazi Germany’s relentless efforts before and during World War II to achieve self-sufficiency in fuel.But only in the East—first in the Soviet Union and then in the Middle East—could Hitler find sufficient quantities of oil to free Germany of all external dependency and allow him to wage war indefinitely. To achieve his aim, Hitler envisioned his armored columns advancing through North Africa and the Caucasus to a juncture somewhere in the Near East in what Martin Blumenson called “the most gigantic pincer movement in history.”In this prodigiously researched study, historian Dietrich Eichholtz tells the story of Nazi Germany’s plans to establish a global oil empire, from the plan’s inception in 1938 to its collapse in 1943.

Genres: World War II, History

141 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful little book that does everything it sets out to do: explain the drive for oil necessary to both the Nazi war economy and the imperialist bourgeoisie steering it. Like Annie Lacroix-Riz (only much less exhaustive/exhausting), Eichholtz intersperses every 'apolitical' military manœuvre with discussions and demands ongoing behind the scenes, mostly by representatives of the10 major financial/industrial centres of capital. It gives the reader a new-found appreciation for the materiality of war (to wage war you need stuff, primarily oil, fuel and machines) and gives a holistic overview of all sections of nazi society implicated in steering it along.

A shame so much of East-German research and historiography is locked away — although that goes even more for works from the rest of the former socialist nations in the East. Eichholtz' wiki page is a great testimony to what this means for the field:

Wird insbesondere der erste Band als dogmatisch marxistisch-leninistisch und wegen seiner staatsmonopolistischen Interpretation kritisiert, fand das Werk insgesamt Anerkennung auch unter westlichen Historikern.

or

While his first volumes in particular were deemed dogmatically marxist-leninist and criticized for its state-monopoly lense, the book [not this one] slowly gained the recognition of Western historians"

It's just that they don't get republished or translated, this rare exception notwithstanding.

[Mark Blane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent summary of the chief points that contributed to Germany losing World War 2 - the cumulative failures of Germany to secure their oil supplies. There are not many books on this niche topic which makes this book even more valuable. It is decently cited, and the reader will walk away which a much richer understanding on how Germany failed to secure the vital oil supplies it needed to support the Wehrmacht's offensive goals.

Eichholtz indirectly shows the reader how Hitler needed to invade Russia to secure the oils supplies, and how he got close in May and June 1942 - probably the closest he got to possibly winning Europe and World War 2. The reader will also learn how Hitler got carried away with hubris after his first wins against Poland and the low countries, and including France, before failing to conquer Britain before making his fateful decision of Operation Barbarossa.

The book goes into greater detail of the oil petroleum teams that would move in to take over capture oil fields in the wake of the Wehrmacht's offensive assaults. Such as the Galician Oil Commission, and the Technical Oil Brigade (TBM - Technische Brigade Mineralöl) quarterbacked by Göring.

[Kyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

the nazi miltary's plans for world domination were hamstrung by oil shortages that were never realistically addressed let alone solved. the resistance of the soviets (including clever sabotage) prevented germany from ever becoming self-sufficient in the commodity that they needed to conduct war. without it their offensive capability was diminished, even if the already-understrength panzer groups hadn't been demolished during operation uranus.