The Düsseldorfer "Rheinische Landeszeitung" 1940-1945

   I have been collecting original German wartime media items, including books, newspapers and radio broadcasts for the last 30 years. I wanted to understand how the people in Nazi-Germany viewed the Second World war through the original media without the help of post-war hindsight.

   A number of years ago, I was introduced to two old ladies who were former school teachers in the Third Reich. They gave me old history books and said only by ignoring hindsight and adopting an "education" from the forties, would I be able to understand the mindset of the times.

   Another breakthrough came about last year when 1700 newspapers fell into my hands! These newspapers are bound in volumes covering three months each. They cover the war from April 1940 to April 1945, Although sadly one volume is missing otherwise they are complete. There are also several newspapers not bound covering the period before April 1940.

   I started a five year project last September following the war using the old newspapers, supported by other original media items, reading the news day by day, exactly on the 67th anniversary. It has certainly altered the way my wife and I view the course of the Second World War after reading it in this way.

   This then is the view of the Second World war through the Düsseldorf "Rheinische Landeszeitung" 1940 to 1945.

If you return to the index page, you can then click on the month of the war that is of interest to you. It will however take a while for me to reach 1945, so a large project, which I hope to return to when time allows...