Detlef Vogel


Detlev Vogel is a German historian who specialises in the history of Nazi Germany and World War II. He has been a long-time employee of the German Military History Research Office. Vogel was a contributor to two volumes of the seminal work Germany and the Second World War from the MGFA.

Historian of Nazi Germany

Vogel's research into treason in Nazi Germany, in partnership with Wolfram Wette, was the first such project undertaken in Germany. Their resulting book The Last Taboo showed that, based on the documents examined so far, the soldiers acted mostly out of ethical motives and none of their actions caused harm to civilians or military personnel. It played a role in bringing about the legislative change in 2009 Germany, when the Bundestag passed legislation officially rehabilitating military personnel judged "traitors" by the military justice system during World War II.

Selected works

In English