The Forced War: When Peaceful Revision Failed

The Forced War is Prof. David L. Hoggan’s tour de force on the origins and causes of World War II. This is not a polemic, but a well researched and documented historical work that delves into the hidden diplomatic background of the outbreak of the Germano-Polish War of 1939, which Britain for its own purposes turned into World War II. Prof. Hoggan uses official diplomatic correspondence and reports of the meetings of the various participants, primarily Great Britain, France, Poland and National Socialist Germany. He traces the roots of the conflict from Versailles until the final declaration of War by Great Britain and France upon Germany and their refusal to enter into peace negotiations to stop the war which Lord Halifax and the Tories had skillfully maneuvered Poland into starting with the worthless “Guarantee” given to Poland to induce her leaders to pursue a hard line against Germany in the hopes of conquering German territory and reestablishing a Great Poland as had existed several centuries past. The book is meticulously footnoted, and while a historical work of great depth and breadth is both engaging and easy to read. Prof. Hoggan wrote the work in 1961 and it was originally published in Germany under the title “Der Erzwungene Krieg” (The Forced War) where it gained kudos from academics and laymen alike. If the reader is a history buff of World War II, or simply wishes to know how and why the war happened, this is a book that cannot be missed.