Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - List of Books by Sebastian Haffner

Sebastian Haffner (December 27, 1907 – January 2, 1999, pseudonym for Raimund Pretzel) was a German journalist and author. He wrote mainly about recent German history.

In 1938 he emigrated from Nazi Germany with his Jewish fiancée to London, where he intended to work as an author and journalist. The first time there was very difficult because he was hardly able to speak English at that time (but rapidly became remarkably proficient in the language), had no money and no financial support at all, and his fiancée and later wife was pregnant. He adopted the pseudonym Sebastian Haffner so that his family, who remained in Germany, would not be endangered by his writing. It was a combination of Johann Sebastian Bach and of Mozart's "Haffner Symphony", later he used the signature of this piece (KV 385) on his vehicle registration plate.

Under the auspices of his mentor, David Astor, Haffner wrote for the London Sunday newspaper, The Observer, and became its editor-in-chief. However, because of differences between Astor, who had become the newspaper's publisher, and the London editorship regarding a divided Germany, he became the German correspondent in Berlin in 1954, a position which he kept until the building of the Berlin Wall.

He then wrote for a German newspaper, Die Welt, until 1962, and from then until 1975 was a columnist for the "Stern" magazine. Haffner was a frequent guest on the television show Internationaler Frühschoppen (translates roughly to "international morning pint"), hosted by Werner Höfer, and even had his own television program on the German channel Sender Freies Berlin.

Haffner is considered as one of the most successful German authors on the history of the 19th and 20th century written for a broad, nonacademic audience.

He wrote most of his works in German, some of which have been translated into English, French, Spanish, Hebrew and other languages. The manuscript of Defying Hitler, discovered posthumously by his son, is an insightful memoir of the Nazis' rise to power, as witnessed by Haffner before he went into exile.

Selected Writings   more

Biography   more

This author page uses material from the Wikipedia article "Sebastian Haffner", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0
Total Books: 92
The Meaning of Hitler
2016 - The Meaning of Hitler [Chinese Edition] (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9787544755115
ISBN-10: 7544755118
  ?

The Ailing Empire Germany from Bismarck to Hitler
2016 - The Ailing Empire Germany From Bismarck to Hitler [Chinese Edition] (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9787544758765
ISBN-10: 7544758761
  ?

Germany Jekyll and Hyde An Eyewitness Analysis of Nazi Germany
2008 - Germany Jekyll and Hyde an Eyewitness Analysis of Nazi Germany (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9780349118895
ISBN-10: 0349118892
Genre: History
  ?

Geschichte eines Deutschen Als Englnder maskiert
2006 - Geschichte Eines Deutschen Als Englnder Maskiert (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9783421042347
ISBN-10: 3421042349
  ?

Los siete pecados capitales del imperio alemn en la Primera Guerra Mundial
2006 - Los Siete Pecados Capitales Del Imperio Alemn En La Primera Guerra Mundial (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9788423338283
ISBN-10: 8423338282
  ?

Los siete pecados capitales del imperio Aleman/ The Seven Capital Sins of the German Empire
2005 - Los Siete Pecados Capitales Del Imperio Aleman/ the Seven Capital Sins of the German Empire [Spanish Edition] (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9788423338368
ISBN-10: 8423338363
Genre: Literature & Fiction
  ?

Churchill
2005 - Churchill [Life and Times] (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9781904341062
ISBN-10: 1904341063
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
  ?

Historia De Un Aleman
2005 - Historia De Un Aleman [Divulgacion] (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9788423336890
ISBN-10: 8423336891
Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, History, Nonfiction
  ?

Historia de un alemn
2005 - Historia De Un Alemn [Divulgación - Spanish Edition] (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9788423338047
ISBN-10: 8423338045
  ?

Alemania Jeckyll Y Hyde
2005 - Alemania Jeckyll Y Hyde [Imago Mundi - Spanish Edition] (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9788423337095
ISBN-10: 842333709X
Genres: History, Nonfiction
  ?

Germany Jekyll and Hyde
2005 - Germany Jekyll and Hyde (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781870352819
ISBN-10: 1870352815
Genres: History, Nonfiction
  ?

Histoire d'un Allemand
2004 - Histoire D'un Allemand (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9782742751518
ISBN-10: 2742751513
  ?

Die Deutsche Revolution 1918/1919
2004 - Die Deutsche Revolution 1918/1919 (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9783499616228
ISBN-10: 349961622X
  ?

Das Leben der Fugnger
2004 - Das Leben Der Fugnger (Hardcover)
ISBN-13: 9783446204904
ISBN-10: 3446204903
  ?

Die Deutsche Frage
2003 - Die Deutsche Frage (Other)
ISBN-13: 9783596155361
ISBN-10: 3596155363
  ?

Schreiben fr die Freiheit
2003 - Schreiben Fr Die Freiheit (Other)
ISBN-13: 9783596155354
ISBN-10: 3596155355
  ?

Notes on Hitler
2003 - Notes on Hitler (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9781842126950
ISBN-10: 1842126954
  ?

Defying Hitler
2003 - Defying Hitler (Audio Cassette)Paperback, Audio CD
ISBN-13: 9780786125166
ISBN-10: 0786125160
Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, History
  ?

Defying Hitler A Memoir
2003 - Defying Hitler a Memoir (Paperback)Hardcover, Audio CD
ISBN-13: 9780312421137
ISBN-10: 0312421133
Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, History
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 1

Geschichte eines Deutschen Die Erinnerungen 19141933
2003 - Geschichte Eines Deutschen Die Erinnerungen 19141933 (Hardcover)Hardcover
ISBN-13: 9783421057532
ISBN-10: 3421057532
  ?

Winston Churchill Mit Selbstzeugnissen und Bilddokumenten
2002 - Winston Churchill Mit Selbstzeugnissen Und Bilddokumenten (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9783499613548
ISBN-10: 3499613549
  ?

2002 - Anotaciones Sobre Hitler [Ensayo - Spanish Edition] (Hardcover)
1998 - The Rise and Fall of Prussia [Phoenix Giants] (Paperback)
Preussische Profile [German Edition] (Paperback)
Preussen Ohne Legende [Stern Buch - German Edition] (Hardcover)