'Very good indeed-An excellent tableau of the Berlin apocalypse.' Norman Stone, The Times

The battle for Berlin in 1945 was one of the most violent ever fought for a city. For Stalin it was the ultimate prize. More than 300,000 Soviet soldiers alone died in the attack. The scene is set during the 1936 Olympics, with Berlin as the showcase of the 1,000 year Reich. Then, sketching the history of this extraordinary city, Read and Fisher chart its transformation by the Prussians from a political and cultural backwater into a formidable garrison town. Seedy yet glamorous, it fell under Nazi sway in 1933 and, with the approach of war, it became the hub of Hitler's war machine. After four years of relentless Allied bombing, Berlin was faced with its ultimate test - the final battle, in which no building or street was left unmarked as the fanatical and terrified remnants of Hitler's armies attempted to hold back the 'barbarians from the east'.