Hammer of the Gods: The Thule Society and the Birth of Nazism Hardcover – February 1, 2012

Depending on your viewpoint this book has something to say or will just be more assumption and guess work. The whole subject of Nazi's and the Occult is contentious and depending on your own personal take this book will appeal or not.I personally take the view that it's worth considering to try and make sense of the Nazis and their beliefs. Personally I think a few of the top Nazis believed in the occult and probably practiced it, chief among them being Himmler and Hess. Others used the occult to reach their own ends. I think Hitler saw the power in the occult and used it to project his power. The use of Runic symbols and such, it served a purpose, but was just another tool to control. The book explains the origins of the Nazi party and how the Thule society had such a dangerous influence over it. Heady stuff for sure and sometimes just a bit unbelievable, but we will probably never know for certain just how much the occult had an influence within and around the Third Reich.

I have, over the years, read a great deal pertaining to the Nazi regime and through other works had read references to how Hitler had come to formulate his ideology of strong central government and his racial views. There were vague references to the Thule Society but there was no real examination of this shadow society. This important work now shines a light on a segment of German modern history that has been obscure in the study of the forerunners of the Nazi ideology. I found it fascinating to make the connections between the views expoused in the Thule Society and those brought onto the world stage by the Nazi regime. I especially enjoyed the description of the Communist takeover of Munich and the fleeing of the government to Bamburg; and then the campaign to retake the city. As an active military officer serving in that area during the Cold War I was certainly familiar with the cities and terrain of the area. This is an excellent work that takes the reader deep into the beginnings of the Nazi ideology.

If you want to understand how the Germans fell victim to the insanity of Nazism, read this book. The author traces the major themes of prejudice common in German and European societies in the centuries leading up to the rise of fascism and the unique role of the Thule society and its various front organizations in advancing in this process. Well researched and written.

Incredible work and eye opening. Details how when a communist revolutionary group put an aristocratic woman in front of a firing squad- it shifted popular opinion toward any group that had a stance against the Bolsheviks. The realization that a latter 19th century cult was behind the Nazi rise to power, born out of some even more bizarre circumstances that actually lent it credibility makes this work a profound medium for understanding the Third Reich.

I am just finishing this book that, to me, ranks as one of the best books I'veread on the myriad threads that coalesced in the scourge of Nazism. The author'sstyle is riveting and his facts shed new light on the Thule Society philosophy that permeatedthe Third Reich's leadership. Any student of this period of history would findthis book well worth the price and highly thought provoking!

This author takes a deep look at the Thule members, not sure if you can just read one book on this subject, I have many. Little gold nuggets in each to piece together what really did happen. Some of it is bit far fetched to believe.

A lot of silly stuff has been published and broadcast about occultism and Nazism, but David Luhrssen's Hammer of the Gods is one of the only books to nail down the facts with careful research. The writing is brilliant and wonderful to read. Let's hear more from this author!

as described

This book is an endless collection of useless and irrelevant petty details of characters who were in some way connected with Thule's history , the history of Germany in general, and other facts that are of no interest whatsoever to anybody except to a pedantic scholar of this organization. There is absolutely nothing in the book about the esoteric or occult content of Thule and of Hitler's background. The book is boring, heavy-going, not interesting in the least. Avoid at all' costs.

I expected more supernatural/Occult writing around the Thule Society but this was not the case. The information on the birth of Nazism was helpful. My expectations of this book and the previous reviews and understanding of what the book was about was not met.

Interesting book