Der Wehrwolf [note 1] is a novel by German journalist and writer Hermann Löns, first published in 1910.[1]
.jpg) Title page of the first edition | |
| Author | Hermann Löns |
|---|---|
| Translator | Robert Kvinnesland |
| Language | German |
| Genre | Historical fiction |
Publication date | 1910 |
| Publication place | Germany |
Published in English | 2006 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 244 (first edition) |
| ISBN | 9781594160264 |
| OCLC | 7319253 |
| 833.8 | |
| LC Class | PT2623.O36 W4 1922 (German edition) PT2623.O36 W413 2006 (translation) |
| Text | Der Wehrwolf at Project Gutenberg |
Plot summary
editThe Thirty Years' War is at its height while the peasantry suffers under countless marauders. The protagonist Harm Wulf, a peasant, lost his family in the first years of war; he becomes the defending Wulf (wehrender Wulf) by defending a hill fort and its surrounding carr with peasants hiding from the pillaging hordes. Harm Wulf gathers allies until 121 men are in the Alliance of the Wehrwolf. After peace is restored, Harm Wulf is a grim old man.
Reception
editPublished in 1910, Der Wehrwolf became a bestseller in Germany with its nationalist content. Near the end of the Second World War, young Luftwaffenhelfers and children were encouraged to read the novel to promote guerrilla warfare against the Allies (to act like a We(h)rwolf).[2]
See also
edit- Wolfsangel, an emblem used by the protagonist of the book
Notes
edit- ^ A portmanteau combining the German words for "defence" and "wolf"; usually translated into English as Warwolf
References
edit- ^ "The Warwolf: A Peasant Chronicle of the Thirty Years War". Goodreads. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
The first English translation of one of Germany's enduring works of historical fiction, originally published in 1910.
- ^ Beevor, Antony (2002). The Fall of Berlin 1945. Penguin. p. 173. ISBN 0-14-200280-1.
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