After Daybreak

The Liberation of Belsen, 1945

Ben Shephard

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Paperback

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English

Pimlico
01 June 2006

History; European history; 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000; The Holocaust; Second World War; Jewish studies

Triumph or disaster? After Daybreak brilliantly investigates the emergency operation following the British liberation of Belsen.

When British troops entered Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in April 1945, they uncovered scenes of horror and depravity that shocked the world. But they also confronted a terrible challenge - inside the camp were some 60,000 people, suffering from typhus, starvation and dysentery, who would die unless they received immediate medical attention.

After Daybreak is the story of the army stretcher-bearers and ambulance drivers, medical students and relief workers who attempted to save the inmates of Belsen - with the war still raging and only the most primitive drugs and facilities available.

Drawing on their diaries and letters, Ben Shephard reconstructs events at Belsen in the spring of 1945 - from the first horror of its discovery, through the agonising process of trying to save the survivors. In doing so he addresses the question of whether we should regard the relief of the camp as an epic of medical heroism - as the British believed - or see the failure to plan for Belsen and the undoubted mistakes that were made there as further evidence of Allied indifference to the fate of Europe's Jews - as some historians now argue. The result is a powerful and dramatic narrative, full of extraordinary incidents and characters, and an important contribution to medical history.

By: Ben Shephard
Imprint: Pimlico
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: New edition
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 129mm, Spine: 18mm
Weight: 226g
ISBN: 9781844135400
ISBN 10: 1844135403
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 01 June 2006
Recommended Age: From 0 years
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Ben Shephard was born in 1948 and read History at Oxford University. He was a producer on the television series The World at War and The Nuclear Age and has made numerous historical and scientific documentaries for the BBC and Channel Four. He is the author of the critically acclaimed A War of Nerves: Soldiers and Psychiatrists 1914 - 1994 (published by Cape and Pimilico). He lives in Bristol.

Reviews for After Daybreak: The Liberation of Belsen, 1945

* 'In his excellent and lucid account, Shephard fully makes his case that the aftermath of the liberation of Belsen was an episode in which the British can take pride...a powerful and dramatic narrative.' - Frank McLynn, Independent * 'A solidly researched, scrupulously balanced and sensitive account of the liberation that will serve as a fitting tribute and a guide to future generations about how best to remember Belsen.' - David Cesarini, Guardian * 'A moving story.' - Times Literary Supplement * 'Contributors to the ever-growing opus of Holocaust historiography have been accused by some of creating an industry. However, Shephard's contribution is not superfluous and he negotiates his harrowing material surefootedly.' - Katrina Goldstone, Irish Times