ABSTRACT
That over-used word ‘Epic’ applies in full force to the German defence of Breslau, the capital of Lower Silesia. This city resisted for the remarkable term of seventy-seven days, which was beyond the lifespan of Hitler and Nazi Berlin. From the history of the other sieges we will be familiar with some of the basic ingredients of the story—professional but conscience-striken military commanders, a helpless civilian population, and a brutal and self-seeking Party leadership—but only in the telling do we encounter some of the strengths which prolonged the defence so far beyond the ordinary duration.
