The Monuments Men
Subtitle: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History
Publisher: Center Street
Published: 2009
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Format: Electronic resource
ISBN-13: 9781599952659
Description: From the Author's Note...

What if I told you there was a group of men on the front lines who quite literally saved the world as we know it; a group that didn’t carry machine guns or drive tanks, who weren’t official statesmen; men who not only had the vision to understand the grave threat to the greatest cultural and artistic achievements of civilization, but then joined the front lines to do something about it?

These unknown heroes were known as the “Monuments Men,” a group of soldiers who served in the Western Allied military effort from 1943 until 1951. Their initial responsibility was to mitigate combat damage, primarily to structures—churches, museums, and other important monuments. As the war progressed and the German border was breached, their focus shifted to locating movable works of art and other cultural items stolen or otherwise missing. During their occupation of Europe, Hitler and the Nazis pulled off the “greatest theft in history,” seizing and transporting more than five million cultural objects to the Third Reich. The Western Allied effort, spearheaded by the Monuments Men, thus became the “greatest treasure hunt in history,” with all the unimaginable and bizarre stories that only war can produce.
Table of contents: title: Cover; title: Title Page; title: Welcome; title: Dedication; title: Epigraph; title: Author’s Note; title: Main Characters; title: Map; label: I
title: THE MISSION; label: 1
title: Out of Germany; label: 2
title: Hitler’s Dream; label: 3
title: The Call to Arms; label: 4
title: A Dull and Empty World; label: 5
title: Leptis Magna; label: 6
title: The First Campaign; label: 7
title: Monte Cassino; label: 8
title: Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives; label: 9
title: The Task; label: II
title: NORTHERN EUROPE; label: 10
title: Winning Respect; label: 11
title: A Meeting in the Field; label: 12
title: Michelangelo’s Madonna; label: 13
title: The Cathedral and the Masterpiece; label: 14
title: Van Eyck’s Mystic Lamb; label: 15
title: James Rorimer Visits the Louvre; label: 16
title: Entering Germany; label: 17
title: A Field Trip; label: 18
title: Tapestry; label: 19
title: Christmas Wishes; label: 20
title: The Madonna of La Gleize; label: 21
title: The Train; label: 22
title: The Bulge; label: 23
title: Champagne; label: III
title: GERMANY; label: 24
title: A German Jew in the U.S. Army; label: 25
title: Coming Through the Battle; label: 26
title: The New Monuments Man; label: 27
title: George Stout with His Maps; label: 28
title: Art on the Move; label: 29
title: Two Turning Points; label: 30
title: Hitler’s Nero Decree; label: 31
title: First Army Across the Rhine; label: 32
title: Treasure Map; label: 33
title: Frustration; label: 34
title: Inside the Mountain; label: 35
title: Lost; label: 36
title: A Week to Remember; label: IV
title: THE VOID; label: 37
title: Salt; label: 38
title: Horror; label: 39
title: The Gauleiter; label: 40
title: The Battered Mine; label: 41
title: Last Birthday; label: 42
title: Plans; label: 43
title: The Noose; label: 44
title: Discoveries; label: 45
title: The Noose Tightens; label: 46
title: The Race; label: 47
title: Final Days; label: 48
title: The Translator; label: 49
title: The Sound of Music; label: 50
title: End of the Road; label: V
title: THE AFTERMATH; label: 51
title: Understanding Altaussee; label: 52
title: Evacuation; label: 53
title: The Journey Home; label: 54
title: Heroes of Civilization; title: Photos; title: About the Authors; title: Praise for The Monuments Men; title: Cast of Characters; title: Notes; title: Bibliography; title: Acknowledgments; title: Help Us Finish the Mission of The Monuments Men; title: Newsletters; title: Copyright