''Sieg im Westen'' (''Victory in the West'') is a 1941

Nazi propaganda Propaganda was a tool of the Nazi Party in Germany from its earliest days to the end of the regime in May 1945 at the end of World War II. As the party gained power, the scope and efficacy of its propaganda grew and permeated an increasing amou ...

film. It was produced by the

Oberkommando des Heeres The (; abbreviated OKH) was the high command of the Army of Nazi Germany. It was founded in 1935 as part of Adolf Hitler's rearmament of Germany. OKH was ''de facto'' the most important unit within the German war planning until the defeat ...

, the German Army High Command, rather than the Propaganda Ministry of

Joseph Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief Propaganda in Nazi Germany, propagandist for the Nazi Party, and ...

.Robert Edwin Hertzstein, ''The War That Hitler Won'' p281 Goebbels indeed sabotaged its release in minor ways, delaying its premiere and telling propagandists not to promote it.

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...

has been described as ''enthusiastically'' helping to direct it.Exit Rommel: The Tunisian Campaign, 1942-43, page 166 Bruce Allen Watson 2007 French prisoners of war were used during its making. The prologue consists of the Nazi version of European history and the origins of World War II, and the rest deals with the

Battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

, a

Blitzkrieg ''Blitzkrieg'(Lightning/Flash Warfare)'' is a word used to describe a combined arms surprise attack, using a rapid, overwhelming force concentration that may consist of armored and motorized or mechanized infantry formations, together with ...

in the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

(10 May – 22 June 1940). The movie was made largely from newsreel footage recut into a documentary. The programme provided states that it is to show the audacity of the German offensive and the superiority of German arms, required because they will not be permitted to live in peace. It did not give Hitler or the Nazi party a central role, thus ensuring its disfavor with Goebbels. The Nazi journal "Der deutsche Film" called ''Sieg im Westen'' "the greatest of all German newsreels." Unlike many other German propaganda films, ''Sieg im Westen'' does not belittle the enemy, instead admitting that the French soldiers fought gallantly. The war is presented "from above"; the battles are depicted as smooth forward advances on the map, with results from reports at the front. The "encirclement" of Germany is depicted by showing prisoners of war from far-off countries. During the shooting of the movie Black French soldiers who were prisoners of war were forced to take part in its making, at the end of the movie Germans forced them to carry out "exotic dance", most likely to underline their exotic "otherness" and as an act of humiliation. On 14 August 1940, more than a dozen German Generals who had (three weeks prior) been appointed

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

after the successful Westfeldzug were in Berlin to be presented with their ceremonial batons. While in Berlin, they were shown 'Sieg im Westen'.An American journalist watched it, too, and made that public. Charles Messenger (1991/ reprint 2012), ''The Last Prussian: A Biography of Field Marshal Gerd Von Rundstedt'', p
127
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References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 197879, Sieg im Westen
Information at International Historic FilmsPicture
of a program
Free access to the film at the Internet Archive
1941 films 1941 documentary films Black-and-white documentary films German documentary films Films of Nazi Germany Nazi World War II propaganda films German black-and-white films 1940s German-language films Films scored by Herbert Windt

See also

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Further reading

External links