“First Encounters: Conquest and Initial Occupation,” By Dewey A. Browder, in “Neighbor America: Americans in Rhineland Palatinate, 1945-95.” Ed. Winfried Herget, Werner Kemp and Walter G. Roedel. Trier: Wissenschaftlicher Verlaf, 1995.
The US post-war plan for the administration of Germany was muddled, full of contradictions and retreats. Nevertheless, despite the inauspicious beginnings, the US quickly developed a workable administration that was surprisingly efficient; ultimately, the US army’s efforts were crucial in the reconstruction of post-war Germany. Browder’s work is concentrated upon the US Military’s efforts in establishing order and beginning the reconstruction of Germany. His work is similar in vein to his other publications in that he concentrated upon the efforts of the US Military.
The chapter First Encounters: Conquest and Initial Occupation, By Dewey A. Browder, in “Neighbor America: Americans in Rhineland Palatinate, 1945-95, examined the initial US entry into Germany and their efforts to administer the conquered territory. His thesis is apparent from the books’s title; ‘Neighbor’ has connotations of a benevolent partner and this is exactly what Browder argued in his chapter. Furthermore, the author’s thesis is consistent with his other works. The title of Browder’s book, Americans In Post-World War II Germany: Teachers, Tinkers, Neighbors and Nuisances is suggestive of his view that on the whole, the US army’s post-war handling of the Germans was a success; the minor criticism of ‘nuisances’ was handled only in one chapter towards the end. The more negative aspects of American occupation such as the criminality of some US soldiers was only a stumbling block in an ongoing and ever friendlier relationship that each side, for its own reasons, was determined to develop. In addition, in 2008, the Strategic Studies Institute and Austin Peay State