The Occult Roots of Nazism

The connections between Nazism and occultism had been subject to many explorations previously, but they tended to be sensationalistic with little basis in fact. Goodrick-Clarke wrote that he found the previous discussion of the connection to be "a literature rich in mystery and suggestion, but short on facts and hard evidence". Nevertheless, the question of how Nazism had come to have such an association with occultism in the first place interested him, and so he started researching contemporary fringe resources, only to find that "there was a hard kernel of truth" to the connection. of which it is a revised version. The book is based on archival sources and historical material, especially a large array of fringe esoteric works of the time. Many of the works consulted by Goodrick-Clarke were extremely rare and difficult to consult. == Contents ==

This foreword was written by Rohan Butler. He rather attempts to keep strictly to his archival source material and limiting speculation, presenting the occult ties in a matter-of-fact manner as just one element among many. In the final chapter, an examination of "Ariosophy and Adolf Hitler, he disregards the idea that Hitler himself had any involvement in Thule meetings or other occultism. In appendix E, the only place the phrase "Nazi Occultism" actually appears in the book, Goodrick-Clarke makes an effort to debunk much of the "modern mythology of Nazi occultism" and traces the origins of the more dubious ideas, debunking several of the books associated with this modern mythology. == Publication history ==

It was first published in Wellingborough, England by the Aquarian Press in 1985 in 1992, it was republished as a paperback with a different subtitle by New York University Press in New York, as The Occult Roots of Nazism: Secret Aryan Cults and Their Influence on Nazi Ideology, though there were no textual changes from the first edition. It was published in a German edition in 1997 as . Black Sun was originally intended as a sequel, but in the course of its writing its scope expanded beyond the original work. == Reception ==

The book was highly regarded upon its publication, receiving several positive reviews. as well as the author's most influential work. Jeffrey Kaplan stated in 1998 that it "remains the definitive work on the subject". It received praise for being a serious scholarly effort on a subject which otherwise attracted many fringe or mythical claims. the problem, Housden remarks, lies in the efficacy of these Ariosophic practices. Housen wrote that, "The true value of this study, therefore, lies in its painstaking elucidation of an intrinsically fascinating subculture which helped colour rather than cause aspects of Nazism. In this context, it also leaves us pondering a central issue: why on earth were Austrian and German occultists, just like the Nazi leadership, quite so susceptible to, indeed obsessed by, specifically aggressive racist beliefs anyway?" Noakes continues this general thought by concluding, "[Goodrick-Clarke] provides not only a definitive account of the influence of Ariosophy on Nazism, a subject which is prone to sensationalism, but also fascinating insights into the intellectual climate of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century." Anna Bramwell wrote that he succeeded in demystifying the Thule Society. Reviewing the French translation, Émile Poulat wrote it was a thorough and critical investigation. Ian Kershaw wrote that Goodrick-Clarke had created an "intriguing study of apocalyptic fantasies". == References ==