First reprint of Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf in Germany since World War 2 proves surprise bestseller
The Institute of Contemporary History published the reprint in January last year
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Following Adolf Hitler's suicide in 1945, the rights to his infamous autobiography, Mein Kampf (translation: “My Struggle”) were transferred to the state of Bavaria, who refused to ever publish the controversial book in Germany.
However, the country’s copyright law dictates that texts enter the public domain 70 years after the author’s death, meaning anyone could publish the work from 2016 onwards.
To some controversy, the Institute of Contemporary History (IfZ) released the first reprint of the anti-semitic manifesto last January, the two-volume book selling out on Amazon's German site within hours.
The IfZ has since revealed that 85,000 copies of the heavily annotated Mein Kampf have sold since January, making it one of the year’s bestsellers in Germany. A sixth print of the book will reach bookstores later this month.
Many commentators have expressed their worry that the IfZ is inadvertently spreading Nazi propaganda.
Addressing these controversy surrounding the reprint, Andreas Wirsching, the director of the IfZ, told The Guardian: “To the contrary, the debate about Hitler’s world view and his approach to propaganda offered a chance to look at the causes and consequences of totalitarian ideologies, at a time in which authoritarian political views and rightwing slogans are gaining ground.”
The institute reportedly collected data from regional booksellers that pointed to customers primarily being ‘interested in politics and history as well as educators, and not reactionaries or rightwing radicals’.
Despite various countries expressing an interest in the annotated version, for now, only translations to French and English are planned.
For much of the year, Mein Kampf was increasingly difficult to get a hold of, something one Professor discussed earlier this year with The Independent.
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