Manfred Messerschmidt (1 October 1926 – 19 December 2022) was a German historian who specialised in the history of Nazi Germany and World War II.
The unusual combination of historian and jurist qualified him for the Military History Research Office (MGFA) in Freiburg, an institution of the Federal Ministry of Defence.
[5] In 1971,[3] Helmut Schmidt, who was then defence minister, recommended him to be the organisation's chief historian,[5] and president Gustav Heinemann appointed him to the post, also as director and professor.
He launched the ten-volume history Germany and the Second World War, which focused on the interdependent relationship between military events and society.
The first four volumes were set against the backdrop of the Cold War, and the German debate on rearmament in view of the country's catastrophic military past.