The work is divided into chapters that trace the evolution of these memories from the immediate postwar occupation to the period after German reunification: Legacies of Stalingrad

: The Eastern Front initially served as a rallying point against the "Bolshevist menace," though public memory eventually shifted toward acknowledging Nazi war crimes as political and historical awareness evolved.

Morina argues that while the Holocaust became the primary focus of West German official memory over time, the war on the Eastern Front—specifically the Battle of Stalingrad —remained a deeply contested and crucial theme in both East and West Germany. Key Themes of Remembrance :

: The regime used memories of the Eastern Front to build an "antifascist founding myth" and justify an unconditional alliance with the Soviet Union.

: In both Germanies, private memories often focused on individual German suffering and losses, frequently downplaying personal responsibility or the crimes committed by German forces against Soviet citizens.

is a 2011 scholarly book by historian Christina Morina that examines how the memory of the Eastern Front war against the Soviet Union shaped political culture and identity in divided and reunited Germany. Core Argument

: The brutalization of warfare on the Eastern Front created a lasting emotional and intellectual challenge for postwar elites who had to navigate the duality of Germans as both victims and perpetrators. Book Structure