Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne: From Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest
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Contents |
Overview
Band of Brothers was written by Stephen Ambrose. The book is, in part, a product of the anniversaries of D-Day and the end of the war. These events became a catalyst for authors and oral historians to publish work concerning World War II. Stephen Ambrose recognized the anniversary of D-Day as an opportunity to publish a book.1 Band of Brothers emerged after Ambrose decided that he wanted to write a book about D-Day for the anniversary.2
After extensive work, accumulating hours of interviews with E Company, as well as touring the battle sites, Ambrose set to work creating Band of Brothers. His methodology consisted of interviewing the men of E Company as well as using other primary documents like letters to construct the book. After he was done writing, Ambrose sent the manuscript to the men of E Company. The final work became a New York Times best seller.3 What seemed to make the book a success was the use of the oral histories to construct the book. One reviewer stated “The first-hand testimony of ground troops is now considered an authoritative source of information about warfare.” The review quote is significant because in the early years of oral history its use as an “authoritative source” was highly doubted. However, because of the work of earlier historians, Ambrose was able to use oral histories to comprise his book.4
HBO Series
The book was transformed into a mini series by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, and eventually released as a dvd box set. During every episode, a member of E Company is seen giving oral testimony on camera.5
Related Pages
California State Military Museum
"The Good War": An Oral History of World War II
References
(1)Steven Ambrose, Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne: from Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992, 310.
(2)Ibid.,
(3)Ambrose, Band of Brothers, 310-312
(4)J.T. Hansen. “Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne From Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest Review.” Armed Forces & Society. Fall 1993. http://www.ebscohost.com. Roger Horowitz, in his work Oral History and the story of America and World War II, states that, "Although oral history has struggled for legitimacy in the historical profession, it has always been central to telling the story of World War II."
(5) Nicholas J. Cull. Band Of Brothers (Motion picture). American Historical Review. June 2002. http://www.ebscohost.com.
