After the Allied D-Day landings in June 1944, Paris was liberated in late August, and the rest of France was freed in the following weeks. However, two pockets of German occupation in Royan and La Rochelle, both cities along the Atlantic coast, remained occupied for several months more.

Blocking access to Bordeaux, the city of Royan would end in martyrdom under a carpet of Allied bombs on January 5, 1945. But the fortress of La Rochelle, with its port, submarine base, and German garrison of 14,000 soldiers guarding the historic city and its 30,000 civilians, would later be delivered intact to Allied forces by its occupier.

By what perilous negotiations were two enemy officers able to avoid disaster in the besieged city? Two men of honor, French Commander Hubert Meyer and German Admiral Ernst Schirlitz, strove to see beyond the war toward reconciliation and the reconstruction of Europe.

Step into a vividly illustrated confrontation with history—where the darkness of the 20th century looms large. Drawing on pivotal moments and influential figures, from the chaos of World War I to the rise of totalitarian regimes, D.E. Davis compellingly tells how humanity found itself teetering on the brink of nuclear annihilation. With insights gained from the likes of J. Robert Oppenheimer, Hannah Arendt, and George Orwell, When the World Dies examines the philosophical underpinnings of evil and the moral obligations of the living.

This timely look at what led civilization to the brink of nuclear war and the societal steps required to back away from that ledge asks readers to consider the Age of Infamy from a perspective informed by history. Join D.E. Davis on this eye-opening journey as he challenges us to reflect on our past in order to confront our present and cultivate a future of possibility.