The Lisbon Route: Entry and Escape in Nazi Europe (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781566638760)

The Lisbon Route tells of the extraordinary World War II transformation of Portugal's tranquil port city into the great escape hatch of Nazi Europe. Royalty, celebrities, diplomats, fleeing troops, and ordinary citizens desperately slogged their way across France and Spain to reach the neutral nation. Here the exiles found peace and plenty, though they often faced excruciating delays and uncertainties before they could book passage on ships or planes to their final destinations. As well as offering freedom from war, Lisbon provided spies, smugglers, relief workers, military figures, and adventurers with an avenue into the conflict and its opportunities. Ronald Weber traces the engaging stories of many of these colorful transients as they took pleasure in the city's charm and benign climate, its ample food and drink, its gambling casino and Atlantic beaches. Yet an ever-present shadow behind the gaiety was the fragile nature of Portuguese neutrality, which at any moment the Axis or Allies might choose to end.

Author: Ronald Weber
ISBN-10: 1566638763
ISBN-13: 9781566638760
Publisher: Ivan R. Dee Publisher
Language: English
Published: 03/16/2011
Pages: 376
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.39lbs
Size: 10.68h x 6.31w x 1.40d

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 02/21/2011
Library Journal 03/15/2011 pg. 126
Kirkus Reviews 02/15/2011 pg. 298