NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY
"The New York Times Book Review - The Economist - The Christian
Science Monitor - Bloomberg Businessweek - The Globe and
Mail"
From the bestselling and award-winning author of "Paris 1919" comes
a masterpiece of narrative nonfiction, a fascinating portrait of
Europe from 1900 up to the outbreak of World War I.
The century since the end of the Napoleonic wars had been the most
peaceful era Europe had known since the fall of the Roman Empire.
In the first years of the twentieth century, Europe believed it was
marching to a golden, happy, and prosperous future. But instead,
complex personalities and rivalries, colonialism and ethnic
nationalisms, and shifting alliances helped to bring about the
failure of the long peace and the outbreak of a war that
transformed Europe and the world.
" "
"The War That Ended Peace "brings vividly to life the military
leaders, politicians, diplomats, bankers, and the extended,
interrelated family of crowned headsacross Europe who failed to
stop the descent into war: in Germany, the mercurial Kaiser Wilhelm
II and the chief of the German general staff, Von Moltke the
Younger; in Austria-Hungary, Emperor Franz Joseph, a man who tried,
through sheer hard work, to stave off the coming chaos in his
empire; in Russia, Tsar Nicholas II and his wife; in Britain, King
Edward VII, Prime Minister Herbert Asquith, and British admiral
Jacky Fisher, the fierce advocate of naval reform who entered into
the arms race with Germany that pushed the continent toward
confrontation on land and sea.
There are the would-be peacemakers as well, among them prophets of
the horrors of future wars whose warnings went unheeded: Alfred
Nobel, who donated his fortune to the cause of international
understanding, and Bertha von Suttner, a writer and activist who
was the first woman awarded Nobel's new Peace Prize. Here too we
meet the urbane and cosmopolitan Count Harry Kessler, who noticed
many of the early signs that something was stirring in Europe; the
young Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty and a
rising figure in British politics; Madame Caillaux, who shot a man
who might have been a force for peace; and more. With indelible
portraits, MacMillan shows how the fateful decisions of a few
powerful people changed the course of history.
Taut, suspenseful, and impossible to put down, "The War That Ended
Peace" is also a wise cautionary reminder of how wars happen in
spite of the near-universal desire to keep the peace. Destined to
become a classic in the tradition of Barbara Tuchman's "The Guns of
August," "The War That Ended Peace" enriches our understanding of
one of the defining periods and events of the twentieth
century.
Praise for "The War That Ended Peace"
"Magnificent . . . "The War That Ended Peace" will certainly rank
among the best books of the centennial crop."--"The
Economist"
"Superb."--"The New York Times Book Review"
" "
"Masterly . . . marvelous . . . Those looking to understand why
World War I happened will have a hard time finding a better place
to start."--"The Christian Science Monitor"
" "
"The debate over the war's origins has raged for years. Ms.
MacMillan's explanation goes straight to the heart of political
fallibility. . . . Elegantly written, with wonderful character
sketches of the key players, this is a book to be treasured."--The
Wall Street Journal
"A magisterial 600-page panorama."--Christopher Clark, "London
Review of Books"
"From the Hardcover edition."
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!