The Age of the Dictators presents a comprehensive survey of the origins and interrelationship of the European dictatorships. All the regimes are addressed, with ample coverage of the period 1939-45, and analysis of the Soviet government up to Stalin’s death in 1953.Exploring their ideological and political roots, and the role of the First World War in their rise to power, David Williams identifies the dictatorships as products of their time. He examines the Soviet, Italian...

This book covers the years, 1945-63 which witnessed th total defeat of the Third Reich, the occupation a nd evolution of the German Federal Republic and German Democratic Republic. The impact of the occupation is analysed, as are the events leading to the division of Germany. Politics, economic history and social and cultural change in both Germanys are fully explored. Thus in the FRG the nature of Adenauer's success in creating a parliamentary democracy is analysed, as is the West German ...

**Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize • Winner of the Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award • One of the New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century“Impressive . . . Mr. Judt writes with enormous authority.” —The Wall Street Journal“Magisterial . . . It is, without a doubt, the most comprehensive, authoritative, and yes, readable postwar history.” —The Boston Globe**Almost a decade in the making, this much-anticipated grand histor...

**Winner of the PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize"A superb and immensely important book."—Jonathan Yardley, The Washington PostThe Second World War might have officially ended in May 1945, but in reality it rumbled on for another ten years...**The end of World War II in Europe is remembered as a time when cheering crowds filled the streets, but the reality was quite different. Across Europe, landscapes had been ravaged, entire cities razed, and more than thirty mil...

The Russian Revolution had a decisive impact on the history of the twentieth century. In the years following the collapse of the Soviet regime and the opening of its archives, it has become possible to step back and see the full picture. Starting with an overview of the roots of the revolution, Fitzpatrick takes the story from 1917, through Stalin's 'revolution from above', to the great purges of the 1930s. She tells a gripping story of a Marxist revolution that was intended to transform t...

Seventy years have passed since Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor, and in the intervening years a vast amount has been written on the origins and nature of the Third Reich.This work addresses the major issues such as: How did Hitler come to power? How was the Nazi dictatorship established? Why did Germany go to war? What led to the Holocaust?

A historian examines why Hungary allied with the Nazis, and the devastating consequences for the country.The full story of Hungary's participation in World War II is part of a fascinating tale of rise and fall, of hopes dashed and dreams in tatters. Using previously untapped sources and interviews she conducted for this book, Deborah S. Cornelius provides a clear account of Hungary's attempt to regain the glory of the Hungarian Kingdom by joining forces with Nazi G...

Featuring revised and extended coverage, the second edition of A History of Modern Germany offers an accessible and engagingly written account of German history from 1800 to the present.Provides readers with a long view of modern German history, revealing its continuities and changesFeatures updated and extended coverage of German social change and modernization, class, religion, and genderIncludes more in depth coverage of the Ge...

The twentieth century in Europe witnessed some of the most brutish episodes in history. Yet it also saw incontestable improvements in the conditions of existence for most inhabitants of the continent - from rising living standards and dramatically increased life expectancy, to the virtual elimination of illiteracy, and the advance of women, ethnic minorities, and homosexuals to greater equality of respect and opportunity. It was a century of barbarism and civilization, of cruelty and tende...

This Very Short Introduction provides an analytical narrative of the main events and developments in Soviet Russia between 1917 and 1936. It examines the impact of the revolution on society as a whole--on different classes, ethnic groups, the army, men and women, youth. Its central concern is to understand how one structure of domination was replaced by another. The book registers the primacy of politics, but situates political developments firmly in the context of massive economic, social...

From the accliamed authority on Russia and the Russian Revolution—the final volume in his magisterial history of the Russian Revolution, covering the period from the outbreak of the Civil War in 1918 to Lenin's death in 1924"Offers a penetrating analysis of the making of the Soviet system.... [It is] a passionate book whose outstanding scholarship is rooted in universal values like truth, honor, responsibility and the sacredness of human life." —Philadelphia In...

A History of Modern Europe surveys European history from the defeat of Napoleon to the twenty-first century, presenting major historical themes in an authoritative and compelling narrative.Concise, readable single volume covering Europe from the early nineteenth century through the early twenty-first centuryVigorous interpretation of events reflects a fresh, concise perspective on European historyClear and thought-provoking treatment of major hist...