1914: De la paz a la guerra
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- Update Date：2025-09-24
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- Author：Margaret MacMillan
- ISBN：8415832087
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Summary
El relato definitivo de las fuerzas políticas， culturales， militares y personales que llevaron a Europa hacia la Gran Guerra。
La Primera Guerra Mundial puso fin a un largo periodo de paz sostenida en Europa: una época en la que se hablaba confiadamente de prosperidad， de progreso y de esperanza。 Y sin embargo， en 1914 el continente se lanzó de cabeza a un conflicto catastrófico， que mató a millones de personas， desangró las economías nacionales， derrumbó imperios y puso fin para siempre a la hegemonía mundial europea。 Fue una guerra que hubiera podido evitarse hasta el último momento。 La pregunta es: ¿por qué se produjo？
Empezando en el siglo XIX y acabando con el asesinato del archiduque Francisco Fernando， la gran historiadora Margaret MacMillan desvela la compleja red de alianzas， cambios políticos y tecnológicos， decisiones diplomáticas y， sobre todo， personalidades y debilidades humanas que llevaron a Europa al desastre。
Una narración imprescindible para conocer el mundo de hoy entendiendo mejor el de hace un siglo。
La Primera Guerra Mundial puso fin a un largo periodo de paz sostenida en Europa: una época en la que se hablaba confiadamente de prosperidad， de progreso y de esperanza。 Y sin embargo， en 1914 el continente se lanzó de cabeza a un conflicto catastrófico， que mató a millones de personas， desangró las economías nacionales， derrumbó imperios y puso fin para siempre a la hegemonía mundial europea。 Fue una guerra que hubiera podido evitarse hasta el último momento。 La pregunta es: ¿por qué se produjo？
Empezando en el siglo XIX y acabando con el asesinato del archiduque Francisco Fernando， la gran historiadora Margaret MacMillan desvela la compleja red de alianzas， cambios políticos y tecnológicos， decisiones diplomáticas y， sobre todo， personalidades y debilidades humanas que llevaron a Europa al desastre。
Una narración imprescindible para conocer el mundo de hoy entendiendo mejor el de hace un siglo。
Reviews
Rebecca
，
The ending was such a complete surprise。
Susan Postill
，
Fascinating and well writtenThis is a great book for understanding the lead up to WW1。 It is non stop fascinating and reads very well in French。
Howard Lenos
，
A very detailed description of the final years and dynamics leading up to World War 1。 It's a tough read， but full of insights and questions to reflect on。 History moves beyond the narrative into practical learning for handling the challenges of our times。 A very detailed description of the final years and dynamics leading up to World War 1。 It's a tough read， but full of insights and questions to reflect on。 History moves beyond the narrative into practical learning for handling the challenges of our times。 。。。more
Gigi Laster
，
A brilliant piece of work。
Christine
，
Two and a half years。 2。5 years to read this book。 Totally worth it。
Ade
，
Thorough and engaging but sometimes tricky to keep tabs on the various different national statesmen。 Often repetitious in what it relates; e。g。 defensive treaties and manoeuvres could often appear offensive to neighbouring states， thus raising tensions - ok I got that the first dozen times。
Franco Pasqualini
，
Highly readable， informative， and entertaining。 Professor MacMillan really brings the characters to life， and what an interesting group of characters they are！ I really enjoyed this book and I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in ww1。
Drew
，
I think I'm finally starting to figure out why WWI started。 Until we get the Balkans。 Then I have no idea。 I think I'm finally starting to figure out why WWI started。 Until we get the Balkans。 Then I have no idea。 。。。more
Kenneth
，
This is a decent though by no means the best history of Europe in the run up to the First World War。 It is thorough， though strangely organized and I don't think it will age well since it relies frequently on analogies to events and actors in the twenty-teens rather than trying to explain the events and factions on their own terms。 Frankly， in my opinion， reading Barbara Tuchman's "The Proud Tower" and "The Guns of August" together would cover the same ground but in a much more structured and in This is a decent though by no means the best history of Europe in the run up to the First World War。 It is thorough， though strangely organized and I don't think it will age well since it relies frequently on analogies to events and actors in the twenty-teens rather than trying to explain the events and factions on their own terms。 Frankly， in my opinion， reading Barbara Tuchman's "The Proud Tower" and "The Guns of August" together would cover the same ground but in a much more structured and informative way。 Still， if you want a very readable history of the period and one that explains the past in terms of the present， this is pretty good。 Tuchman is a bit more detailed and so a heavier lift。 。。。more
Danilo DiPietro
，
Astute analysis of the causes of WWI。 Focuses on the countries and empires who were key players in 1900 and the people within those entities who were tasked with decision making。 Some scary parallels to our times， particularly the UK then and the US now。
George Foord
，
Very interesting read but I found there to be a lot of waffle that could of been cut down。
SatyaAditya B
，
Definitely a lengthy read but was flabbergasted by the insights and thorough details。 Finally found some satisfaction with detailed characterization which lacked with guns of August which most of the times pushes in to the scene without much context。 All land that Britain acquired， all the hunger that German had， all the struggle that France beared to withstand as a global power， and finally all heritage that Europe possess was only to see America ascending it's throne as world leader with a gri Definitely a lengthy read but was flabbergasted by the insights and thorough details。 Finally found some satisfaction with detailed characterization which lacked with guns of August which most of the times pushes in to the scene without much context。 All land that Britain acquired， all the hunger that German had， all the struggle that France beared to withstand as a global power， and finally all heritage that Europe possess was only to see America ascending it's throne as world leader with a grimace at the end 。。。more
Stefan Fergus
，
Excellent。 Accessible， well-researched & argued。
Vinicius Romão
，
Unlimited source of knowledge about the decades and days before the first world war。 The reading need to be done with attention。 The author build context with various different points of view， from England to Austria-Hungary。 It's a life long well made book。 In Portuguese version the title of the book is "The First World War"， it causes a misconception about the content in it。 Unlimited source of knowledge about the decades and days before the first world war。 The reading need to be done with attention。 The author build context with various different points of view， from England to Austria-Hungary。 It's a life long well made book。 In Portuguese version the title of the book is "The First World War"， it causes a misconception about the content in it。 。。。more
Doug
，
A comprehensive Brick。 A ‘prequel’ to Macmillan’s masterpiece， Paris 1919。 Not as famous or informative for our age a century later it nevertheless paints an amazing picture of a grotesque paradox: none of the Combatants wanted the war that came， certainly not with the outcomes that devastated all the parties。
Michael Sommers
，
A long （the audiobook lasts almost as long as the war itself）， detailed account of the events leading up to the First World War。 So much detail that is it sometimes hard to see the forest for the trees。 I was disappointed that there was so little analysis mixed in with the narrative。 There is a lot of recent scholarship on the origins of the war， which is only hinted at here。
Sergio Huaman Kemper
，
Thorough， documented and very well presented in order to better understand the reasons that led Europe to WWI。 Despite being so big， it is quite an enjoyable lecture。
Steven
，
Astounding work in tracking down the history and figures that lead to the First World War。 MacMillan tells a compelling story of leaders without foresight， nationalities built on little foundation and ultimately a world changing and a war that we wished never happened。 Truly incredible。
KB
，
I didn't go into The War that Ended Peace blind。 I've learned about the alliances， and some of pre-war crises， heads of state， and circumstances in the countries involved in the Great War。 But I wanted something much more detailed。 At 645 pages of text， Margaret MacMillan's look into the causes of the First World War provides all the context a reader could want。We begin with a fairly general introduction， which MacMillan concludes by writing: "Most of the copious literature on the events of 1914 I didn't go into The War that Ended Peace blind。 I've learned about the alliances， and some of pre-war crises， heads of state， and circumstances in the countries involved in the Great War。 But I wanted something much more detailed。 At 645 pages of text， Margaret MacMillan's look into the causes of the First World War provides all the context a reader could want。We begin with a fairly general introduction， which MacMillan concludes by writing: "Most of the copious literature on the events of 1914 understandably asks why the Great War broke out。 Perhaps we need to ask another sort of question: why did the long peace not continue？" From here， the book goes into chapters detailing the main countries involved， and then progresses into looking at the several pre-war crises and alliances。 I think it was smart to front-load the book with the profile of each country and then branch out from there。MacMillan is successfully able to show that Europe pre-1914 was quite peaceful with no major wars for some time。 The turn of the century was also a period of progress - but some of this progress put pressure on nations。 You had arms and naval races， the building of railways which would allow troops to be deployed quickly， the development of more accurate and more destructive weapons， and the growing size of armies。 To not keep up was to be left behind。 You also had the issues of empire， and the balance of power in Europe。 And the growing alliance treaties - which were often founded defensively - certainly could look like a threat to those not involved。 There were those that always advocated for war， or at least pushed for it in times of crisis。 Some thought their men were becoming 'weak' and 'soft' and saw war as a way to toughen them up。 Other countries， such as Russia， saw a potential war as a way to unite their people for a common cause。 MacMillan also discusses the popularity of taking the offensive， rather than being on the defensive， in war。 This was something that came to dominate many war plans。 Even the idea of war becoming much longer and drawn out had already been figured by peace activists， politicians and the military。 As Moltke the Elder told the Reichstag back in 1890: "Gentlemen， it may be a war of seven years' or of thirty years' duration - and woe to him who sets Europe alight， who puts the first fuse to the powder keg！"MacMillan leads us through the annexation of Bosnia， the two Moroccan crises and the Balkan Wars， to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand。 We see the ultimatum from Austria-Hungary to Serbia and the resulting mobilizations。 Once the mobilizations began， war seemed inevitable。 A telegram from Bethmann-Hollweg， Germany's chancellor， is as follows: "Kindly impress on M。 Sazanov [Russia's foreign minister] very seriously that further progress of Russian mobilization measures would compel us to mobilize and that then European war would scarcely be prevented。" And such was the case。I obviously can't touch on everything in this review， but MacMillan offers a very detailed look at all the main factors that went into the outbreak of the war。 I can't think of much to nitpick， but one thing I noticed right away （which I see I didn't comment on in my review of MacMillan's War） is that she's clearly not a fan of the Oxford comma。 I can't tell you how many times I had to go back and re-read a sentence because I read it wrong due to the lack of a comma。I didn't find this book to be dry at all。 I'm not saying every single page held my attention with gripping intensity， but MacMillan's account is highly readable - don't let the length put you off。 There was so much going on， and so many people she needed to write about; this book could have easily been unbearably boring。 But MacMillan seems to have a talent for bringing the time period and its people to life in a way that makes them stand out。 Her little anecdotes about these people - although maybe not entirely necessary - humanize them in the best way。 And the organization of information was excellent。I was debating between buying this book or Christopher Clark's The Sleepwalkers。 Both have excellent reviews， so I'm sure you couldn't go wrong either way。 But I can certainly vouch for the quality of MacMillan's comprehensive and very accessible account。 。。。more
Maik Civeira
，
Es una historia de los acontecimientos que llevaron al estallido de la Primera Guerra Mundial。 Con una excelente calidad narrativa， McMillan relata la situación global， pero más concretamente la europea， desde finales del siglo XIX hasta el inicio del conflicto。Con el objetivo de brindarnos la imagen más completa， esta historiadora canadiense aborda la situación en cada una de las potencias beligerantes， analizando su trayectoria y cómo se fueron poniendo en camino hacia el desastre。 La autora n Es una historia de los acontecimientos que llevaron al estallido de la Primera Guerra Mundial。 Con una excelente calidad narrativa， McMillan relata la situación global， pero más concretamente la europea， desde finales del siglo XIX hasta el inicio del conflicto。Con el objetivo de brindarnos la imagen más completa， esta historiadora canadiense aborda la situación en cada una de las potencias beligerantes， analizando su trayectoria y cómo se fueron poniendo en camino hacia el desastre。 La autora no sólo se cuida de la historia política， sino que se ocupa de elaborar perfiles biográficos y de personalidad de quienes fueran los protagonistas del conflicto: políticos， estadistas， militares， activistas， etc。También dedica amplios espacios para exponer las ideas， posturas filosóficas y corrientes ideológicas que estaban en voga en aquellos tiempos y que influyeron en gobernantes y poblaciones， y todo un capítulo tiene por tema la derrota del pacifismo。Es un excelente libro， de ágil y cautivante lectura a pesar de su extensión （más de 700 páginas）， y debo decir que me encantó。 Además de ser una autoridad en el tema， McMillan es una excelente comunicadora。 Con la habilidad de una novelista， va construyendo el momento climático （el mismo estallido de la guerra）， mostrando a sus lectores cómo todas las piezas van cayendo en su lugar。Pero tampoco pretende limitarse a exponer de forma fría e impersonal， sino que constantemente hace énfasis en las lecciones que nuestra sociedad contemporánea puede extraer de esta historia， y sin temor a ser acusada de tendenciosa， señala los paralelismos entre el tiempo que vivimos y los años en que Europa se precipitó al desastre。 La autora hace notar que Inglaterra y Alemania eran los principales socios comerciales el uno del otro， por lo que aquel principio de que el comercio es el mejor preventivo para la guerra， de que "no bombardearía al tipo que hizo mi automóvil" en realidad no siempre es muy confiable。 También se refiere al optimismo existente en aquella época， pues había muchos que creían que la guerra misma era un concepto superado， caduco， del pasado， que las guerras entre grandes potencias， entre naciones civilizadas， ya eran imposibles。 Estas lecciones merecen ser escuchadas， dados los tiempos conflictivos que vivimos。 Como dice McMillan hacia el final de obra: siempre hubo otras opciones que no fueran la guerra。 。。。more
Scott Kearns
，
Riveting
Conor
，
Long read， giving a detailed look into the various personalities （essentially all male） responsible for the lead up and opening stages of WW1。 At times the names melted into one another， and I found myself being bogged down。 But， particularly towards the end， the one-upmanship and almost resigned attitude of many of the involved makes for a compelling history。 Quotes:People no more believed in the possibility of barbaric relapses， such as wars between the nations of Europe， than they believed in Long read， giving a detailed look into the various personalities （essentially all male） responsible for the lead up and opening stages of WW1。 At times the names melted into one another， and I found myself being bogged down。 But， particularly towards the end， the one-upmanship and almost resigned attitude of many of the involved makes for a compelling history。 Quotes:People no more believed in the possibility of barbaric relapses， such as wars between the nations of Europe， than they believed in ghosts and witches; our fathers were doggedly convinced of the infallibly binding power of tolerance and conciliation。 （This aged well。。。）（regarding extension of franchise in Britain） Salisbury did not like the changes even though he was clearly one of the more fortunate ones。 "Things that have been secure for centuries，" he said， "are secure no longer。" Mass democracy was undermining the traditional upper classes and this was bad for society。 "He thought and fought for his order，" said his fellow politician Lord George Hamilton， "not to ensure to them privileges or exemptions， but because he believed their maintenance did supply the best material for sound and reliable government。" Salisbury sought office， so Hamilton believed， solely for the promotion of his country's welfare。 Economic and social changes that had taken a century or more in western Europe were compressed into a generation in Russia。 And Russia did not have strongly developed and deeply rooted institutions that might have helped to absorb and manage the changes。 （Regarding Izvolsky， Russian foreign minister after Lamsdorff） One well-connected widow who turned him down was later asked if she regretted having missed the chance to marry someone who had done so well。 "I have regretted it every day，" she replied， "but congratulated myself every night。"（Regarding bureaucracy in Austria-Hungary in the years leading up to the war） In Austria alone there were 3 million civil servants for a total population of some 28 million。 。。。 A single tax payment in Vienna went through the hands of twenty-seven different officials。 In the Adriatic province of Dalmatia， a commission set up to report on ways to improve the bureaucracy discovered that the collection of direct taxes cost twice as much as it raised。 With a battered straw hat on his head， Juares strolled along completely unselfconsciously， said MacDonald， "like a youth upon a new world， or a strolling player who had mastered fate and discovered how to fill the moments with happy unconcern。"（Regarding the Balkan Wars， and an investigation by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace） The Commission's report noted with dismay the tendency of the warring peoples to portray their enemies as subhuman and the all-too-frequent atrocities committed against both enemy soldiers and civilians。 "In the older civilizations，" the report said， "there is a synthesis of moral and social forces embodied in laws and institutions giving stability of character， forming public sentiment， and making for security。"Since deterrence only works if the other side thinks you are prepared house force， there is always the likelihood of going too far and starting a conflict by accident--or of losing credibility by failing to follow through on a threat。 And honor， as nations called it then （we might say prestige today）， was a part of that calculation。 The great powers were conscious of their status as much as of their interests and being too willing to make concessions of appearing timid could be damaging to that。 And the events of the decade before 1914 seemed to show that deterrence worked， whether it was Britain and France forcing Germany to back down over Morocco or Russia's mobilization putting pressure on Austria-Hungary to leave Serbia alone during the Balkan wars。 An English word which was used frequently in those days entered the German language as der Bluff。 But what do you do when your bluff is called？（Grey， after giving a rousing speech imploring Britain to support France） "The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime。" 。。。more
Dragos Pătraru
，
Vă voi povesti despre cea mai bună carte pe care am citit-o nu neapărat despre Primul Război Mondial， cât despre lumea în care se naște Primul Război Mondial și despre personajele care populau viața publică a lumii la sfârșit de secol XIX și început de secol XX。Anul 1900 găsește lumea civilizată aproape beată de optimism tehnologic și de o nesfârșită întindere de pace care se zărea în față。Expoziția Universală de la Paris din aprilie 1900 a fost un real succes: peste 50 de milioane de oameni i-a Vă voi povesti despre cea mai bună carte pe care am citit-o nu neapărat despre Primul Război Mondial， cât despre lumea în care se naște Primul Război Mondial și despre personajele care populau viața publică a lumii la sfârșit de secol XIX și început de secol XX。Anul 1900 găsește lumea civilizată aproape beată de optimism tehnologic și de o nesfârșită întindere de pace care se zărea în față。Expoziția Universală de la Paris din aprilie 1900 a fost un real succes: peste 50 de milioane de oameni i-au călcat pragul。 Să vadă ce？ Să vadă cu ce se laudă statele lumii。 Mai toate statele au mers pe glorificarea trecutului。Mi s-a părut haios că， oarecum de nicăieri， cea mai tânără putere a lumii， Germania， apărută abia la 1871， a venit cu un exponat care privea mai degrabă spre viitor: o macara gigantică în stare să ridice 25 de mii de kilograme。Celebrul ghid Hachette， scria atunci că toate popoarele lumii ”și-au adunat minunățiile și comorile pentru a ne prezenta arte necunoscute， descoperiri uitate și pentru a concura cu noi într-un mod pașnic， astfel încât Progresul （da， da， cu P mare） să nu își diminueze ritmul cuceririlor。”Da， progresul era Wow， descoperirile tehnologice curgeau una după alta。 Așa că MacMillan ne descrie destul de limpede starea de spirit optimistă a începutului de mileniu。 De unde război atunci？Majoritatea popoarelor lumii， bineînțeles， aveau exponate la Expoziția Internațională din 1900 doar că multe dintre ele erau coloniile altor state。Margaret MacMillan tematizează perfect zic eu felul în care colonialismul mai degrabă decât dorința de autodeterminare a națiunilor a fost marea problemă care a împins lumea în haos。 Principala problemă a fost disputa Germania - Anglia。Germania devenise în scurt timp o fantastică putere economică。 O putere însă care nu putea să joace la nivel global pentru că nu avea colonii。 Cât despre ieșirea la mare， ce să mai zicem， ca litoralul românesc。Se născuse prea târziu， jaful se întâmplase deja， ca să zic așa， lumea fusese deja împărțită。 Ghinion， cum ar spune cineva。De-acum， Anglia sau Franța nu făceau decât să perpetueze o situație de fapt pe care o prezentau ca fiind cumva ”naturală”。 Teritoriile pe care le dețineau pe glob parcă le fuseseră lăsate direct din cer。 Cu acte pe ele， intabulare， tot。După Primul Război Mondial， într-un acces de sinceritate， Winston Churchill sintetizează perfect poziția Angliei în problema colonială: ”Am acaparat pentru noi înșine， într-o perioadă în care alte națiuni puternice erau paralizate de barbarie sau războaie interne， un procent disproporționat din avuția și comerțul lumii。 Am obținut tot ce ne-am dorit în materie de teritorii， iar pretenția noastră de a ne bucura fără griji de posesiuni vaste și splendide， dobândite în mare parte prin violență， menținute de cele mai multe ori prin forță， pare adesea pentru alții mai puțin rezonabilă decât ni se pare nouă。”Ei bine， da。 Chiar asta se întâmplase。Kaizerul Wilhelm al II-lea ceruse pentru Germania un loc sub soare。 Și nimeni nu a fost de acord。Încet， dar sigur și atât de logic， cum numai istoria poate fi când devine înspăimântătoare， Europa și lumea întreagă s-a îndreptat spre război。 Am putea spune că totul începe cu ziua în care Kaizerul și apropiații iau hotărârea de a construi o flotă puternică。 Exact， în acei ani nu construiai o flotă decât dacă aveai să le spui ceva de mamă sau de Regină englezilor。Cum spuneam， Europa mergea spre război atât de logic， deși totul arăta contrariul。 Și ce ironie， în 1859， regina Victoria a Marii Britanii îi scria unchiului ei Leopold， regele Belgiei， următoarele: ”mi se frânge inima că nu pot fi prezentă la botezul primului meu nepot”。 Era vorba de însuși Wilhelm al II-lea， speranța de mare prietenie dintre Anglia și Germania。De multe ori se fac asemănări între Primul și cel de-al Doilea Război Mondial。 Ele nu există， pur și simplu。 Mai mult de atât: lumile în care ele au loc sunt cu totul altele。Nu putem spune despre Wilhelm că este un dement rasist care la un moment dat și-a propus să cucerească lumea。 Nici pe departe， dacă vreți， Primul Război Mondial a fost mai pe biznis decât ne-am putea imagina: Germania cerea să fie la masa bogaților， să joace în Champions League-ul istoriei， să i se dea și ei niște bucăți din lumea asta。 Da， naționalismele au ”ajutat”， au potențat conflictele și， după cum știm， la Sarajevo， au apăsat pe trăgaci。Încă un lucru pe care MacMillan îl accentuează în carte: Europa se îndrepta spre război， dar nu știa ce a devenit între timp acela un război。 Tinerii soldați plecau în august 1914 pe front având convingerea că vor petrece Crăciunul alături de familie。Europenii nu au luat aminte deloc la războiul Civil American - ar fi aflat de acolo că sârma ghimpată， tranșeele și puterea de foc a armelor moderne schimbă regulile luptei cu totul。Măcelul care avea să urmeze a îngrozit generații întregi。 Asta însă nu i-a oprit pe politicieni ca la finalul războiului să încheie un asemenea tratat cu Germania încât să pregătească un nou Război Mondial。Dar， na， poate așa sunt unii， simt ceva când văd că se prăbușesc lumi， așa cum simțea se pare Winston Churchill， un tip care a prins și partea a doua。 El îi scria soției: ”Draga mea， totul pare să se îndrepte spre catastrofă și prăbușire。 Sunt plin de curiozitate， surescitat și fericit。”Au murit 9 milioane de combatanți și 7 milioane de civili。Așadar vă recomand Margaret MacMillan， cu ”Războiul care a pus capăt păcii”。 Și celelalte cărți ale ei asemenea。 。。。more
Magdalena
，
A bit heavy going at times， but wonderfully explained， and incredibly well-researched。
Fábio Ferreira
，
O livro apresenta um detalhamento minucioso sobre os eventos importantes que antecederam a grande guerra。 Descreve a corrida naval da Alemanha contra a Inglaterra， os conflitos entre Alemanha e França por causa das crises no Marrocos， os atritos entre Áustria-Hungria e Rússia motivados pelas guerras balcânicas， culminando com a assassinato do Arquiduque Franz Ferdinand em Sarajevo。 Em seu último capítulo mostra a tensão que foi nas embaixadas e ministérios do exterior com os ultimatos e declaraç O livro apresenta um detalhamento minucioso sobre os eventos importantes que antecederam a grande guerra。 Descreve a corrida naval da Alemanha contra a Inglaterra， os conflitos entre Alemanha e França por causa das crises no Marrocos， os atritos entre Áustria-Hungria e Rússia motivados pelas guerras balcânicas， culminando com a assassinato do Arquiduque Franz Ferdinand em Sarajevo。 Em seu último capítulo mostra a tensão que foi nas embaixadas e ministérios do exterior com os ultimatos e declarações de guerra。 。。。more
Jeremy
，
A magisterial and masterly account of the events leading to the outbreak of the First World War。 Brilliantly written， displaying impressive research and scholarship and convincingly demonstrating that there were multiple causes behind war breaking out in August 1914， and that if it hadn't happened then it probably would have occurred anyway with some other trigger。 But Germany does appear to have been the underlying problem。 Chilling parallels with Japan and the USA in World War 2 and the USA an A magisterial and masterly account of the events leading to the outbreak of the First World War。 Brilliantly written， displaying impressive research and scholarship and convincingly demonstrating that there were multiple causes behind war breaking out in August 1914， and that if it hadn't happened then it probably would have occurred anyway with some other trigger。 But Germany does appear to have been the underlying problem。 Chilling parallels with Japan and the USA in World War 2 and the USA and China today 。。。more
Michael Perkins
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“History doesn’t repeat itself， but human nature remains the same。” ― Ken BurnsIn this sense， history always has something to teach us。 For starters， social darwinism was the ideology behind the foolish thirst for war， as covered in this other book。https://www。latimes。com/archives/la-x。。。=====“Woe to the Country That Has a Child for King！” （Ecclesiastes 10:16）The author， a British historian， begins with the UK perspective。 But the big character of this book is Kaiser Wilhelm II， a very Trump-lik “History doesn’t repeat itself， but human nature remains the same。” ― Ken BurnsIn this sense， history always has something to teach us。 For starters， social darwinism was the ideology behind the foolish thirst for war， as covered in this other book。https://www。latimes。com/archives/la-x。。。=====“Woe to the Country That Has a Child for King！” （Ecclesiastes 10:16）The author， a British historian， begins with the UK perspective。 But the big character of this book is Kaiser Wilhelm II， a very Trump-like personality。 The difference is that he focused his aggression outward， resulting in a disastrous war。 But like Trump， he did what he wanted without the consent of the people。 https://blog。oup。com/2017/10/american。。。Some quotes from the book。。。。It was Europe’s and the world’s tragedy in retrospect that none of the key players in 1914 were great and imaginative leaders who had the courage to stand out against the pressures building up for war。The established power is too often arrogant， lecturing the rest of the world about how to manage its affairs， and too often insensitive to the fears and concerns of lesser powers。 Such a power， as Britain was then， and the United States is today， inevitably resists its own intimations of mortality and the rising one is impatient to get its fair share of whatever is on offer， whether colonies， trade， resources or influence。“We learnt，” said a distinguished British soldier， “to believe the English were the salt of the earth and England the first and greatest country in the world。 Our confidence in her powers and our utter disbelief in the possibility of any earthly Power vanquishing her， became a fixed idea which nothing could eradicate and no gloom dispel。”Tirpitz made three crucial assumptions: that the British would not notice that Germany was developing a big navy; that Britain would not and could not respond by outbuilding Germany （among other things， Tirpitz assumed that the British could not afford a big increase in their naval budget）; and that， while being pressured into making friends with Germany， Britain would not decide to look for friends elsewhere。 He was wrong about all three。The naval race between Germany and Britain helped to lead Europe towards the Great War。 Germany’s decision to challenge British naval supremacy caused the British to respond both by increased naval spending and by mending fences with Britain’s old antagonists France。Franz Ferdinand spoke for many Austrian conservatives， blamed the Jews for the end of the old hierarchical society which had been based on sound Christian principles。 In both the Austrian and German officer corps the mood seems to have been one of pessimism about the future of their way of life。 That may well have affected the willingness of the leading generals to go to war in 1914。 As the Prussian Minister of War， General Erich von Falkenhayn， said on August 4 as the war became a general one: “Even if we will perish， it was nice。”In the years before 1914 the eugenics movement， advocating the breeding and cultivation of human beings as if they were cattle or vegetables， also found considerable support among political and intellectual elites。In Vienna， the rising politician Karl Lueger discovered that he could mobilize the lower classes by appealing to their fears of change and capitalism， their resentment of the prosperous middle classes， and their hatred of Jews。 His abilities as a political organizer impressed the young Adolf Hitler who had moved to Vienna in 1907。The sort of war which they mostly envisaged， though， was one that was increasingly anachronistic as the nineteenth century wore on。 The European military looked back to the great soldiers of the past for inspiration: Alexander the Great， Julius Caesar and， closer in time， such figures as Frederick the Great or Napoleon。 And the modern-day soldiers longed to emulate the great attacks of the past with their infantry assaults， their hand-to-hand fighting and their cavalry charges。 Death in battle was “life’s ultimate reward”In Germany， it has been estimated， most of the novels written for adolescents before the Great War dealt with the nation’s great military past， from the defeat of a Roman army by Germanic tribes to the wars of unification。Like losing gamblers who saw no way out except to put everything on a throw of the dice or a spin of the roulette wheel， too many of Europe’s military planners， like the Germans， suppressed their own doubts and put their faith in a short decisive war。The warnings of experts such as Ivan Bloch and Moltke himself or of pacifists such as Bertha von Suttner and Jean Jaurès that offensives would end in stalemates with neither side strong enough to overcome the other， while societies were drained of their resources， from men to munitions， were forgotten， at least for the time being， as the European powers marched into war。In 1916 alone Russia’s summer offensive produced 1。4 million casualties; 400，000 Italians were taken prisoner in Conrad’s offensive in the Dolomites against Italy; and there were 57，000 British casualties on July 1， the first day of the Somme， and by the battle’s end in November 650，000 Allied dead， wounded or missing along with 400，000 Germans。By the time the war ended on November 11， 1918， sixty-five million men had fought and eight and a half million had been killed。 Eight million were prisoners or simply missing。 Twenty-one million had been wounded。As Germany’s armies met defeat in the summer of 1918， the German public， which had been kept in the dark by Hindenburg and Ludendorff， who now dominated the civilian government， reacted angrily against the whole endeavor。The nationalist passions which sustained Europeans during the war had also led to the wanton killing of civilians， whether by Germans in Belgium， the Russians in Galicia or the Austrians in Bosnia。 Occupying armies had rounded up civilians for forced labor and driven out those of the “wrong” ethnicity。 After the war， in much of Europe politics were marked by violence， with frequent assassinations and pitched battles between opposing parties。Why did this war happen？First， a failure of imagination in not seeing how destructive such a conflict would be and second， their lack of courage to stand up to those who said there was no choice left but to go to war。 。。。more
Will Holby
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Thick， dry， skin peeling history at it's best and worst。 I now feel that I understand why WWI happened and why it's important blah blah blah， but I also feel a hundred years older。 I should have postponed reading this thing till I was 90+ years old with a glass scotch in my hand。 If you're thinking of picking this up， I recommend the film "1917" instead。 Thick， dry， skin peeling history at it's best and worst。 I now feel that I understand why WWI happened and why it's important blah blah blah， but I also feel a hundred years older。 I should have postponed reading this thing till I was 90+ years old with a glass scotch in my hand。 If you're thinking of picking this up， I recommend the film "1917" instead。 。。。more
Cullen
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 So far the book has been excellent and I would recommended it to anyone who likes to read about the great war and how it started。 the amount of pages might look challenging but the book keeps you reading。
Reader Variety
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