The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914

With the centennial of the outbreak of Wortd War I upon us, a torrent of books on the topic has been unleashed. When I clicked on "The War That Ended Peace" in Amazon, two other major histories on the prelude to the War popped up at the bottom of the page (Clark's "Sleepwalkers" and Harris' "Catastrophe 1914", and Amazon shows 16 PAGES of books on the War due for publication next year. That list will surely grow. So why read this one? Because it is as good as all the glowing reviews suggest, for three reasons. The history is excellent. The writing is excellent. And the book makes the reader think. To begin with the history, Ms. MacMillan is a noted historian with no need to prove her mastery of this period. She studied history at Oxford, focussing on the late 19th and early 20th centuries, has taught on the period and on international relations in particular, and is widely published. But for me, what stood out about the history in this book wasn't the qualifications of the writer, but the vividness with which she used sources from the period, and her thoroughness in trying to make clear each point of view in each crisis. Her analysis demonstrates the extent to which individuals had an impact on Europe's progress from peace to war, and she brings this out in vivid sketches of the key men of the time (only a few women, mostly wives, but that's the way it was). As to the writing, she is very clear about very complex events, a difficult and most welcome accomplishment. More than that, her writing is a pleasure to read. It pulled me along despite all the names and places and military rumblings. Finally, as to her ideas, Ms. MacMillan makes it clear that she does not believe that the FIrst World War was inevitable. That is a bitterly argued point in historiography, with many arguing that nothing could have been done to stop it. If World War 1 was indeed inevitable, it does not have many lessons for the current day: we, presumably, have our own inevitabilities, which will continue peace (for some, at least) or move us into war. But if World War ! was not inevitable, one can study the choices and decisions that helped bring it about, in the hope of learning from past mistakes. Ms. MacMillan clearly thinks that this is appropriate, noting that there are some similiarities between the world of 1914, and the world of today.I can't compare this book to the other two "big" entrants in the how-Wortd-War-I began stakes, or indeed to Barbara Tuchman's "Guns of August", which I read too long ago to remember in any detail. But I do intend to reread Tuchman, and to read "Sleepwalkers" and "Catastrophe 1914". After doing so, I may revise my review of "The War the Ended Peace". I shall be very surprised, however, if I revise my very high opinion of it.

What follows is not meant as a criticism of the book, which is an extraordinary piece of research, monumental in scope and deep in knowledge, making very clear why peace ended. The immersion of the author into the events and the level of details are astonishing. This review is meant to warn the reader of the efforts necessary to take full advantage of the book.The major contribution of the work is the detailed and pertinent description of the main characters their weakness, follies, their basic humanity that helps to understand how we got there, which gives you a feel for why they made (failed to make) the decisions that ended peace. Terrifying thing is that things are not much different with our leaders. The details of the buildup, the plans, and the rivalries are masterfully described. So little is said about the internal situation of Serbia and on their leaders in the months before the war broke, like if it did not play a role in the conflict.The major problem of the book is it excessive repetition that wears the reader down. How many times we need to be reminded that Russia had an alliance with France or that there was an arms race between the navies of Germany and Britain, or that Britain did not want to commit to anything, or that Russia was not ready for the war. It makes it look as if chapters were written by different hands that have not read each other. Granted, to edit these repetitions into a more coherent whole would be an almost impossible task in a volume of this magnitude, but it makes you wonder if the publication was rushed and there was no time for editing.The books makes an extensive use of quotes from correspondence and conversations at the time, which gives you confidence that the analysis is done as if the outcome was not known, i.e. without the benefit of hindsight. Nevertheless, there is the real risk of choosing the quotes to benefit one's own story. Some of them seem very selective indeed.It looks as if one has collected tons of notes and then goes on to fit them in the narrative.Some chapter are developed based on themes, some are more chronological, which makes following the events a bit complicated. The book goes back and forth in time throughout the 10-20 years preceding the outbreak, sometimes even within the chronological chapters. It is hard to keep track where we are and the relationship between the many events.Obviously for a story covering several decades and many countries a very large number of characters are involved. Some characters are described in detail even when their roles are very minor, others are just named but had a key role (anything about Alexander Hoyos? why are Beatrice and Sidney Webb mentioned at the beginning of Chapter 19?) The book would have benefit from having a list of names and roles (Wikipedia and Google become indispensable companions)The book should be read in as shorter time as possible. If you stop for a few days, you may lose track of the events that were unfolding and who the characters are. There is so much going on, sometimes too much detail in side events which in the overall view of the outcomes are rather irrelevant.But all in all, it is and extraordinary description of the events leading to the loss of peace.Now, to read what happened during the war, go read The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman.

This massive volume, densely researched, and at times challenging, is well worth the read. I started it last year, put it down several times, then finished last week. A lot to absorb, this tome, with many characters moving across the political and diplomatic events of Europe that lead up to the outbreak of the Great War.Fortunately Margaret MacMillan has the skill to quickly portray the many politicians, monarchs, and side characters of the 20 or so years of never-ending minor crises and Balkan wars before 1914. People we might not be familiar with she easily describes in a few sentences so we understand them immediately.For instance, here she is on Raymond Poincaré, the French Prime Minister: "The opposite of flamboyant, he was small, neat, fussy, and precise. He was also clever and exceptionally hardworking". Or Vladimir Sukhomlinov, the Russian War Minister: "He was devious, ruthless, and charming. Although he was short and bald, many women found him irresistible".Could the Great War have been avoided? Probably, but the excruciating diplomatic tug-of-war between nations to not go to war was exhausted by the military plans ready to go. Lord Grey, the British Foreign Minister was particularly pathetic in his non committal positions and avoidance of supporting one party or the other. It was supposed to be a swift war, they believed, but it wasn't and it destroyed their so called old order completely.One thing I do not understand is the choice of cover photograph, of a young Winston Churchill with Kaiser Wilhelm II. Yet Churchill is only mentioned 16 times in this 649 page book, mostly near the end but here he is, as though he was a major figure during this period. He was not. That came much later.

Excelente levantamento de todos os aspectos que conduziram a primeira guerra mundial. Em particular, a descrição das personalidades dos líderes e/ou monarcas da época e como isto influenciou o conflito.

Educating and interesting...will recommend to be read by all Europeans

Un excelente recit bien documenté tre fácil a retenerIl I’m’a beaucoup aide a preparer mes conferences et traveaux academiques et universitaires de divulgation

The lead up to the First World War is dramatically explained. Declining Empires pitted against the ambitions of new nations. I draw parallels with the modern era, China rising the USA and Europe declining, the circumstances leading to war, now we have COVID19 in the mix.