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Customer Review
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2020
Pat Buchanan has done a great service for us all by taking a hard look at the true cost of war. This book is arguably THE prime cautionary tale of the 20th century.
It’s clear from reading this history of the events triggering two catastrophic 20th century wars that our world today would’ve been radically different had these wars in question been avoided.
What’s also clear is that leaders of the that time who continue to be lionized today do not deserve the praise they receive. Winston Churchill, though brilliant and with many strengths, created so much unnecessary trouble for his country, the European contingent and the world. To press further, Churchill probably deserves as much shame as he receives in honors. Churchill himself would probably agree that he deserves more criticism, as he hinted in his twilight years, that history may not be kind to his legacy, nor should it.
Adolph Hitler, a fanatical monster who did far more harm to his own people, wasn’t the cartoonish warmongering conquerer we are taught he was. That title most assuredly belonged to his nemesis Churchill. Rife with his own share of stupid mistakes that harmed his own people, Hitler repeatedly sought peace. His true problem lay to his east with Joseph Stalin, Buchanan argues. The British would’ve been wiser to encourage a conflict between Nazis and Communists, while sparing themselves and the world from the carnage to come. Hitler, to simplify, wanted to reverse the hyper punitive measures wrought from the Versailles Treaty. He wanted to make Germany a respectable power again, but also surprisingly didn’t want a German navy that would challenge the Britain’s Royal Navy, hardly the mark of a megalomaniac bent on world domination.
This book is so vital as an historical work because it illustrates in tragic detail the origins of these two world wars, the damage they caused and how one war connected to the other, all while chronicling the diplomatic errors of judgment, communication mishaps, absence of vision and brinksmanship resulting in total destruction of the political order. All leaders involved from each war’s period elected to play stupid, dangerous games and won stupid, dangerous prizes, to the detriment of us all.
What an indispensable work this turned out to be. If this book was widely taught, it would prevent further tragedies.
It’s clear from reading this history of the events triggering two catastrophic 20th century wars that our world today would’ve been radically different had these wars in question been avoided.
What’s also clear is that leaders of the that time who continue to be lionized today do not deserve the praise they receive. Winston Churchill, though brilliant and with many strengths, created so much unnecessary trouble for his country, the European contingent and the world. To press further, Churchill probably deserves as much shame as he receives in honors. Churchill himself would probably agree that he deserves more criticism, as he hinted in his twilight years, that history may not be kind to his legacy, nor should it.
Adolph Hitler, a fanatical monster who did far more harm to his own people, wasn’t the cartoonish warmongering conquerer we are taught he was. That title most assuredly belonged to his nemesis Churchill. Rife with his own share of stupid mistakes that harmed his own people, Hitler repeatedly sought peace. His true problem lay to his east with Joseph Stalin, Buchanan argues. The British would’ve been wiser to encourage a conflict between Nazis and Communists, while sparing themselves and the world from the carnage to come. Hitler, to simplify, wanted to reverse the hyper punitive measures wrought from the Versailles Treaty. He wanted to make Germany a respectable power again, but also surprisingly didn’t want a German navy that would challenge the Britain’s Royal Navy, hardly the mark of a megalomaniac bent on world domination.
This book is so vital as an historical work because it illustrates in tragic detail the origins of these two world wars, the damage they caused and how one war connected to the other, all while chronicling the diplomatic errors of judgment, communication mishaps, absence of vision and brinksmanship resulting in total destruction of the political order. All leaders involved from each war’s period elected to play stupid, dangerous games and won stupid, dangerous prizes, to the detriment of us all.
What an indispensable work this turned out to be. If this book was widely taught, it would prevent further tragedies.
