The Fall of Tsarism reveals to the world for the first time a unique selection of interviews with leading participants in the February Revolution in Petrograd; sources that have been hidden for most of a century. Focusing on the pivotal period between the outbreak of the popular uprising on 27 February 1917 and the fall of the Russian monarchy five days later; these gripping; plain-spoken testimonies take the reader directly to the revolutionary headquarters inside the Tauride Palace. The interviews present wide-ranging perspectives on the events; politics; and personalities of the February Days from a diverse group of key political figures as well as lesser-known activists; including: M.V. Rodzianko; the conservative president of the last Imperial Duma; P.V. Gerasimov; the liberal Duma deputy; N.S. Chkheidze; leading Menshevik and the first chairman of the Petrograd Soviet; A.F. Kerenskii; the future revolutionary premier; and M.I. Tereshchenko; the 'repentant capitalist' and Provisional Government minister.Recorded between 1 May and 7 June 1917; months before the Bolshevik takeover -at a time when the outcome of the revolution was far from obvious - the interviews are free of any post-1917 hindsight and represent the most significant contemporary testimony on the overthrow of Europe's last old regime.The original transcripts; which remained in private hands between 1917 and 2006; appear here for the first time. The story of the interviews is told in the introduction; including their incredible survival through many of the twentieth-century's wars and revolutions. The book also contains historical annotations; short biographical sketches on the interviewees; rare illustrations; maps; a glossary; and a chronology of events; placing this unique documentary collection in its wider historical context.
#893356 in Books 2015-07-07Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 6.10 x 1.80 x 9.10l; .0 #File Name: 0198738331828 pages
Review
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. greatBy Lee-AnneItem not for light reading but full of information19 of 20 people found the following review helpful. Expensive- And Worth Every Last Penny.By Harry W. HendleyI did a double take at the outlandish price of this work- then took the plunge and purchased the first three volumes in a special set. Having just finished volume one; I'd say that my money was well spent. The authors have combined to produce a truly outstanding work on the political; military; and economic factors behind Hitler's unleashing the Second World War in Europe. Note that the reading can be somewhat "dry" at times; however; this work is not for the casual reader of military history. It is; instead; for those who wish to know how the Nazis:1. Managed to bring together the various right-wing political bodies under National Socialist control so as to eventually make the Nazi's the largest and most powerful party in Germany.2. Forged; under Hitler's leadership; an alliance between the national socialist party; the senior membership of the armed forces; and the leaders of Germany's industrial firms which had- from the very outset of national socialist leadership- the clearly understood objective of large-scale rearmament and eventual war in Europe.3. Gradually and systematically mobilized ALL of Germany's industrial; natural; and manpower resources in a peacetime re-armament drive that is without parallel in any capitalist nation in human history- with the so-called issue of "guns or butter" never actually being an issue at all.4. Made unprecedented use of propaganda to hoodwink both the mass of the German people and foreign observers as to Hitler's ultimate objectives regarding Europe and the Soviet Union.The authors also resolve the seemingly contradictory issues of "slack" in the pre-war German economy with the unreadiness of the German Armed forces for war in 1939 by illustrating Germany's lack of sufficient critical strategic resources as well as the foreign currency to pay for them.The reader should understand that this merely scratches the surface of this one volume; which is a mass of detail masterfully written. As far as I can make out; the authors have no pre-conceived notions to confirm of dispel; and have clearly shown why the Nazis are; indeed; a warning from history. This multi-volume series has a place on the bookshelf of any serious student of the Second World War; and I heartily recommend it.
