Stalin's Wars: From World War to Cold War, 1939-1953This breakthrough book provides a detailed reconstruction of Stalin's leadership from the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 to his death in 1953. Making use of a wealth of new material from Russian archives, Geoffrey Roberts challenges a long list of standard perceptions of Stalin: his qualities as a leader; his relationships with his own generals and with other great world leaders; his foreign policy; and his role in instigating the Cold War. While frankly exploring the full extent of Stalin's brutalities and their impact on the Soviet people, Roberts also uncovers evidence leading to the stunning conclusion that Stalin was both the greatest military leader of the twentieth century and a remarkable politician who sought to avoid the Cold War and establish a long-term detente with the capitalist world. By means of an integrated military, political, and diplomatic narrative, the author draws a sustained and compelling personal portrait of the Soviet leader. The resulting picture is fascinating and contradictory, and it will inevitably change the way we understand Stalin and his place in history. Roberts depicts a despot who helped save the world for democracy, a personal charmer who disciplined mercilessly, a utopian ideologue who could be a practical realist, and a warlord who undertook the role of architect of post-war peace. |
From inside the book
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... August 1939. Stalin and Molotov stand in the background. Interfoto. Stalin and members of the Politburo on their way to a parade in Red Square. AKG Images. Hitler and his generals. AKG Images. Text of Stalin's radio broadcast of 3 July ...
... August–September 1939 2 The Soviet–Finnish War, 1939–1940 3 Soviet Plans for Offensive War Against Germany, 1941 4 Operation Barbarossa, June–December 1941 5 German Encirclement of Soviet Troops, 1941 6 The Soviet Counter-Offensive at ...
From World War to Cold War, 1939-1953 Geoffrey Roberts. 1939 23 August 1 September 3 September 17 September 28 September 5 October 10 October 30 November 1940 5 March 12 March 9 April 10 June 22 June 25 ... August Chronology of Major Events.
... August 25 August 26 August 10 September 8 November 19 November 23 November 1943 10 January 18 January 24 January 31 January Stalin becomes Supreme Commander Soviet–British Agreement on joint action against Germany German capture of ...
... August 21 August–28 September 5 September 9 September 12 September 19 September 2 October 9–18 October 20 October 28 October 2–10 December 10 December 16–24 December 1945 4 January 12 January 17 January Rostov recaptured by the Red Army ...
Contents
Stalin and his Generals | |
Stalin Churchill and Roosevelt | |
Stalins Year of Victories | |
Stalins Aims in Germany and Eastern Europe | |
Stalin Truman and the End of the Second World | |
Stalin and the Origins of the Cold | |
The Domestic Context of Stalins Postwar Foreign Policy | |
Stalin Embattled | |
Stalin in the Court of History | |
Select Bibliography | 1957 |
Index | 1975 |