Turning Point 1917

For the British Empire and its allies of the Great War, 1917 was a year marked by crises. But here and there glimmers of light pierced the gloom. Soldiers began solving the problems posed by trench warfare. The dominions asserted themselves in the councils of imperial power. And the US finally entered the war. This book examines the British imperial war effort during the most pivotal and dynamic twelve months of the war. Written by internationally recognized historians, its chapters explore military, diplomatic, and domestic aspects of how the empire prosecuted the war. Their rich, nuanced analysis transcends narrow, national viewpoints to provide a multi-faceted perspective of events that laid the groundwork for victory.

For the British Empire and its allies of the Great War, 1917 was a year marked by crises. But here and there glimmers of light pierced the gloom. Soldiers began solving the problems posed by trench warfare. The dominions asserted themselves in the councils of imperial power. And the US finally entered the war. This book examines the British imperial war effort during the most pivotal and dynamic twelve months of the war. Written by internationally recognized historians, its chapters explore military, diplomatic, and domestic aspects of how the empire prosecuted the war. Their rich, nuanced analysis transcends narrow, national viewpoints to provide a multi-faceted perspective of events that laid the groundwork for victory.

During a pivotal few months in the middle of the First World War all sides-Germany, Britain, and America-believed the war could be concluded. Peace at the end of 1916 would have saved millions of lives and changed the course of history utterly. Two years into the most terrible conflict the world had ever known, the warring powers faced a crisis. There were no good military options. Money, men, and supplies were running short on all sides. The German chancellor secretly sought President Woodrow Wilson's mediation to end the war, just as British ministers and France's president also concluded that the time was right. The Road Less Traveled describes how tantalizingly close these far-sighted statesmen came to ending the war, saving millions of lives, and avoiding the total war that dimmed hopes for a better world. Theirs was a secret battle that is only now becoming fully understood, a story of civic courage, awful responsibility, and how some leaders rose to the occasion while others shrank from it or chased other ambitions. "Peace is on the floor waiting to be picked up!" pleaded the German ambassador to the United States. This book explains both the strategies and fumbles of people facing a great crossroads of history. The Road Less Traveled reveals one of the last great mysteries of the Great War: that it simply never should have lasted so long or cost so much.

The Russian Revolution of 1917 has been one of the most important events of modern history. It changed the course of the events not only in Russia but, on a wider scale, across the world while it influenced the flow of history throughout the twentieth century until the fall of the Soviet Union and, to some extent, well beyond this time. Radical change in Russia triggered social revolutions and reformations across Europe, while authoritarian systems shaped their societies according to the Russian model. This book analyses these forces, particularly at the European periphery which has been underexplored until this volume.

"Communism's rise and eventual fall in Eastern Europe is one of the most important political conflicts of the 20th century. However, the infamous legacy of the Russian Revolution often overshadows the events of the 1917 uprising itself--the complications of which speak volumes to the resulting international turmoil. In [this book], former British Ambassador to Russia Sir Tony Brenton compiles essays by top Russian historians--including Orlando Figes, Richard Pipes, and Dominic Lieven--to trace the events and ideology that overthrew the Tsarist regime and evaluate the true implications of the revolution"--

1917 was a year of calamitous events, and one of pivotal importance in the development of the First World War. In 1917: War, Peace, and Revolution, leading historian of World War I David Stevenson examines this crucial year in context and illuminates the century that followed. He shows how in this one year the war was transformed, but also what drove the conflict onwards and how it continued to escalate. Two developments in particular - the Russian Revolution and American intervention - had worldwide repercussions. Offering a close examination of the key decisions, David Stevenson considers Germanys campaign of submarine warfare, America's declaration of war in response, and Britain's frustration of German strategy by adopting the convoy system, as well as why (paradoxically) the military and political stalemate in Europe persisted. 1917 offers a truly international understanding of events, including abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, the disastrous spring offensive that plunged the French army into mutiny, on the summer attacks that undermined the moderate Provisional Government in Russia and exposed Italy to national humiliation at Caporetto, and on the British decision for the ill-fated Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele). David Stevenson also analyzes the global consequences of the years developments, describing how countries such as Brazil and China joined the belligerents, how Britain offered responsible government to India, and how the Allies promised a Jewish national home in Palestine. Blending political and military history, and moving from capital to capital and from the cabinet chamber to the battle front, the book highlights the often tumultuous debates through which leaders entered and escalated the war, and the paradox that continued fighting was justifiable as the shortest road toward peace.