WINNER OF THE PUSHKIN HOUSE RUSSIAN BOOK PRIZE 2016

'As much as anything, World War I turned on the fate of Ukraine'

The decision to go to war in 1914 had catastrophic consequences for Russia. The result was revolution, civil war and famine in 1917-20, followed by decades of communist rule. Dominic Lieven's powerful and original new book, based on exhaustive and unprecedented study in Russian and many other foreign archives, explains why this suicidal decision was made and explores the world of the men who made it, thereby consigning their entire class to death or exile and making their country the victim of a uniquely terrible political experiment under Lenin and Stalin.

'A gripping, poignant and in some respects revolutionary contribution to European history . . . The origins, course and effects of the First World War have been minutely researched but not, until Dominic Lieven's masterly new book, from a Russian point of view . . . an indispensable read.' - Economist

'This magnificent book, lively in perceptions and bristling with empirical novelty, is a pleasure to read.' -  Robert Service, Literary Review

'Masterly . . . an important contribution to our wider understanding of the origins of the First World War.' -  Roger Moorhouse, Independent

'Deeply researched, highly valuable and unfailingly well-written.' - André van Loon, Spectator

'With its important new evidence about Russia's slide towards war, this is a much-needed account of a how a few clever but foolish men ruined their country and brought disaster on themselves.' - Victor Sebestyen, Sunday Times

About the Author
Dominic Lieven is a Senior Research Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge University, and a Fellow of the British Academy. His book Russia Against Napoleon (Penguin) won the Wolfson Prize for History and the Prize of the Fondation Napoleon for the best foreign work on the Napoleonic era.