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The road less traveled : the secret battle to end the Great War, 1916-1917 / Philip Zelikow.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York, NY : PublicAffairs, Hachette Book Group, 2021Copyright date: ©2021Edition: First editionDescription: 334 pages : illustrations, map ; 25 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781541750951
  • 1541750950
Other title:
  • Secret battle to end the Great War, 1916-1917
Subject(s):
Contents:
Introduction: Two roads diverged -- Wilson makes a new peace move -- The British are tempted -- The Germans secretly seek a compromise peace -- The British debate reaches breaking point -- How to end a Great War -- "Peace is on the floor waiting be picked up!" -- What is Wilson trying to do? -- Peace without victory? -- Roads not taken -- Epilogue: And that has made all the difference.
Summary: "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"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction 940.312 Z49 Available 33111010499388
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This revealing historical examination looks at the pivotal few months in the middle of the First World War, when all sides--Germany, Britain, and America--believed the war could have been concluded and changed the course of history.​ 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.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: Two roads diverged -- Wilson makes a new peace move -- The British are tempted -- The Germans secretly seek a compromise peace -- The British debate reaches breaking point -- How to end a Great War -- "Peace is on the floor waiting be picked up!" -- What is Wilson trying to do? -- Peace without victory? -- Roads not taken -- Epilogue: And that has made all the difference.

"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"-- Provided by publisher.

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