The Maisky Diaries
Red Ambassador to the Court of St James's, 1932-1943
by Edited by Gabriel Gorodetsky
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Pub Date Oct 27 2015 | Archive Date Dec 13 2015
Description
Highlights of the extraordinary wartime diaries of Ivan Maisky, Soviet ambassador to London
The terror and purges of Stalin's Russia in the 1930s discouraged Soviet officials from leaving documentary records let alone keeping personal diaries. A remarkable exception is the unique diary assiduously kept by Ivan Maisky, the Soviet ambassador to London between 1932 and 1943. This selection from Maisky's diary, never before published in English, grippingly documents Britain's drift to war during the 1930s, appeasement in the Munich era, negotiations leading to the signature of the Ribbentrop–Molotov Pact, Churchill's rise to power, the German invasion of Russia, and the intense debate over the opening of the second front.
Maisky was distinguished by his great sociability and access to the key players in British public life. Among his range of regular contacts were politicians (including Churchill, Chamberlain, Eden, and Halifax), press barons (Beaverbrook), ambassadors (Joseph Kennedy), intellectuals (Keynes, Sidney and Beatrice Webb), writers (George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells), and indeed royalty. His diary further reveals the role personal rivalries within the Kremlin played in the formulation of Soviet policy at the time. Scrupulously edited and checked against a vast range of Russian and Western archival evidence, this extraordinary narrative diary offers a fascinating revision of the events surrounding the Second World War.
The terror and purges of Stalin's Russia in the 1930s discouraged Soviet officials from leaving documentary records let alone keeping personal diaries. A remarkable exception is the unique diary assiduously kept by Ivan Maisky, the Soviet ambassador to London between 1932 and 1943. This selection from Maisky's diary, never before published in English, grippingly documents Britain's drift to war during the 1930s, appeasement in the Munich era, negotiations leading to the signature of the Ribbentrop–Molotov Pact, Churchill's rise to power, the German invasion of Russia, and the intense debate over the opening of the second front.
Maisky was distinguished by his great sociability and access to the key players in British public life. Among his range of regular contacts were politicians (including Churchill, Chamberlain, Eden, and Halifax), press barons (Beaverbrook), ambassadors (Joseph Kennedy), intellectuals (Keynes, Sidney and Beatrice Webb), writers (George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells), and indeed royalty. His diary further reveals the role personal rivalries within the Kremlin played in the formulation of Soviet policy at the time. Scrupulously edited and checked against a vast range of Russian and Western archival evidence, this extraordinary narrative diary offers a fascinating revision of the events surrounding the Second World War.
A Note From the Publisher
Gabriel Gorodetsky is a Quondam Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, and emeritus professor of history at Tel Aviv University.
Gabriel Gorodetsky is a Quondam Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, and emeritus professor of history at Tel Aviv University.
Advance Praise
“Astonishing! Really remarkable. . . . Perhaps the greatest political diary of the twentieth century.”—Paul Kennedy
“A fascinating, rich volume, brimming over with insights into two radically different worlds. It only whets the reader's appetite for the full three-volume edition . . . which will surely stand as one of the great achievements of twenty-first century historical scholarship.”—Niall Ferguson
"Maisky’s diary, impeccably edited by Gabriel Gorodetsky, is not only a work of major historical importance. It also provides an utterly fascinating view of Anglo-Soviet relations and British politics during the critical period of 1932 to 1943."—Antony Beevor
“A fascinating, rich volume, brimming over with insights into two radically different worlds. It only whets the reader's appetite for the full three-volume edition . . . which will surely stand as one of the great achievements of twenty-first century historical scholarship.”—Niall Ferguson
"Maisky’s diary, impeccably edited by Gabriel Gorodetsky, is not only a work of major historical importance. It also provides an utterly fascinating view of Anglo-Soviet relations and British politics during the critical period of 1932 to 1943."—Antony Beevor
Available Editions
| EDITION | Hardcover |
| ISBN | 9780300180671 |
| PRICE | $40.00 (USD) |
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