The Vanquished: Why the First World War Failed to End

Exceptional. An example of my favourite history books, one that deeply informs me of an area I have neglected while simultaneously overturning the accepted position. Brilliantly written, weaving together what are at first glance disparate conflicts into a beautiful yet bloody tapestry that would only foretell even greater suffering to come.

This is the history of the 'post-war' years (mostly 1917-23) over a huge arc of land from the frozen arctic tundra to the middle east. Spoiler the 'war' never ended for most of the peoples of these lands, it just changed its name and scope. The 'peace' post war just created the conditions for future devastation.

It charts the fall of the old empires, these states and their peoples becoming vanquished, including surprisingly some of the 'victors' of the war such as Italy and Ireland, as a battered Europe struggled to come to terms with new realities. We have the seeds of the ethnic conflicts and the ushering in of an age of extremes that would convulse Europe and the world into the next official world war.

The violence and suffering were off the charts, with millions dead - even excluding the flu pandemic and the famines caused by the various conflicts. The brutality is hard to fathom, from the German brigades in the Baltic states, to the Soviet policies to their own people, to the expulsion of the Greeks from the new Turkish state - some of whom, the Pontic Greeks, had been there since 600 BC! Think mass burnings, disembowelling's, crucifixions, and people skinned alive. Now that's history! And sadly the world would see it writ large a few years later.

Its a tragedy and condemnation that only Finland (not for long) and Czechoslovakia (already reduced) remained by 1939 of the post war states.

The Jews as so often has been the case, suffered as much as anyone, finding it was better to be part of a multi ethnic empire rather than as a minority in a ethno-nationalist state to their great cost, repeatedly.

The new states created from the carcasses of the old empires were ethnically homogenous in the minds of their planners only - Poland was 35% non Polish, there were more Germans in Czechoslovakia than Slovaks. This, mashed together with revolutions across much of the continent led to chaos, violence, and a brutal resort of masses of peoples. The sections on the American President Wilson are excellent, especially his personal mental gymnastics allowing him to believe in enforced racial differences and self determination of peoples! Also his difficulty with idealism and violent realities - including dealing with the new threat of worldwide communist revolution.

It is easy to understand the vanquished powers sense of injustice at the peace settlements forced upon them, they were terrible! This is widely know about the treaty of Versailles, yet I was not aware that this was the best of a terrible lot! With most of the others falling to pieces not long after the war. There are great explanations of why they became what they were.

The sections of the multiple revolutions (many of witch I did not even know about!) are lucid and illuminating. Eye opening on how Japan reacted to their side-lining post war - the racial discrimination sending them off on a path that leads to the next war.

The pillars of devastation reminded me of the 4 great levelling horsemen described brilliantly by Walter Scheider, state collapse, revolutions, full mobilisation warfare, and pandemic. All were here, all caused outrageous suffering. A time of wreckage and desolation.