The History of Twentieth-century Russia: From Nicholas II to Putin

History

ROBERT SERVICE

Europe

Penguin Books, Ltd.

A History of Modern Russia : From Nicholas II to Putin

World

Russia's recent past has encompassed revolution, civil war, mass terror and two world wars, and the country is still undergoing huge change and upheaval. In his acclaimed history, now updated to 2009, Robert Service provides a superb panoramic viewpoint on Russia, exploring the complex, changing interaction between rulers and ruled from Nicholas II, Lenin and Stalin through to Gorbachev, Yeltsin, Putin and beyond. This new edition also discusses continuing economic and social difficulties, Russia's determination to restore its major role on the world stage and how, despite the recent years of de-communization, the seven decades of communist rule which penetrated every aspect of life still continue to influence Russia today.

The Penguin History of Modern Russia: From Tsarism to the Twenty-First Century

Russia

Penguin??Books

The Penguin History of Modern Russia

In the immediate aftermath of the Revolution, the Western powers were anxious to prevent the spread of Bolshevism across Europe. Lenin and Trotsky were equally anxious that the Communist vision they were busy introducing in Russia should do just that. But neither side knew anything about the other. The revolution and Russia's withdrawal from the First World War had ensured a diplomatic exodus from Moscow and the usual routes to vital information had been closed off. Into this void stepped an extraordinary collection of opportunists, journalists and spies sometimes indeed journalists who were spies and vice versa: in Moscow Britain's Arthur Ransome, the American John Reed and Sidney Reilly 'Ace of Spies' all traded information and brokered deals between Russia and the West; in Berlin, Paris and London, the likes of Maxim Litvinov, Adolf Ioffe and Kamenev tried to infiltrate the political elite and influence foreign policy to the Bolsheviks' advantage. Robert Service, acclaimed historian

Spies and Commissars: Bolshevik Russia and the West

Macmillan

At the start of the 1980s it seemed that the Cold War, with its logic of 'mutually assured destruction', was a permanent stand-off between two irreconcilable foes. Yet the years between Mikhail Gorbachev becoming Soviet General Secretary in 1985 and the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 saw everything change. In this study Service analyses the thaw in US/USSR relations, focusing on the work of the 'big four': Gorbachev, Reagan and their foreign ministers Shevardnadze and Shultz.

The End of the Cold War: 1985-1991

Americas

Pan/Macmillan

The Russian Revolution of 1917 was an event of the greatest importance, but the social groups which were crucial to its development and outcome have been little written about. This book brings together a number of prominent British researchers whose work focusses on the connections among politics, social aspirations and economics, and offers new insights into the reasons why, only months after the last tsar fell from power in February 1917, it was the Bolsheviks who seized control and established a communist regime.

Society and Politics in the Russian Revolution

PALGRAVE~MACMILLAN

Lenin is a colossal figure whose influence on twentieth-century history cannot be underestimated. Robert Service has written a calmly authoritative biography on this seemingly unknowable figure. Making use of recently opened archives, he has been able to piece together the private as well as the public life, giving the first complete picture of Lenin. This biography simultaneously provides an account of one of the greatest turning points in modern history. Through the prism of Lenin's career, Service examines events such as the October Revolution and the ideas of Marxism-Leninism, the one-party state, economic modernisation, dictatorship, and the politics of inter-war Europe. In discovering the origins of the USSR, he casts light on the nature of the state and society which Lenin left behind and which have not entirely disappeared after the collapse of the Soviet regime in 1991. 'Immensely scholarly but also vivid and readable. This is a splendid book, much the best that I have ever read about Lenin ...I was overwhelmed by the power and vividness of this portrait.' Dominic Lieven, Sunday Telegraph 'He has managed skilfully to depict the surreal life of an obsessive, brilliant and stubborn individual' Guardian 'Lenin's life was politics, but Service has succeeded in keeping Lenin the man in focus throughout . . . This book deserves a place among the best studies of one of the most fascinating figures in modern history' Harold Shukman, The Times

Biography of Lenin

Biographies & Memoirs

Historical

In the aftermath of the October Revolution of 1917, the Western powers were anxious to prevent the spread of Bolshevism across Europe, while Lenin and Trotsky wanted exactly that. Robert Service looks beyond the Revolution to the extraordinary miscellany of people - spies, commissars and diplomats, unofficial intermediaries, intellectuals and opportunists - who helped shape Russia's dealings with the world beyond its borders.

Spies and Commissars: Bolshevik Russia and the West [Paperback] service, robert

Pan Books

Lenin is a colossal figure whose influence on 20th-century history cannot be underestimated. This biography makes use of archive material to piece together his private as well as public life in an effort to give a complete picture of Lenin in all his different roles. Through the prism of lenin's career, the author examines events such as the October Revolution and the ideas of Marxism-Leninism, the one-party state, economic modernization, dictatorship and the politics of inter-war Europe. He casts light on the nature of the state and society left behind by Lenin, a state and society which has not entirely disappeared after the collapse of the Soviet regime in 1991.

Lenin

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Books by ROBERT SERVICE