The Spectre of War

International Communism and the Origins of World War II

By: Jonathan Haslam

Narrated by: Chris MacDonnell

The Spectre of War looks at a subject we thought we knew - the roots of the Second World War - and upends our assumptions with a masterful new interpretation. Looking beyond traditional explanations based on diplomatic failures or military might, Jonathan Haslam explores the neglected thread connecting them all: the fear of Communism prevalent across continents during the interwar period. Marshalling an array of archival sources, including records from the Communist International, Haslam transforms our understanding of the deep-seated origins of World War II, its conflicts, and its legacy.

Haslam offers a panoramic view of Europe and northeast Asia during the 1920s and 1930s, connecting fascism's emergence with the impact of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. World War I had economically destabilized many nations, and the threat of Communist revolt loomed large in the ensuing social unrest. As Moscow supported Communist efforts in France, Spain, China, and beyond, opponents such as the British feared for the stability of their global empire, and viewed fascism as the only force standing between them and the Communist overthrow of the existing order. The appeasement and political misreading of Nazi Germany and fascist Italy that followed held back the spectre of rebellion - only to usher in the later advent of war.

©2021 Princeton University Press (P)2021 Tantor

Very Sharp Arguments on Mid Century Geopolitics

Get ready for a very different take on WW1 and WW2 interwar period:

(1) China with a Communist Startup Cell
(2) France slouching to Bolshevism
(3) Spain in a hot Civil War- Christians Vs Marxist Terror
(4) England in a political vice
(5) Germany in a tug of war. Someone pulled on Crazy too hard.
(6) Italy scared to death of spreading Bolshevism, goes Crazy
(7) Most striking, the weakness of Middle Class Europeans. Like western middle class people today that tolerate ANTIFA terrorists, they were ready to surrender liberty to Marxism.
(8) Poland, no friends, trying to Survive but also looking to carve into new territory
(9) USSR and Fellow Travelers- basically caused 150 Million people to die with run away intrigues
(10) The "war" actually started years before 1939. The USSR took the Baltic via Gangsterism. There was a Japan v USSR front already going.

Important AND fascinating

Bolshevism (communism to you) in Russia struck greater fear into upper class European hearts in the 1930s than did Nazism.

So Western leaders refused to ally with Stalin and helped Hitler, hoping that he would destroy Russia. Only after Russia defeated Germany did the US invade Western Europe and colonize it militarily, as it continues to do.

A must-read account of the unspoken motives of the men who led us into WWII.

Great History

Detailed political and diplomatic history from 1919 through first two years of World War 2. Fantastic book.