Age of the Dictators

<p><i>The Age of the Dictators </i>presents a comprehensive survey of the origins and interrelationship of the European dictatorships. All the regimes are addressed, with ample coverage of the period 1939-45, and analysis of the Soviet government up to Stalin’s death in 1953.</p><p>Exploring their ideological and political roots, and the role of the First World War in their rise to power, David Williams identifies the dictatorships as products of their time. He examines the Soviet, Italian Fascist and Nazi dictatorships, as well as the authoritarian regimes in Spain, Portugal, Eastern Europe and the Balkans, providing an analysis of each as an entity, of how they evolved and related to one another, and to what extent they were a common response to life after the First World War.</p><p>Mindful of historiographical issues, the textbook attends to the arguments of key historians, and includes a list of relevant sources to assist students in their study of the period. Combining an accessible, succinct writing style with a broad historical scope, <i>The Age of the Dictators </i>is an illuminating and thorough account of a fascinating period in world history.</p> <p>1. Seedbed of the Dictatorships<br><br>2. The Victory of Leninism<br><br>3. Establishment of Mussolini's Dictatorship in Italy, 1919-1929<br><br>4. Beleagured Democracy in Germany, 1919-1929<br><br>5. Dictatorships in the Iberian Peninsula and the Successor States<br><br>6. Assessment of European Dictatorships in the 1920s<br><br>7. The Rise of Hitler and the 3rd Reich, 1930-1939<br><br>8. Stalinist Russia, 1930-1941<br><br>9. Italian Fascism in the 1930s<br><br>10. The Rise of General Franco<br><br>11. Authoritarian Regimes During the High Noon of Fascism<br><br>12. Dictatorships in the 1930s: An Assessment<br><br>13. Nazism at War<br><br>14. Collapse of Italian Fascism<br><br>15. Triumph of Stalinism, 1941-1953<br><br>16. Spain and Portugal: Dictatorships that Survived, 1940-1953<br><br>17. Conclusion<br><br>Glossary<br><br>Who's Who<br><br>Bibliography<br><br>Index</p>