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George, Nicholas And Wilhelm: Three Royal Cousins And The Road To World War I (2009)

by Miranda Carter(Favorite Author)

3.97 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1400043638 (ISBN13: 9781400043637)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Knopf

review 1: Miranda Carter’s "George, Nicholas and Wilhelm" is an incisive, thoroughly documented look at a trio of cousins who helped shape the world’s destiny at the turn of the last century. The three, King George V of England, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, were, along with the lion’s share of European royals, related through Queen Victoria. Family ties are explored along with the men’s distinctly different temperaments and a host of fascinating personal minutiae. For all his belligerent bluster and egomania, Wilhelm was an emotional train wreck who took to his bed when Germany declared war in 1914. George was a boring, rather useless dandy until pressures of state revealed surprising diplomatic skills resulting in great public popularity. The... more ill-fated milquetoast Nicholas is arguably the most written-about, and yet Carter unearths a number of obscure tidbits such as his wife, the wildly unbalanced Tsarina Alexandra, advising him to use Rasputin’s comb before making important state decisions. I’ve yet to read a clearer case for the implosion of the Romanov dynasty and the Russian revloution. Best of all, the author delivers this wealth of knowledge in a chatty, nonacademic style that makes you want to turn the page. Well done indeed.
review 2: An interesting and very informative book giving detailed portraits of Nicholas II of Russia, George V of England and Wilhelm II of Germany and their changing relationships with each other - three cousins who were in power in the times leading up to and during the outbreak of WWI. This book is not just a set of interlinked biographies, however: It goes far beyond that in its analysis of all the factors contributing to the outbreak of one of history's most devastating wars and the decline of autocracy and monarchy in large parts of Europe. A fascinating portrayal of history, definitely recommended to anyone interested in the subject. less

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