The first political history of the Second World War, of building the Grand Alliance to defeat Hitler, by the Sunday Times-bestselling author of Appeasing HitlerA landmark history of the alliance that won the war and made the peace by the Sunday Times-bestselling author of Appeasing Hitler
After the fall of France in June 1940, only Britain stood between Hitler and total victory. Desperate for allies, Winston Churchill did everything he could to bring the United States into the conflict, drive the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany apart and persuade neutral countries to resist German domination.
By 1942, after the German invasion of Russia and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the British-Soviet-American alliance was in place. Yet it was an improbable and incongruous coalition, divided by ideology and politics and riven with mistrust and deceit. Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin were partners in the fight to defeat Hitler, yet they were also rivals who disagreed on strategy, imperialism and the future of liberated Europe. Only by looking at their points of conflict, as well as of co-operation, are we able to understand the course of the war and world that developed in its aftermath.
Allies at War is a fast-paced, narrative history, based on material drawn from over a hundred archives. Using vivid, first-hand accounts and unpublished diaries, we enter the rooms where the critical decisions were made while going beyond the confines of the Grand Alliance to examine, among other themes, the doomed Anglo-French alliance, fractious relations with General de Gaulle and the Free French, and interactions with Poland, Greece and Nationalist China.
Ambitious and compelling, revealing the political drama behind the military events, Allies at War offers a fresh perspective on the Second World War and the origins of the Cold War.
About the AuthorTim Bouverie read history at Christ Church, Oxford. From 2013-2017 he was a political journalist at Channel 4 News, where he worked alongside Michael Crick, as his producer, and covered all major political events, including both the 2015 and 2017 General Elections and the EU Referendum. He regularly reviews history and politics books, and has written for the Spectator, Observer and Daily Telegraph. He has also for the last five years worked at the Chalke Valley History Festival as an interviewer.
Industry Reviews
Ambitiously all-encompassing … agreeably witty ... with vivid pen portraits … [an] extremely timely book
— Andrew Roberts, Telegraph *5 STARS*
A sweeping, fast-paced narrative of one of the great turning points of the 20th century. Deeply researched yet highly readable
— David Reynolds, author of Mirrors of Greatness
A grand sweep of history - a brilliant narrative
— Antony Beevor, author of Russia
Allies at War cements Tim Bouverie's reputation as one of the most talented young historians we have. Magisterial in scope, shrewd in its judgements, well-written and often amusing, Allies at War is the best book I have ever read about the politics of the Second World War. It is a book I wish I had written
— Tim Shipman, author of No Way Out
Excellent. Extremely well-researched, wide-ranging and absorbing
— Halik Kochanski, author of Resistance
Tim Bouverie has an uncanny ability to dive deeper than most into the swirling currents of history ... He reveals the insecurities, self-deceptions and tangled lies that were part of the Allied cause, alongside the personal dramas and extraordinary courage of its three great leaders. This is the story of a war of wills – it is magnificent!
— Michael Dobbs, author of Winston's War
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