Triumph of the Dark: European International History 1933-1939

 In this magisterial narrative, Zara Steiner traces the twisted road to war that began with Hitler's assumption of power in Germany. Covering a wide geographical canvas, from America to the Far East, Steiner provides an indispensable reassessment of the most disputed events of these tumultuous years. Steiner underlines the far-reaching consequences of the Great Depression, which shifted the initiative in international affairs from those who upheld the status quo to those who were intent on destroying it. In Europe, the l930s were Hitler's years. He moved the major chess pieces on the board, forcing the others to respond. From the start, Steiner argues, he intended war, and he repeatedly gambled on Germany's future to acquire the necessary resources to fulfil his continental ambitions. Only war could have stopped him-an unwelcome message for most of Europe. Misperception, miscomprehension, and misjudgment on the part of the other Great Powers leaders opened the way for Hitler's repeated diplomatic successes. It is ideology that distinguished the Hitler era from previous struggles for the mastery of Europe. Ideological presumptions created false images and raised barriers to understanding that even good intelligence could not penetrate. Only when the leaders of Britain and France realized the scale of Hitler's ambition, and the challenge Germany posed to their Great Power status, did they finally declare war.

Review: Review from previous edition A terrifically good read...a definitive account, the distillation of a lifetime's dedicated scholarship... No short review can do justice to the book's riches. * Piers Brendon, The Independent *
A gigantic work of synthesis ... a staggering achievement. * Alex Danchev, Literary Review *
Magisterial...a magnificent work of scholarship, narrative, and authoritative historical judgment. * Richard J. Evans, The New Republic *
Magisterial...Anyone who works on the 1930s will be permanently in Steiner's debt...Zara Steiner's account of this troubled decade is fuller and richer than any yet published. * Richard Overy, Times Literary Supplement *
A remarkable achievement of conscientious scholarship. * Vernon Bogdanor, New Statesman *
A modern classic...magnificent... Authoritative and absorbing, Steiners volume will stand the test of time. * Joe Maiolo, BBC History Magazine *
One of those masterpieces of exact scholarship, conceived on a vast scale, which will remain the standard work on the subject for many years. * Jonathan Sumption, The Spectator *
A landmark event...Steiner's two volumes will undoubtedly become a standard work of reference for the two decades between the world wars...magisterial...a triumph...a magnificent achievement... A distillation of a lifetime of fine scholarship, this is an invaluable account of one dimension of these complex and fateful years. * Britain and the World *
A superbly wrought history and a major contribution to the field. It is a mammoth work filled to the brim with prodigious scholarship * Patrick Porter, History Today *
Definitive...the most thorough, wide-ranging and carefully argued narrative available on the tumultuous decade that ended in world war. Every historian of the period will stand in Steiner's debt. * Richard Overy, Wall Street Journal *
Zara Steiner has written a beautifully crafted and persistently intelligent survey of Europes descent in the 1930s into war and barbarism. * Harold James, International Affairs *
This book is monumental ... a remarkable achievement by Zara Steiner * Talbot Imlay, English Historical Review *
a truly magnificent achievement ... a triumph of historical writing and an exemplar for all historians. * Keith Neilson, War In History *
Her thorough analysis, skilful handling of the sources and convincing argumentation, has made The Triumph of the Dark a stimulating and rewarding affair. * Martijn Lak, European History Review *