First World War

Dreamland of the Armistice

Alan Sharp looks at the factors shaping national policies in the weeks preceding the Paris Peace Conference, when the failure of the victorious allies to agree on aims and a process for negotiations with the Germans resulted in a ‘tragedy of disappointment’.

Lucky Break: the Zimmermann Telegram

David Nicholas reveals the skill and good fortune behind Britain’s First World War intelligence operation, and the coup by which the Zimmermann Telegram was cracked, tipping the balance in getting the US to join the Allied war effort.

Norman’s Conquest

York Membery interviews the eminent historian Norman Stone about his life in Turkey and his latest book.

Otto von Bismarck and the German Right

After he fell from power, Bismarck became a mythical hero figure of the right. The legend of the ‘Iron Chancellor’ was wielded by militarists, conservatives, and eventually, Adolf Hitler.

Coming as Liberators

Kristian Ulrichsen believes that the politicians and planners behind the 2003 invasion ignored the lessons of the first British occupation of Iraq, which began with the capture of Baghdad from the Ottomans in 1917.