Union History

The Cold War was a crucial conflict in American history. At stake was whether the world would be dominated by the forces of totalitarianism led by the Soviet Union, or inspired by the principles of economic and political freedom embodied in the United States. The Cold War established America as the leader of the free world and a global superpower. It shaped US military strategy, economic policy, and domestic politics for nearly 50 years.

The European Union is the most ambitious, and one of the most contentious, international organizations ever created. Decisions made in Brussels shape the lives of over 500 million Europeans, and its laws and policies resonate around the world. But how has the European Union endured over three turbulent decades marred by crises at home and abroad? In this major account, Dermot Hodson traces the development of the European Union from its establishment in 1993 through to Brexit, COVID-19, and the invasion of Ukraine.

On the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, Union artillery lieutenant Bayard Wilkeson fell while bravely spurring his men to action. His father, Sam, a New York Times correspondent, was already on his way to Gettysburg when he learned of his son's wounding but had to wait until the guns went silent before seeking out his son, who had died at the town's poorhouse. Sitting next to his dead boy, Sam Wilkeson then wrote one of the greatest battlefield dispatches in American history.

Zerstört, geteilt, geeint, zwischen Taumel und Triumph: Die Geschichte Europas wie Timothy Garton Ash sie erlebt hat – als Historiker, Kommentator und Zeitzeuge. Timothy Garton Ash ist leidenschaftlicher Europäer. Schon vor 1989 wollte er sich nicht mit der Teilung des Kontinents abfinden, bis zuletzt kämpfte er gegen den Brexit. Nun schreibt er seine ganz persönliche Geschichte Europas, die 1945 mit der Stationierung seines Vaters als Besatzungssoldat in Deutschland beginnt.

After decades of the Cold War and renewed tensions, in the wake of Russian meddling in the 2016 election, cooperation between the United States and Russia seems impossible to imagine - and yet, as Douglas Smith reveals, it has a forgotten but astonishing historical precedent. In 1921, facing one of the worst famines in history, the new Soviet government under Vladimir Lenin invited the American Relief Administration, Herbert Hoover’s brainchild, to save communist Russia from ruin.

April of 1958 - the Iron Curtain was at its heaviest, and the outcome of the Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition seemed preordained. Nonetheless, as star musicians from across the globe descended on Moscow, an unlikely favorite emerged: Van Cliburn, a polite, lanky Texan whose passionate virtuosity captured the Russian spirit. This is the story of what unfolded that spring - for Cliburn and the other competitors, jurors, party officials, and citizens of the world who were touched by the outcome.

In the predawn darkness of June 22, 1941, three million men waited along a front stretching from the Baltic coast of Poland to the Balkans. Ahead of them lay the Soviet Union, its border guarded by millions of Red Army troops. This massive gathering of Wehrmacht soldiers from Adolf Hitler's Third Reich and his allied states stood poised to carry out Operation Barbarossa, Hitler's surprise attack against the country of his putative ally, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

In this timely and incisive book, Sergei Medvedev argues that Russia's war in Ukraine was not merely a whim of Putin's obsession: rather, it was the result of two decades of authoritarian degradation and post-imperial ressentiment, a culmination of Putin's regime and of Russia's entire imperial history.

“Is Italy Becoming a Museum? A Long Decay of Experimental Democracy” explores the intricate and evolving political landscape of Italy, from its Renaissance glory days to its contemporary challenges. This book delves into Italy's rich history, examining how its once-prosperous city-states laid the groundwork for a vibrant culture and economy, only to face numerous trials in the centuries that followed. The narrative begins with Italy's early struggles and triumphs, including the rise of influential families like the Medicis and Sforzas, and the profound impact of the Holy Roman Empire ...

Politics can be complicated and filled with language that needs you to use a dictionary to decipher. Not with Brexit Briefly! This book has details on Brexit, the European Union, and all the nitty-gritty details in between. We begin by defining the European Union, which was not only an economic decision but also a political one. Additionally, this audiobook follows the path that facilitated trade with in the EU and what made the UK choose to exit such a system. Lastly, we discuss some potential ramifications of Britain’s exit from the European Union in detail.

From learning about Lenin and the Red Army to discovering how and why Stalin rose to power and his eventual leadership during World War II and beyond, this book provides an essential look at one of the most important periods in Russian history. Listeners will be enthralled by this fascinating tale that delves into every aspect of Russia's struggles and successes.

The Cold War is usually thought of in terms of fear, potential nuclear war, and espionage. While these were elements of the years between the end of World War II and the 1990s, the competition between the US and the USSR had some real benefits. Perhaps, the best and most impressive accomplishments during this time resulted from the Space Race.

This audiobook is the first to offer a concise, accessible overview of the evolution of the Soviet Union as a multiethnic empire. It reflects on how the Soviet Union was home to many ethnic minorities, and how their fates, and that of the USSR itself, were bound to the question of how the Soviet state responded variously throughout its existence to the fundamental question of ethnic difference across its vast and diverse territory. The audiobook then examines how the Soviet collapse in 1991 fractured the Union along markedly national lines.

When the roar of the Revolution had finally died down, a new generation of American politicians was summoned to the Potomac to assemble the nation's newly minted capital. Into that unsteady atmosphere, which would soon enough erupt into another conflict with Britain in 1812, Dolley Madison arrived, alongside her husband, James. Within a few years, she had mastered both the social and political intricacies of the city, and by her death in 1849 was the most celebrated person in Washington.

In the early morning hours of February 24, 2022, Russia—or the Russian Federation—under the leadership of President Vladimir Putin, launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. To date, though Russia has realized only limited territorial gains, the toll on human life has been extensive, with nearly 500,000 casualties and massive destruction of resources, infrastructures, and food supplies.

If your father promised you in marriage to a foreigner in return for restoring his kingdom could you do it?“Like having history come alive . . . one of those hidden gems just needing to be read!” Dianne at Tome Tender book blog.The story of Strongbow, and those who joined him in the occupation of Ireland in the twelfth century is well documented. We know, too, that Aoife accompanied her father on his year long search for assistance and that, when Strongbow eventually arrived, the marriage took place days after a massacre in Waterford.This account of those events is presented through her...

With My Face to the Enemy is one of the most provocative and wide-ranging anthologies on the Civil War to come along in years. Its illuminating essays examine the war from perspectives that were critical to its outcome - the larger-than-life personalities of its important players and the national strategies and key battle tactics that shaped the four-year-long crisis.

In Woody Allen's 1973 film, Sleeper, a character wakes up in the future to learn that civilization was destroyed when "a man by the name of Albert Shanker got hold of a nuclear warhead." Shanker was condemned by many when he shut down the New York City school system in the bitter strikes of 1967 and 1968, and he was denounced for stirring up animosity between Black parents and Jewish teachers. Later, however, he built alliances with Blacks, and at the time of his death in 1997, such figures as Bill Clinton celebrated Shanker for being an educational reformer.

The Battle of New Market in the Shenandoah Valley suffers from no lack of drama, interest, or importance. The ramifications of the May 1864 engagement, which involved only 10,000 troops, were substantial. Previous studies, however, focused on the Confederate side of the story. David Powell’s Union Command Failure in the Shenandoah: Major General Franz Sigel and the War in the Valley of Virginia, May 1864 provides the balance that has so long been needed.

In this newest addition to the Great Generals Series, John Mosier brings to life the brilliant military strategist Ulysses S. Grant. A modest and unassuming man, Grant never lost a battle, leading the Union to victory over the Confederacy during the Civil War, ultimately becoming president of the reunited states. Grant revolutionized military warfare by creating new leadership strategies and by integrating new technologies in classical military strategy.