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 The Great War 1914-1918, and Associated Conflicts
   Prelude to War
     The July Crisis



The Darkest Days: The Truth Behind Britain's Rush to War, 1914

by Douglas Newton  

ISBN
9781781683507

Purchase Price
£20.00 (new)

Date Purchased
February 18, 2016

Publisher
Verso (2014, London)

Notes
This is a new study of the reasons why Britain entered the war. It majors on the perspective of those who opposed entry into the war, and considers that the real reason for going to war was nothing to do with Belgium, but was more about the preservation of Empire, and the Entente with France and Russia. Newton's arguments are, on the face of it, compelling, he is far from complimentary about Grey, Asquith, and especially Churchill, but our view is that this book misses the whole argument: there is particularly no mention at all of the Schlieffen Plan, or the German Military's role and influence relating to the fall into the abyss. At the very least, Newton should have considered factors like these and argued his point with them above, rather than below, the surface.