The Game of Major Powers · One Hundred and Eighty Days to Change the World

Author: [British] Margaret MacMillan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: Paris in 1919 was the capital of the world. The much-anticipated Paris Peace Conference was being held here, with the negotiators being influential international figures. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, British Prime Minister Lloyd George, and French Premier Clemenceau became the "big three" of the conference. Here, world leaders made deals, drafted treaties, created new nations and organizations, even dined together and went to the theater to watch plays. Together, they staged a grand, tragicomedy for the modern world. Over the six months from January to June, Paris became a world government, a court of appeal and a parliament, but also a place of fear and hope. These were extraordinary 180 days, where major powers engaged in a game of chess, ending bankrupt empires while creating entirely new nations. The book brings to life the vivid portraits of the negotiators. Their personalities, ideals, and prejudices are vividly portrayed. They excluded Russia, isolated China, and rejected the demands of the Arabs. At the same time, they struggled hard for issues such as the Jewish homeland. However, the negotiators inevitably failed. Most importantly, they failed to prevent the outbreak of another war. The world leaders tried to be impartial, but their goals—to impose reparations on defeated nations without destroying them, satisfy impossible nationalist dreams, prevent the spread of Bolshevism, and create a new world order based on democracy and reason—all could not be achieved solely through diplomacy. They intended to create peace, yet, unbelievably, they instead created a larger-scale war. The book is like a movie, recreating the dramatic personalities of the world leaders and the intricate struggles over interests, making it highly entertaining. It paints a colorful scene for us, allowing us to see a blueprint of the nascent modern world. This book is a classic work for understanding the formation of the contemporary world and the development of the new world order.
Note: The line breaks () are preserved as they are in the original text.