Political Origins of the New Diplomacy, 1917-1918 by Arno J. Mayer

Political Origins of the New Diplomacy, 1917-1918 Reviews

• 
  Greg

  I first read this book in graduate school almost 60 years ago, as the numerous underlining and copious marginal notes (in tiny handwriting I can barely make out now) on every page attest to.
  
  I decided to read it again because of my continuing interest in that horrible First World War that did so much to set the framework for so many challenging issues that still face us today.
  
  Although I give it 5 stars because of its truly excellent content -- and astounding research! each page features multiple footnotes! -- others should note that it is a book most easily "digested" by scholars and academicians for the intricacies and details often get quite dicey for what I imagine the average reader is looking for.
  
  Although I have not read it, it is likely that a 2023 work -- 1917: Lenin, Wilson, and the Birth of the New World Disorder by Arthur Herman -- may be more accessible. I will publish a review of that book when I have finished it.
  
  The importance of this subject matter is that the First World War blew up so many "certainties" of the time -- the existence of ancient empires (the Russian, the Austro-Hungarian, and the Ottoman), a long period of peace between the powers of the day, and the "old man" diplomacy in which statesmen worked quietly behind the scenes free from modern public opinion.
  
  In fact, one of the reasons the war lasted so very long -- even as an obvious stalemate had been reached in the western trenches in late 1914 -- was because the escalating costs in human life demanded larger returns from an eventual "victory," a demand fed by popular opinion and the rise of mass democracy in Europe. (A good reminder that "democracy" in itself can often bring certain new difficulties -- arriving at an agreement when everyone is worked up AND looking over your shoulder is very difficult, as our modern politics also illustrate miserably.)
  
  This book follows two different kinds of visions of a post-war order: one along the lines of Lenin who preached a worker's revolution that would permanently end capitalist control over everyday lives, and the other portrayed in Wilson's vision of a "peace without victory" and a permanent new world body that would ensure that "never again" would such a war be possible. Wilson's vision also included self-determination for all peoples -- something the colonizer countries of France and Britain refused to embrace -- serious disarmament, and "open covenants openly arrived at."
  
  This book dives deeply into the politics and diplomacy of the war and immediate postwar years, illustrating the push and pull of these alternative visions and the various ways the countries involved swung between -- or resisted -- these visions.
  
  A serious book for readers willing to dive in and "work through it." Those who do will find it quite informative, if discouraging because of what it reveals about human nature and the inevitable compromises leaders -- elected and non-elected -- feel they have to make in order to survive, even if for just another day.