The First World War marked the dissolution of entire empires and represents a historical event that ended European dominance in the world; it did not, in any way, produce the result that those involved in the conflict anticipated.

The nations that participated in the war had the impression that they would "return home" by Christmas and believed that they could control the developments. Contrary to their expectations, this was not "the war to end all wars" nor did it "make the world safer for democracy," as subsequent history has proven.

(. . .) [Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]