The winners of World War I created Hungary from the remnants of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, but, in the centuries before, many had sought its creation. Norman Stone traces the roots of the country from the traditional representative councils of landowners to the Magyar nationalists of the 19th century and the early wars of independence.

The history of Hungary since 1918 has not been pleasant. Economic collapse and hyperinflation in the post-war years led to fascist dictatorships and then to Nazi occupation. The optimism at the end of World War II ended when the Iron Curtain descended, and Soviet tanks crushed the last hopes for independence in 1956, along with the peaceful protests in Budapest. Even after the fall of the Berlin Wall, steady economic growth remains elusive.

It is an exceptional story - unique but also representative of both the post-Soviet zone and the nations shaped by the fall of empires.

Pages: 288, Year of Publication: 1205, Dimensions: 13.6x13.6cm