Churchill, Hitler, and "The Unnecessary War": How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World

Were World Wars I and II inevitable? Were they necessary wars? Or were they products of calamitous failures of judgment?

In this monumental and provocative history, Patrick Buchanan argues that the horrors of two world wars, the Holocaust, and the collapse of the British Empire might have been avoided if not for the blunders of British statesmen—Winston Churchill first among them. Buchanan contends that:

• The iron boot of Communist tyranny, which oppressed scores of millions for half a century, might never have taken hold.
• Europe’s central role in world affairs could have been sustained for many generations.

Key British and Churchillian Errors Highlighted:

• The secret decision of 1906: A small inner Cabinet cabal decided that Britain would go to war against Germany if she invaded France.
• The Treaty of Versailles: This vengeful treaty mutilated Germany, leaving her feeling bitter, betrayed, and vulnerable to Adolf Hitler's appeal.
• The Anglo-Japanese Alliance severed: At Churchill’s urging, Britain capitulated to American pressure, insulting and isolating Japan. This pushed Japan toward militarism and conquest.
• The unsolicited war guarantee to Poland in 1939: Buchanan describes this as the greatest mistake in British history, ensuring the onset of the Second World War.

Certain to spark controversy and spirited debate, Churchill, Hitler, and “The Unnecessary War” offers a grand and bold insight into the historic failures of judgment that ended centuries of European dominance and guaranteed a future unimaginable to those who lived in that vanished world.