A review by sbenzell
The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 by Christopher Clark

4.0

An absolutely amazing history of the run up to WWI. Admittedly it does drag at points (relative to my interest at least, too much time is spent detailing the relationships of the various governments to the press), but incredibly well researched, written, and organized. The focus on the Balkans is critical, because similar conflicts in other regions did not lead to all out war. Austria comes out very sympathetically. All of the usual suspects from Mr. Russo’s class are here but deconstructed in revelatory detail (The alliance system contributed, but it was also contingent and possibly ready to shift; Imperialism contributed, but before the war England was way more worried about the Russians threatening its colonial possessions than Germany etc.).

Let me close by engaging in the parlor game the book mocks, and reveal my new list of countries responsible for this stupid war. From most to least guilty these are:
(1) Serbia (for being provocative, jingoistic and expansionist at every turn) 2) Russia (for escalating to a full mobilization rather than a limited Balkan-only one) 3) Germany (for general expansionism and further escalation) 4) France (for backing Russia to the hilt) 5) GB (for not trying harder to de-escalate)