This study is intended as the first biography of Maurice Paleologue, an important figure in the diplomatic history of the Third French Republic. He has never received adequate recognition or biographical attention for his role in the events surrounding the immediate outbreak of World War I and French policy towards Russia and the Balkans in 1920. This book brings to the surface the possibility of a powerful behind-the-scenes influence exerted by Paleologue to initiate and/or execute policy decisions of a controversial nature. It examines documents from the British Foreign Office and the...