_________________ 'A most valuable contribution to our understanding of one of the key events of the 20th century. Professor Turner has provided by far the most detailed analysis yet of these events, and he enables us to follow every twist and turn of the plot with admirable clarity. Above all, he presents us with a shrewd and judicious assessment of the roles of the various characters involved and of their responsibility for the catastrophic outcome' - TLS 'Racy, but deeply serious...the story reads like a thriller, full of clandestine meetings and backstairs intrigue, in which a handful...