Gordon Martel is Professor of History at the University of Northern British Columbia. Among his other edited works are The Origins of the Second World War Reconsidered (1999) and The World War Two Reader (2004).

"It is refreshing to find a book covering this period tackling such a breadth of issues. An essential acquisition for any academic library supporting teaching and research in modern European history and politics." Reference Reviews "This well-constructed volume ... covers a range of familiar topics alongside newer areas of inquiry within the period. This is a work that undergraduates will find consistently useful as a starting point of inquiry into the forces and events which marked the first part of Euriope's history up to 1945." History “This handsome … volume provides a solid summary … .This is an impressive effort. Martel … [is] clearly … very good at what he does.” University of Toronto Quarterly

• Notes on Contributors viiiPreface xiiiMaps xivIntroduction: Europe in Agony, 1900–1945 xxiGordon MartelPart I Continuity and Change; Forces and Movements 11 Urbanization, Poverty, and Crime 3Paul Lawrence2 The Revolution in Science 19Cathryn Carson3 Feminism: Women, Work, and Politics 35June Hannam4 Modernism 50Robin Walz5 The Cult of Youth 66Elizabeth Harvey6 Sexuality and the Psyche 82Lesley A. Hall7 The Economy 98Peter WardleyPart II Before the Deluge 1178 Europe’s World: Power, Empire, and Colonialism 119Woodruff D. Smith9 Social Reform or Social Revolution? 135Gary P. Steenson10 Modernity: Approaching the Twentieth Century 150Angela K. Smith11 Politics: The Past and the Future 165Peter Waldron12 The Coming of War, 1914 180Annika MombauerPart III World War I 19513 August 1914: Public Opinion and the Crisis 197David Welch14 The War in the Trenches 213Tim Travers15 The War from Above: Aims, Strategy, and Diplomacy 228Matthew Stibbe16 The War and Revolution 243Mark BakerPart IV The Aftermath of War 25917 Peacemaking after World War I 261Alan Sharp18 Demobilization and Discontent 277James M. Diehl19 The Socialist Experiment 292William J. Chase20 The Fascist Challenge 309Martin Blinkhorn21 Revisionism 326Carole FinkPart V The New Age 34122 The Jazz Age 343Thomas J. Saunders23 The Nazi New Society 359Dick Geary24 The Popular Front 375Michael Richards25 The Strategic Revolution 391Tami Davis Biddle26 Hitler and the Origins of World War II 407Anita J. PrazmowskaPart VI World War II 42327 Grand Strategy and Summit Diplomacy 425Michael Jabara Carley28 The Real War 441David French29 The Home Fronts: Europe at War, 1939–1945 456Nicholas Atkin30 The Holocaust 472David Engel31 Memories of World War II and the Holocaust in Europe 487Harold MarcuseBibliography 505Index 539