The Red Flag

A History of Communism

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Government, Communism & Socialism, History, World History
Cover of the book The Red Flag by David Priestland, Grove Atlantic
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: David Priestland ISBN: 9780802189790
Publisher: Grove Atlantic Publication: May 3, 2016
Imprint: Grove Press Language: English
Author: David Priestland
ISBN: 9780802189790
Publisher: Grove Atlantic
Publication: May 3, 2016
Imprint: Grove Press
Language: English

“The best and the most accessible one-volume history of communism now available . . . A far-reaching, vividly written account.” —Foreign Affairs

In The Red Flag, Oxford professor David Priestland tells the epic story of a movement that has taken root in dozens of countries across two hundred years, from its birth after the French Revolution to its ideological maturity in nineteenth-century Germany to its rise to dominance (and subsequent fall) in the twentieth century. Beginning with the first modern Communists in the age of Robespierre, Priestland examines the motives of thinkers and leaders including Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, Castro, Che Guevara, Mao, Ho Chi Minh, Gorbachev, and many others.

Priestland also shows how Communism, in all its varieties, appealed to different societies for different reasons, in some as a response to inequalities and in others more out of a desire to catch up with the West. But paradoxically, while destroying one web of inequality, Communist leaders were simultaneously weaving another. It was this dynamic, together with widespread economic failure and an escalating loss of faith in the system, that ultimately destroyed Soviet Communism itself. At a time when global capitalism is in crisis and powerful new political forces have arisen to confront Western democracy, The Red Flag is essential reading if we are to apply the lessons of the past to navigating the future.

“Detailed and scholarly but written in lively prose, this is a rich, satisfying account of the most successful utopian political movement in history.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

“The best and the most accessible one-volume history of communism now available . . . A far-reaching, vividly written account.” —Foreign Affairs

In The Red Flag, Oxford professor David Priestland tells the epic story of a movement that has taken root in dozens of countries across two hundred years, from its birth after the French Revolution to its ideological maturity in nineteenth-century Germany to its rise to dominance (and subsequent fall) in the twentieth century. Beginning with the first modern Communists in the age of Robespierre, Priestland examines the motives of thinkers and leaders including Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, Castro, Che Guevara, Mao, Ho Chi Minh, Gorbachev, and many others.

Priestland also shows how Communism, in all its varieties, appealed to different societies for different reasons, in some as a response to inequalities and in others more out of a desire to catch up with the West. But paradoxically, while destroying one web of inequality, Communist leaders were simultaneously weaving another. It was this dynamic, together with widespread economic failure and an escalating loss of faith in the system, that ultimately destroyed Soviet Communism itself. At a time when global capitalism is in crisis and powerful new political forces have arisen to confront Western democracy, The Red Flag is essential reading if we are to apply the lessons of the past to navigating the future.

“Detailed and scholarly but written in lively prose, this is a rich, satisfying account of the most successful utopian political movement in history.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

More books from Grove Atlantic

Cover of the book Night Beast by David Priestland
Cover of the book The Best Minds of My Generation by David Priestland
Cover of the book Fat Bald Jeff by David Priestland
Cover of the book The Fighter's Mind by David Priestland
Cover of the book Fox Is Framed by David Priestland
Cover of the book The Warriors by David Priestland
Cover of the book Cross and Burn by David Priestland
Cover of the book The Forgers by David Priestland
Cover of the book Before He Finds Her by David Priestland
Cover of the book The Book of Gin by David Priestland
Cover of the book Freeman's: The Future of New Writing by David Priestland
Cover of the book My Friend the Mercenary by David Priestland
Cover of the book Faggots by David Priestland
Cover of the book God Jr. by David Priestland
Cover of the book Hanging Hill by David Priestland
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy