The Last Tsar

Certain to become the definitive work DOUGLAS SMITH

Elegantly written and magisterially researched ROBERT SERVICE

Masterful . . . a chilling lesson VLADISLAV ZUBOK

The definitive story behind the self-destruction of the autocratic Romanov dynasty, by the worlds foremost expert.

When Tsar Nicholas II fell from power in 1917, Imperial Russia faced a series of overlapping crises, from war to social unrest. Though Nicholass life is often described as tragic, it was not fate that doomed the Romanovs - it was poor leadership and a blinkered faith in autocracy.

Based on a trove of new archival discoveries, The Last Tsar narrates how Nicholass resistance to reform doomed the monarchy. Encompassing the captivating personalities of the era, it untangles the struggles between the increasingly isolated Nicholas and Alexandra and the factions of scheming nobles, ruthless legislators, and pragmatic generals who sought to stabilize the restive Russian empire either with the Tsar or without him. By rejecting compromise, Nicholas undermined his supporters at crucial moments. His blunders cleared the way for all-out civil war and the eventual rise of the Soviet Union.

Definitive and engrossing, The Last Tsar uncovers how Nicholas II stumbled into revolution, taking his family, the Romanov dynasty, and the whole Russian Empire down with him.