Poland

Adam Zamoyski first wrote his history of Poland two years before the collapse of the Soviet Union. This substantially revised and updated edition sets the Soviet era in the context of the rise, fall and remarkable rebirth of an indomitable nation.

In 1797, Russia, Prussia and Austria divided Poland among themselves, rewriting Polish history to show that they had brought much-needed civilisation to a primitive backwater. But the country they wiped off the map had been one of Europe’s largest and most richly varied, born of diverse cultural traditions and one of the boldest constitutional experiments ever attempted. Its destruction ultimately led to two world wars and the Cold War.

Zamoyski’s fully revised history of Poland looks back over a thousand years of turmoil and triumph, chronicling how Poland has been restored at last to its rightful place in Europe.

Reviews

‘Invaluable and eye-opening.’ Boyd Tonkin, Independent

‘An excellent book.’ Financial Times

‘Fresh, different and brilliantly readable…It is the perfect introduction for those who know nothing about the country, yet will also provide some positive food for thought to those who imagined they knew it all too well.’ Spectator

‘A dramatic history of Poland that captures the spirit of its people…Such an extraordinary national trajectory demands an accessible and scholarly accounting. Zamoyski succeeds admirably in providing both.’ Daily Telegraph

‘For the past 25 years, thanks to the efforts of Adam Zamoyski, we have been better informed about the history and character of Poland than about any other East European country…Zamoyski’s new perspective on an old culture and its modern political liberty is…presented with a new, confident sense of freedom.’ The Times

‘Eminently readable.’ TLS

‘Shrewd…an excellent section on the country and its politics since ’89.’ Independent on Sunday

About the author

Adam Zamoyski was born in New York but has spent most of his life in England. A freelance historian with a singular command of languages, his recent books include ‘1812: Napoleon’s Fatal March on Moscow’, ‘Rites of Peace: The Fall of Napoleon and the Congress of Vienna’ and ‘Warsaw 1920: Lenin’s Failed Conquest of Europe’. He is married to the painter Emma Sergeant.