Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals

Edited by Niall Ferguson, Virtual History applies 'counterfactual' arguments to decisive moments in modern history. What if Britain had stayed out of the First World War? What if Germany had invaded Britain in 1940? What if Nazi Germany had defeated the Soviet Union? How would England look if there had been no Cromwell? What if there had been no American Revolution? And what if John F. Kennedy had lived? In this acclaimed book, leading historians from Andrew Roberts to Michael Burleigh challenge the complacency of traditional accounts, exploring what might have been if nine of the most decisive moments in modern history had never happened. 'Quite brilliant, inspiring for the layman and an enviable tour de force for the informed reader ... A wonderful book ... lucid, exciting and easy to read' - Literary Review 'Ferguson constructs an entire scenario starting with Charles I's defeat of the Covenanters, running through three revolutions that did not happen and climaxing with the collapse of the West, ruled by an Anglo-American empire, in the face of a mighty transcontinental, tsarist Russian imperium ... A welcome, optimistic assault on an intellectual heresy' - Sunday Times 'A talented and imaginative team who tackle with counterfactual verve a series of turning points' - Daily Telegraph