Why did the USSR collapse? What caused the war in Vietnam to escalate? Why did Margaret Thatcher lose power at the beginning of the 1990s? Why did Stalin and Hitler, two implacable ideological enemies, form an international pact? These are just some of the questions that are considered in this issue of TWENTIETH CENTURY HISTORY REVIEW.
First of all, Caroline Sharples explores the causes of the Nazi–Soviet Pact, a foreign policy event that caused international consternation in 1939 and continues to perplex historians and students today. Second, Geoffrey Swain considers Stalin’s consolidation of power in the USSR. Of all the contenders for power, Stalin seemed the least likely to emerge as Lenin’s successor, and this article explores the complex sequence of events that resulted in his leadership. Our third article deals with Margaret Thatcher’s fall in 1990. Thatcher was one of the most popular and successful prime ministers in post-war Britain, but Graham Goodlad argues that her downfall was a result of both long-term problems and short-term difficulties.
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