false 1438551 7 <div><div><div>The extraordinary family story of George V, Wilhelm II, and Nicholas II: they were tied to one another by history, and history would ultimately tear them apart.<br> <br>Known among their families as Georgie, Willy, and Nicky, they were, respectively, the royal cousins George V of England, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, and Nicholas II of Russia&#8212;the first two grandsons of Queen Victoria, the latter her grandson by marriage. In 1914, on the eve of world war, they controlled the destiny of Europe and the fates of millions of their subjects. The outcome and their personal endings are well known&#8212;Nicky shot with his family by the Bolsheviks, Willy in exile in Holland, Georgie still atop his throne. Largely untold, however, is the family saga that played such a pivotal role in bringing the world to the precipice.<br> <br>Drawing widely on previously unpublished royal letters and diaries, made public for the first time by Queen Elizabeth II, Catrine Clay chronicles the riveting half century of the royals&#8217; overlapping lives, and their slow, inexorable march into conflict. They met frequently from childhood, on holidays, and at weddings, birthdays, and each others&#8217; coronations. They saw themselves as royal colleagues, a trade union of kings, standing shoulder to shoulder against the rise of socialism, republicanism, and revolution. And yet tensions abounded between them.<br> <br>Clay deftly reveals how intimate family details had deep historical significance: the antipathy Willy&#8217;s mother (Victoria&#8217;s daughter) felt toward him because of his withered left arm, and how it affected him throughout his life; the family tension caused by Otto von Bismarck&#8217;s annexation of Schleswig and Holstein from Denmark (Georgie&#8217;s and Nicky&#8217;s mothers were Danish princesses); the surreality surrounding the impending conflict. &#8220;Have I gone mad?&#8221; Nicholas asked his wife, Alexandra, in July 1914, showing her another telegram from Wilhelm. &#8220;What on earth does Willy mean pretending that it still depends on me whether war is averted or not?&#8221; Germany had, in fact, declared war on Russia six hours earlier. At every point in her remarkable book, Catrine Clay sheds new light on a watershed period in world history.</div></div></div> 1563894 2006 King, Kaiser, Tsar: Three Royal Cousins Who Led the World to War total:82|5:18|4:40|3:20|2:4|1:0| 82 318 172 29 4 0 false false Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Nov 19 20:10:36 -0800 2008 Wed Nov 19 20:22:33 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Fri Dec 21 21:05:22 -0800 2007 Tue Jan 01 19:44:01 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun May 31 09:01:31 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 01 17:14:20 -0700 2009
I m...more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Dec 09 09:47:18 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 09 09:48:34 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 12 11:02:20 -0700 2009 Sat Mar 14 13:34:00 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Fri Feb 13 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 12:07:04 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 12:08:11 -0800 2009 3 0 false true Tue Dec 23 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Nov 28 20:34:27 -0800 2008 Sat Dec 27 06:48:32 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false true Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 15 07:54:32 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 15 08:01:50 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sat Jan 03 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 26 14:10:09 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 03 17:29:25 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Aug 09 18:06:17 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 09 18:07:56 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sun Feb 22 10:15:57 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 22 10:16:59 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 05 16:21:43 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 05 16:23:48 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Mar 18 08:29:19 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 08:29:57 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri Mar 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 05 10:04:43 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 27 11:07:49 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed May 21 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Feb 07 15:20:27 -0800 2008 Mon May 26 18:34:34 -0700 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Fri Oct 30 11:27:08 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 30 11:28:12 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 24 15:46:32 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 24 15:51:20 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Mar 03 13:58:01 -0800 2008 Thu Sep 27 09:46:08 -0700 2007 Thu Sep 27 09:47:55 -0700 2007 P.S. After reading this book Hit...more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu May 08 16:06:26 -0700 2008 Thu May 08 16:09:41 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Tue Apr 08 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 08 10:04:40 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 08 10:04:40 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1438551