Crucible

Of all the key years after the end of the Second World War that shaped the world we know today, 1948 is absolutely the one to analyse. Two-and-a-half years after the end of the second conflict to engulf the civilised world in twenty years, and the defeat of the Axis forces of Germany, Italy and Japan, this pivotal time would plunge the world into a state of Cold War between the two superpowers that had filled the vacuum of Adolf Hitler: the brooding menace of Joseph Stalin's Soviet Russia and the Western powers now under new leadership of Harry Truman of America, De Gaulle of France and Britain's Clement Atlee.

The year would also mark the pivotal moment of the Middle East with the foundation (through warfare) of the State of Israel, the legacy for which still plagues the region today. The British Empire would begin it's quick demise beginning with the separation of the Sub Continent and the birth of the Indian and Pakistan republics, which would ultimately result in the repatriation of millions of peoples, wholesale slaughter of ethnic minorities, and the demise of Britain as a global superpower as South Africa, and other colonies around the globe vied for freedom. Finally, 1948 would mark the end of a long and vicious civil war in China as the communists finally prevailed. The world order would never be the same again.

This will be a dynamic page-turning narrative, enabling the reader to leap across the globe from one epic tale to the next - encountering historical figures such as Winston Churchill, Harry S. Truman, Ghandi, Mao Tse Tung, and, David Ben Gurian and providing a clear road map of how the world today was forged in this pivotal year.

Dintre toti anii cheie de la sfarsitul celui de-al doilea razboi mondial care au modelat lumea pe care o cunoastem astazi, 1948 este absolut cel care trebuie analizat. La doi ani si jumatate de la sfarsitul celui de-al doilea conflict care a inghitit lumea civilizata in douazeci de ani si infrangerea fortelor Axei din Germania, Italia si Japonia, aceasta perioada esentiala ar arunca lumea intr-o stare de rece. Razboiul dintre cele doua superputeri care umpluse vidul lui Adolf Hitler: amenintarea teribila a Rusiei Sovietice a lui Iosif Stalin si puterile occidentale aflate acum sub noua conducere a Harry Truman din America, De Gaulle din Franta si Clement Atlee din Marea Britanie.