Rodric Braithwaite

The Big Three who ended the Cold War

Had it not been for the determination of Reagan, Thatcher and Gorbachev, the Cold War might have ended much later and more bloodily

issue 14 March 2020

Historians argue endlessly and pointlessly about the extent to which the human factor rather than brute circumstance determines the course of events. History, geography and economic reality always constrain personal freedom of action. But within these limitations the individual can make a decisive difference. Britain’s war would have taken a different turn if Halifax rather than Churchill had become prime minister in May 1940.

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