The Visionaries

The destruction of the Second World War leaves western leaders, officials, economists and planners with the task of preventing another collapse into depression, dictatorship and global conflict. Holland follows the people who develop institutions and agreements intended to stabilise currencies, rebuild economies and bind democratic states into systems of cooperation.

The book examines the creation of the post-war western order through decisions about reconstruction, security and international law. It also considers the Soviet challenge and the rapid transition from alliance to Cold War. The resulting peace was neither automatic nor complete, but the work argues that it depended on individuals willing to design institutions before public memory of catastrophe faded.