Publisher, Blackstone Audio (November 2005)

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Roosevelt and Churchill Forge the Grand Alliance

This book tells how ten days in Washington, over Christmas 1941, changed the fate of the world as Roosevelt and Churchill secretly forged the Grand Alliance.

One Christmas in Washington is the fascinating, in-depth look at one of the most crucial periods in modern history, the weeks between December 1941 and January 1942 when Churchill and Roosevelt, seemingly on the run after Dunkirk and Pearl Harbor, met at the White House, forging what turned out to bet the Grand Alliance, while in the background, a gloomy and confused America went about their Christmas celebrations.

Bercuson and Herwig grippingly create the dramatic days of the Washington war conference of 1941, code named ARCADIA, using the diaries, meeting notes, personal letters, and detailed minutes that contain the day-by-day, almost hour-by-hour accounts of these historic events.

The authors, whose previous book, The Destruction of the Bismarck, was the companion volume to James Cameron’s Discovery Channel special, Expedition : Bismarck, take a penetrating look at the high-level meetings that lasted long into the night and at the scenes behind the scenes: the social events and intrigues, Churchill’s booming intrusion into the daily life of the White House, the strained relationship between Churchill and Eleanor Roosevelt, and the key role played by Roosevelt’s close advisor, Harry Hopkins. As with any momentous gathering of world leaders, there was high politics and low gossip, and both contributed to earth-shaking events of this momentous time.

One Christmas in Washington is the authoritative and emotional story of two proud and accomplished statesmen struggling to overcome biases, suspicion, and hubris to create what turned out to be the war-winning alliance.