Wood and Moser deliver a compelling look at two leaders who held the world's fate in their hands--and the holiday visit that sealed a friendship and steered the course of World War II. Full color.

"James Bulloch, a sea captain turned Confederate agent, arrived in Liverpool at a crucial moment during the U.S. Civil War: a Union blockade was preventing Southern cotton exports from reaching Britain, threatening to destroy what was left of the Confederate economy-unless Bulloch could secretly arrange for the construction of a fleet of warships to break the northern grip on the South. Shortly thereafter, Union operative Thomas Dudley, a pious Quaker...

"Drawing on a wealth of previously unexamined material, this staggering account sheds new light on the responsibility of England and France for the dire consequences of this landmark agreement. On returning from Germany on 30 September 1938 after his agreement with Hitler on the carve-up of Czechoslovakia, Neville Chamberlain addressed the British crowds: "My good friends ... I believe it is peace for our time. We thank you from the bottom of our...