The Hidden History of Burma

'A wonderful subject, beautifully written, evoking a world startlingly like and unlike our own' Rory Stewart<BR><BR>'A brilliant portrait not just of a great and unjustly forgotten man, but of an entire age' William Dalrymple<BR><BR>'Important reading at any time in history; essential in the world of today' Peter Frankopan<BR><BR>IN THE EARLY 1960S, a peaceful world seemed possible. The still young United Nations was regarded as humankind's best hope for ending war. African and Asian nations, having recently won their freedom from colonial rule, sought influence on the world stage. At the helm of their international efforts was Secretary-General U Thant, a practising Buddhist and former schoolteacher from Burma.<BR><BR>In Peacemaker, acclaimed historian Thant Myint-U traces his grandfather's integral yet forgotten roles in some of the twentieth century's most critical crises: from battling white supremacist mercenaries in the Congo and mediating an end to the Cuban Missile Crisis to desperately trying to prevent the 1967 Six Day War. Drawing on newly declassified documents, he traces U Thant's tireless efforts to bring peace to Vietnam, create a fairer international economy, safeguard the environment, and avoid a third world war.<BR><BR>A testament to the power of hope and individual action in times of uncertainty, Peacemaker is an extraordinary chronicle of a golden age of diplomacy - and vital to a fresh understanding of our world today.

'A wonderful subject, beautifully written, evoking a world startlingly like and unlike our own' Rory Stewart<BR><BR>'A brilliant portrait not just of a great and unjustly forgotten man, but of an entire age' William Dalrymple<BR><BR>'Important reading at any time in history; essential in the world of today' Peter Frankopan<BR><BR>In December 1971, after having stepped down as the United Nations' longest-serving Secretary-General, U Thant was ranked the sixth 'most admired man' in America. So why is he largely forgotten today?<BR><BR>In Peacemaker, Thant Myint-U traces his grandfather's rise from schoolteacher in a small Burmese backwater in 1947 to celebrity at the centre of global of politics just two decades later. He reveals U Thant's integral yet forgotten roles in some of the twentieth centuries' most critical crises - from battling white supremacist mercenaries in the Congo and mediating a peaceful end to the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 to ensuring the ceasefire held after the 1967 Six-Day War - and details the shifting world order that U Thant affected.<BR><BR>At once rigorous and hugely entertaining, Peacemaker is an intimate biography that not only attests to the power of hope, peace and individual actions in times of uncertainty, but also chronicles a golden age of diplomacy: a time when people believed that it was only by coming together that we could tackle the biggest threats posing humanity.