Stalin Digital Archive
Yale University Press
Yale University Press
  • Search
  • Browse
  • My SDA
    • Private Groups
    • Personal Folders
    • Private Group Folders
  • Resources
    • Stalin Digital Archive
    • User Guide
    • FAQ
    • Editor Projects
    • Private Group Tutorials
    • Institutions & Associations
    • Further Reading
  • About SDA
    • Overview & Donors
    • Collections
    • Editorial Board
    • Transliteration Policy
    • Publishers
    • News & Updates
RegisterLog In
Select documents to open Close
CancelOk

Login Required

A personal account is required to access tags, annotations, bookmarks, and all of the other features associated with the MySDA.

Username: (email address)
Password:
Forgot password?
Log In
  • Purchase a subscription
  • Renew your subscription
  • Need help? Contact us
Not registered?
Register for your MySDA account
Login
Cancel

Your subscription has expired.

Click here to renew your subscription

Once your subscription is renewed, you will receive a new activation code that must be entered before you can log in again

Close
Next Document > < Previous DocumentReturn16 December
You must login to do that
Cancel
You must login to do that
Cancel
You must login to do that
Cancel
You must login to do that
Cancel
Save to my libraryClose
16 December
-or-
Cancel Save
Print Close
(Max. 10 Pages at a time)


By checking this box, I agree to all terms and conditions governing print and/or download of material from this archive.
CancelPrint
Export Annotation Close
CancelExport
Annotation Close
Cancel
Export Citation Close
CancelExport
Citation Close
Cancel
Close
CancelOk
Report Close
Please provide the text of your complaint for the selected annotation


CancelReport
/ -1
Stalin Digital Archive
Back to Search
Stalin digital archive
Back to Search
Table of Contents
The Complete Maisky Diaries: Volume 3
  • 10 January
  • 19 January
  • 20 January
  • 22 January
  • 26 January
  • 27 January
  • 30 January
  • 3 February
  • 4 February
  • 6 February
  • 11 February
  • 13 February
  • 14 February
  • 15 February
  • 17 February
  • 18 February
  • 20 February
  • 23 February
  • 25 February
  • 27 February
  • 28 February
  • 2 March
  • 7 March
  • 8 March
  • 9 March
  • 12 March
  • 14 March
  • 15 March
  • 16 March
  • 17 March
  • 19 March
  • 20 March
  • 22 March
  • 23 March
  • 25 March
  • 29 March
  • 31 March
  • 1 April
  • 6 April
  • 11 April
  • 12 April
  • 14 April
  • 15 April
  • 16 April
  • 17 April
  • 18 April
  • 28 April
  • 29 April
  • 30 April
  • 1 May
  • 2 May
  • 3 May
  • 4 May
  • 6 May
  • 9 May
  • 11 May
  • 15 May
  • 16 May
  • 17 May
  • 18 May
  • 19 May
  • 21 May
  • 22 May
  • 23 May
  • 25 May
  • 26 May
  • 27 May
  • 28 May
  • 30 May
  • 3 June
  • 8 June
  • 11 June
  • 12 June
  • 16 June
  • 17 June
  • 22 June
  • 23 June
  • 25 June
  • 28 June
  • 29 June
  • 30 June
  • 1 July
  • 2 July
  • 4 July
  • 5 July
  • 6 July
  • 7 July
  • 12 July
  • 13 July
  • 14 July
  • 15 July
  • 18 July
  • 22 July
  • 25 July
  • 28 July
  • 30 July
  • 4 August
  • 5 August
  • 6 August
  • 11 August
  • 20 August
  • 21 August
  • 22 August
  • 23 August
  • 24 August
  • 26 August
  • 28 August
  • 29 August
  • 30 August
  • 31 August
  • 1 September
  • 2 September
  • 3 September
  • 4 September
  • 2 September
  • 7 September
  • 8 September
  • 9 September
  • 12 September
  • 13 September
  • 14 September
  • 15 September
  • 17 September
  • 19 September
  • 20 September
  • 21 September
  • 22 September
  • 23 September
  • 27 September
  • 28 September
  • 29 September
  • 3 October
  • 4 October
  • 6 October
  • 7 October
  • 11 October
  • 12 October
  • 13 October
  • 14 October
  • 16 October
  • 17 October
  • 19 October
  • 21 October
  • 24 October
  • 26 October
  • 27 October
  • 28 October
  • 30 October
  • 31 October
  • 2 November
  • 3 November
  • 7 November
  • 9 November
  • 10 November
  • 13 November
  • 14 November
  • 15 November
  • 16 November
  • 18 November
  • 20 November
  • 21 November
  • 22 November
  • 27 November
  • 28 November
  • 29 November
  • 1 December
  • 3 December
  • 5 December
  • 8 December
  • 12 December
  • 14 December
  • 15 December
  • 21 December
  • 23 December
  • 24 December
  • 25 December
  • 31 December
  • 2 January
  • 3 January
  • 4 January
  • 5 January
  • 7 January
  • 8 January
  • 11 January
  • 14 January
  • 15 January
  • 18 January
  • 19 January
  • 20 January
  • 21 January
  • 23 January
  • 25 January
  • 26 January
  • 27 January
  • 29 January
  • 30 January
  • 31 January
  • 2 February
  • 7 February
  • 8 February
  • 9 February
  • 10 February
  • 11 February
  • 15 February
  • 19 February
  • 21 February
  • 25 February
  • 8 March
  • 11 March
  • 12 March
  • 13 March
  • 16 March
  • 17 March
  • 18 March
  • Conversation with Butler on 18 March 1940
  • 19 March
  • 23 March
  • 27 March
  • Conversation with Halifax on 27 March 1940
  • 28 March
  • 29 March
  • 1 April
  • 2 April
  • 4 April
  • 5 April
  • 6 April
  • 8 April
  • 9 April
  • 10 April
  • 11 April
  • 12 April
  • 13 April
  • 15 April
  • 16 April
  • 17 April
  • 18 April
  • 22 April
  • 27 April
  • 28 April
  • 2 May
  • 4 May
  • 7 May
  • 8 May
  • 13 May
  • 14 May
  • 15 May
  • 17 May
  • 18 May
  • 19 May
  • 20 May
  • 21 May
  • 22 May
  • 23 May
  • 24 May
  • 25 May
  • 26 May
  • 28 May
  • 1 June
  • 4 June
  • 5 June
  • 6 June
  • 10 June
  • 11 June
  • 12 June
  • 14 June
  • 15 June
  • 16 June
  • 17 June
  • 18 June
  • 23 June
  • 25 June
  • 27 June
  • 28 June
  • 29 June
  • 30 June
  • 1 July
  • 2 July
  • 3 July
  • 4 July
  • 5 July
  • 6 July
  • 7 July
  • 8 July
  • 9 July
  • 10 July
  • 11 July
  • 12 July
  • 22 July
  • 23 July
  • 25 July
  • 26 July
  • 27 July
  • 28 July
  • 31 July
  • 5 August
  • 6 August
  • 7 August
  • 10 August
  • 14 August
  • 15 August
  • 17 August
  • 18 August
  • 20 August
  • 22 August
  • 30 August
  • 31 August
  • 1 September
  • 6 September
  • 7 September
  • 8 September
  • 9 September
  • 10 September
  • 13 September
  • 14 September
  • 16 September
  • 17 September
  • 4 October
  • 6 October
  • 9 October
  • 10 October
  • 12 October
  • 13 October
  • 20 October
  • 22 October
  • 2 November
  • 4 November
  • 5 November
  • 11 November
  • 12 November
  • 19 November
  • 30 November
  • 1 December
  • 2 December
  • 11 December
  • 12 December
  • 16 December
  • 19 December
  • 27 December
  • 28 December
  • 29 December
  • 30 December
< Previous document Next document >
© 2025
16 December
    • Export Citation
    • Export Annotation
View:

By Liakhovetsky, Ivan Mikhailovich (Maisky)

The Complete Maisky Diaries: Volume 2

Image view
  • Print
  • Save
  • Share
  • Cite
Translation Transcription
Translation
/ 1
  • Translation
  • Transcription
  • Print
  • Save
  • Share
  • Cite
16 December
I visited Lloyd George at his new office (8, Victoria Road) today. It is in fact his old house, where he now works after moving out of his large and stylish office at Thames House, Embankment. It would seem that the economic repercussions of the war have started affecting even the top echelons of the British ruling classes.
I found the old man in a far from brilliant condition, both in body and morale. He coughed and looked pale and sluggish. His outlook for the future lacked confidence and hope.
Despite the victories in Africa, Lloyd George’s prognosis for the war remains the same: he cannot see how England could defeat Germany. Stalemate, playing out a draw – yes, that’s possible and even probable. But victory? No, the old man still cannot discern the necessary preconditions for victory.
‘Well, if the Soviet Union entered the war on our side,’ exclaimed Lloyd George, ‘that would be a different matter! Then we really could beat Germany.


Page 954

But that is out of the question. What’s more, our government, even this government, has done everything in its power to alienate Russia. Sheer madness!’
The old man raised his hands in despair.
There was a call from the prime minister’s office while I was there: Churchill asked him to be at 10, Downing Street by 1 p.m. The old man was clearly agitated by the call.
Why did Churchill need to see Lloyd George? Does he want to appoint him ambassador to Washington?…
Lloyd George spoke with some contempt about Italy. In his opinion, Mussolini’s regime is beginning to crack. Mussolini will not be able to recover from his defeats on his own. Will Hitler help him? Lloyd George doubts it. First of all, how? By sending troops to Greece through Yugoslavia and Bulgaria? Or through Turkey to Egypt? That would be dangerous. It could trigger a quarrel between Hitler and the USSR. One also has to take into account Turkish resistance. Second, what for? Lloyd George has an idea: Hitler has been recently thinking about replacing Italy with France in his ‘Axis’. This is not impossible. Suppose Hitler says to Pétain: I shan’t claim French territories in Europe (except Alsace-Lorraine) and in Africa (except Togo and Cameroon), I shall repatriate 2 million French prisoners, I shall vacate the greater part of occupied France except for the Channel and Atlantic ports, which I need to fight against England, while in exchange you give me a base in Toulon and allow me to use what’s left of the French fleet. Could such a scheme not attract Pétain? Of course it could. Lloyd George interprets the fall of Laval and the appointment of Flandin precisely from this point of view: Laval was ‘pro-Italian’, while Flandin has always been ‘pro-German’. Italian stock is falling, while German shares are on the rise. Hence the change ‘on the throne’.
We’ll see if the old man is right.
I walked home through Kensington Gardens. It was damp and slightly foggy. The park was empty. On the shore of the little lake I observed an almost Biblical scene: a young bespectacled soldier in crumpled, filthy uniform was feeding the swans and gulls. He had a big bag under his arm from which he was taking the crumbs and throwing them to the birds. Three big swans climbed out of the water and, gracefully bending their necks, took the crumbs straight from the soldier’s palm. Hundreds of gulls surrounded the soldier, crying wildly and violently flapping their wings. They rushed about him as if possessed, plucked pieces of bread out of the air, and landed on his shoulders and arms, even on his head. And he, a puny, clumsy and pensive little soldier, peered through his spectacles with a certain surprise at this kingdom of birds, as if wishing to say: ‘Yes, man and nature are one.’
Transcription
/ 0
  • Translation
  • Transcription
  • Print
  • Save
  • Share
  • Cite
           
Document Details
Document Title16 December
AuthorLiakhovetsky, Ivan Mikhailovich (Maisky)
RecipientN/A
RepositoryN/A
ID #N/A
DescriptionN/A
Date1940 Dec 16
AOC VolumeThe Complete Maisky Diaries: Volume 2
Tags
Annotations
Bookmarks

  • Yale
  • Terms & Conditions
    |
  • Privacy Policy & Data Protection
    |
  • Contact
    |
  • Accesssibility
    |
  • Copyright 2018 Yale University
  • Connect with us:
  • Yale
  • Yale