“subjects nicknamed him Epumanes – the Madman. But there was method in his madness for he hoped to bind his empire together around the worship of one king, one religion. He fully expected his subjects to worship their local gods… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share Image
Trump wants to be the first American tsar. With his hero worship of Putin, his admiration for the apparent omnipotence of the Kremlin, schoolboyish… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
“History is little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind." --- Edward Gibbon” — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
Every Russian emperor from Peter the Great to Stalin and Putin knows a leader and his security agencies must never be parted. His safety… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
“Sex fills a few hours of our lives yet those precious minutes count for more than months and years” — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
“Iraq was already in the grip of a bloody insurgency against British rule. Churchill therefore called a conference in Cairo to hand over a… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
I don't think Jerusalem should be controlled 100% by religious people of any denomination, sect, or religion - even my own. — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
The memoirs of the Grand Duchess Olga are an entertaining record for anyone interested in the imperial family's home life during the last years… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
I am a passionate nonfinisher. Life is too short, and there are too many great books to read, so if I lose interest or… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
There is a view of Russian exceptionalism, that they are a unique civilisation, a view right since Ivan the Terrible that Russia is a… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
The political lives of tyrants play out human affairs with a special intensity: the death of a democratic leader long after his retirement is… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
Mr. Putin presents himself as a czar - and like any czar, he fears revolution above all else. — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
'Daddy used to be a Georgian,' Stalin's son, Vasily, once said. Actually, the dictator didn't truly become Russian; he remained Georgian culturally. Yet he… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
“Once in power, Stalin’s campaign to succeed Lenin required a legitimate heroic career which he did not possess because of his experience in what… — Simon Sebag Montefiore Copy Share
