Prominent British Historian Nikolai Tolstoy Presents the Book "The Minister and the Massacres"

The prominent British historian and scholar Nikolai Tolstoy will hold a lecture in Zagreb on the occasion of the upcoming release of the new English and Croatian editions of his famous book "The Minister and the Massacres".

Nikolai Tolstoy, who has been systematically researching the fate of prisoners after the end of the Second World War for decades, will speak during the lecture about dramatic and painful historical events with a focus on the forced return of Croats and their handover into the hands of partisan liquidators immediately after the end of the war, the role of British military and civil authorities in the surrender and deception of prisoners of war and civilians in the then occupation zone in Austria, and the question of historical responsibility for the tragedies and mass massacres that took place near Bleiburg and in the pits of Kočevski Rog.

Opens Crucial Questions

The book "The Minister and the Massacres" is considered one of the most comprehensive and important historical studies on this topic, bringing shocking details about a conspiracy within high British circles by which tricked decisions sent thousands of people to certain death. The lecture opens crucial questions about the suffering and historical justice that have been suppressed for decades, according to the publisher's invitation.

Descendant of a Russian Family

Tolstoy is a count, a descendant of a famous Russian noble family. He was educated at Wellington College (1949–53) and Trinity College Dublin (1956–61), where he received his doctorate in modern history and political science. He deals with the problems of the victims of WWII, with an emphasis on the problem of Allied extradition of prisoners of war and civilians to Yugoslav and Soviet units immediately after the end of WWII. His main works are: Night of the Long Knives (1972), Victims of Yalta (1978), Stalin's Secret War (1981), and The Minister and the Massacres (1986).