Enver Hoxha: Twentieth-Century Tyrant [Hardcover]

The extraordinary story of Europe’s longest-ruling communist dictator.
 
This is the first full-length biography of Enver Hoxha, the communist dictator who ruled Albania for nearly half a century. Hoxha was an unreformed Stalinist who was propelled to power with Soviet and Yugoslav help following the defeat of the Axis powers, though he soon broke with his former allies and built a Chairman Mao–like political cult in his tiny and impoverished nation. In this fluent and far-reaching account, Hoxha emerges as a paranoid megalomaniac, interested in maintaining control above all else, who excelled at manipulating his comrades and outsmarting his domestic and international enemies. This important book shines a light on the nature of dictatorship and on a lesser-known chapter in the history of the Cold War.Robert C. Austinis professor at the University of Toronto and author of many books on the Balkans.Artan R. Hoxhais a historian of southeastern Europe based in Tirana, Albania.

The story of Hoxhas rise to power, his bizarre cult of personality, and the lingering influence of his regime is told inEnver Hoxha. . . . A carefully researched book.

Readers of Austin and HoxhasEnver Hoxha: Twentieth-Century Tyrantwill quickly appreciate that this Albanian dictator had a life worth writing about. . . . Throughout this deeply engaging book, the authors . . . measure Enver Hoxhas personal experiences against his political chess moves which made him the longest-serving dictator in the communist bloc. . . . Upon finishingEnver Hoxha, readers will have a more rounded understanding of Cold War history, specifically regarding the ways in which Khrushchevs labor and economic policies diluted national parochialism across Eastern Europe, but not in Albania.

Traditional cradle-to-crematorium biography is not dead yet. . . .Enver Hoxha: Twentieth-Century Tyrant. . . reappraises the life of thelÓ(