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It should be clear from this narrative that there is little to be gained from asking 'who started the Cold War?' To the extent that the Cold War was about Germany, the final outcome—a divided country—was probably preferred by all parties to a Germany united against them. No one planned this outcome in May 1945, but few were deeply discontented with it.

— Tony Judt Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 (2005)

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More quotes by Tony Judt

‘Socialism’ is a 19th century idea with a 20th century history.

Ill Fares The Land (2010)

Inequality is corrosive. It rots societies from within.

Ill Fares the Land (2010)

The greatest beneficiaries of the modern welfare state, after all, were the middle classes.

Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 (2005)

The paradox of the welfare state, and indeed of all the social democratic (and Christian Democratic) states of Europe, was quite simply that their success would over time undermine their appeal.

What Is Living and What Is Dead in Social Democracy? (2009)

Sixty years after Hitler's death, his war and its consequences are entering history. Postwar in Europe lasted a very long time, but it is finally coming to a close.

Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 (2005)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Tony Judt (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.