The last ambassador : August Torma, soldier, diplomat, spy / Tina Tamman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Tamman, Tina.

Series:

On the boundary of two worlds ; 29.

On the boundary of two worlds ; 29

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Diplomats--Estonia--Biography.

Diplomats.

Estonia--Politics and government--20th century.

Estonia.

Torma, A. (August), 1895-.

Torma, A.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (257 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Other Title:

August Torma : soldier, diplomat, spy

Place of Publication:

Amsterdam ; New York : Rodopi, 2011.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Estonian ambassador August Torma had a protracted and unconventional relationship with the British Foreign Office. Appointed to the Court of St James’s in 1934, Torma lost his government in 1940 when the Soviet Union overran his country, but continued to live at the legation in London and visit the Foreign Office. Gradually, however, his diplomatic standing was eroded because of Soviet demands. For Torma there was the very real fear that Britain might recognise the Soviet occupation of his homeland and he continued to reiterate his faith in international law in the hope that Estonia’s stolen independence would be restored one day. He died in 1971, twenty years before the country regained its lost freedom. This book is a biography of Torma who had a remarkable life: he assisted in the creation of the Estonian state in 1918–20, worked for it during the inter-war period and struggled to keep its cause alive during and after the Second World War; it is also a study of the awkward relationship between the ambassador and the Foreign Office that lasted for more than three decades.

Contents:

Preliminary Material

Introduction

The making of an “officer-diplomat” (1895–1930)

Estonia on the fringes of Europe (1931–1939)

Estonia in crisis (1939–1940)

Keep calm and carry on (1940–1944)

Maintaining the London legation (1944–1971)

Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1-283-12324-X

9786613123244

90-420-3314-2

OCLC:

729167187

Publisher Number:

10.1163/9789042033146 DOI