This book provides a new quantitative view of the wartime economic experiences of six great powers; the UK, the USA, Germany, Italy, Japan and the USSR. What contribution did economics made to war preparedness and to winning or losing the war? What was the effect of wartime experiences on postwar fortunes, and did those who won the war lose the peace? A chapter is devoted to each country, reviewing its economic war potential, military-economic policies and performance, war expenditures and development, while the introductory chapter presents a comparative overview. The result of an international collaborative project, the volume aims to provide a text of statistical reference for students and researchers interested in international and comparative economic history, the history of World War II, the history of economic policy, and comparative economic systems. It embodies the latest in economic analysis and historical research.

‘How this mobilization [of economic resources] was carried out, and with what consequences, is the subject of this magnificent collection of essays... [it is] the best analysis yet available of the war economies of the major Allied and Axis powers. The book is filled with original statistical material. Each contributor, even for economies where much is already known - Britain, the United States and Germany - has supplied a lively text, peppered with fresh insights and new perspectives. For countries where the basic wartime economic narrative is not yet available to English-speakers - Japan, Italy, the Soviet Union - the contributors have done a remarkable job in providing the quantitative framework without which no comparison can effectively be drawn between the economic war efforts of the six.’

Richard Overy Source: The Times Literary Supplement

‘Here is no commonplace collective volume, but a splendidly organised compendium of reference and interpretation for all readers interested in the war and an indispensable base for all further enquiry into it.’

Alan Milward Source: The Times Higher Education Supplement