Synopsis
He rose from humble origins to dominate his fractious nation for over 40 years. Alone among Eastern-Bloc leaders, he refused to bow to Russia's every whim, earning him the wary respect of both East and West. Josip Broz Tito was a communist maverick. While relying on Soviet support, he refused to be Moscow's puppet, and he shaped a nation that escaped some of the worst of the troubles that other Soviet satellites experienced. Born a peasant, he was jailed for his communist views in the 1920s and later became a spy for Moscow. BIOGRAPHY follows Tito from his years of activism and resistance to his emergence as the head of a reshaped nation after World War II. Former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger talks of the traits that won the dictator international respect, while little-known facts of his life and rule are revealed by authors, biographers and journalists. From his run-ins with Moscow to the tragic disintegration of his nation into ethnic hatred after his death, this is a moving portrait of a powerful, misunderstood ruler.