On My Nightstand: The World That Never Was: A True Story of Dreamers, Schemers, Anarchists, and Secret Agents

The upheaval in Europe during the mid-18th Century led many to consider radically new political theories and some urged violent regime change for both republics and monarchies. This culminated with bombings, assassinations, and waves of terror throughout Europe, including the streets of Paris, London, and St. Petersburg.

Alex Butterworth catalogs the history and puts together a sordid tale of anarchists, schemers, dreamers, malcontents, and agent provocateurs who took advantage of the upheaval for their own ends, in his The World That Never Was: A True Story of Dreamers, Schemers, Anarchists, and Secret Agents

Various groups managed to assassinate an American President (McKinley), various Russian officials including Tzar Alexander II, and countless others. Despite the horrifying damage, these groups didn't succeed in spreading their message, but others rose in their place using some of the same propaganda tactics to overthrow existing regimes and implement their own.

The methods used to counter the terrorism are also quite familiar, and indeed many of the counterterrorism tactics were developed in this period.

It's also interesting to read how many of these disenchanted groups locked in on the time-tested tactic of blaming world Jewry for the world's woes- pogroms and genocide would follow later.