Castlereagh by John Bew
No British statesman of the nineteenth century reached the same level of international fame as Lord Castlereagh, or won as much respect from the great powers of Europe or America. Yet no British statesman has been so maligned by his contemporaries or hated by the public. His career took him from the brutal suppression of a bloody rebellion in Ireland to the splendour of Vienna and Paris. He imprisoned his former friends, abolished the Irish parliament, created the biggest British army in history, and redrew the map of Europe. At a time when the West turns from idealism to realism in its foreign policy, Castlereagh's reputation is being revived. Yet neither his detractors nor his defenders have truly understood this shy, inarticulate but sometimes passionate man. In this book, John Bew tells the story of Castlereagh from the French Revolution through the Irish rebellion, the Napoleonic Wars, the diplomatic power struggles of 1814-5 and the mental breakdown that ended his life. John Bew paints a magisterial portrait not only of his subject but the tumultuous times in which he acted. Rather than the tyrant of legend, Castlereagh was a man whose mind captured the complexity of the European Enlightenment as much as any other. His mind was conservative and enlightened at the same time - and no less the one for being the other.
'John Bew has some heavy lifting to do in this consciously revisionist takeIt is a great testament to his skills as a scholar and writer that he manages to do so with such aplomb ... stellar' Tristram Hunt, Daily Telegraph. * Daily Telegraph *
'More than simply a biography of Castlereagh, it is a fascinating review of the war against Napoleon and authoritative assessment of the personalities involved in the Congress of Vienna and the issues they wrestled with in remoulding the face of Europe ... This is a book that offers insights not only into its subject but the nature and practice of diplomacy, statecraft,nationalism and internationalism' Irish Independent. * Irish Independent *
'In this well-researched and judicious book, John Bew successfully readjusts the picture ... this excellent biography tells a cautionary tale' Literary Review. * Literary Review *
'[Portrays Castlereagh] convincingly and without any historical or bibliographical contortion' London Review of Books. * Review of Books *
'A compelling account' Times Literary Review. * Times Literary Review *
'The most brilliant and wise political biography I have read in a long while' Wall Street Journal. * Wall Street Journal *
'In a magisterial political portrait Bew brings Castlereagh and his world sharply back to life' Daily Telegraph. * Daily Telegraph *
'Vast, well-researched biography ... [a] solid, accomplished book' Sunday Times. * Sunday Times *
'Wonderful ... A Life so nearly complete that it need never be written again' Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement. * Times Literary Supplement *
'More than simply a biography of Castlereagh, it is a fascinating review of the war against Napoleon and authoritative assessment of the personalities involved in the Congress of Vienna and the issues they wrestled with in remoulding the face of Europe ... This is a book that offers insights not only into its subject but the nature and practice of diplomacy, statecraft,nationalism and internationalism' Irish Independent. * Irish Independent *
'In this well-researched and judicious book, John Bew successfully readjusts the picture ... this excellent biography tells a cautionary tale' Literary Review. * Literary Review *
'[Portrays Castlereagh] convincingly and without any historical or bibliographical contortion' London Review of Books. * Review of Books *
'A compelling account' Times Literary Review. * Times Literary Review *
'The most brilliant and wise political biography I have read in a long while' Wall Street Journal. * Wall Street Journal *
'In a magisterial political portrait Bew brings Castlereagh and his world sharply back to life' Daily Telegraph. * Daily Telegraph *
'Vast, well-researched biography ... [a] solid, accomplished book' Sunday Times. * Sunday Times *
'Wonderful ... A Life so nearly complete that it need never be written again' Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement. * Times Literary Supplement *
John Bew teaches History and Foreign Policy at the War Studies Department at King's College London. He was the winner of the 2015 Philip Leverhulme Prize for outstanding achievement in Politics and International Studies and previously held the Henry Kissinger Chair in Foreign Policy and International Relations at the Library of Congress in Washington DC. John is a contributing writer at the New Statesman and the author of five books, including the critically-acclaimed Realpolitik: A History and Castlereagh. He was born in Belfast, educated at Cambridge, and lives in Wimbledon, London.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780857381866 |
| ISBN 10 | 0857381865 |
| Title | Castlereagh |
| Author | John Bew |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Quercus Publishing |
| Year published | 2011-09-22 |
| Number of pages | 582 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |