Voltaire in Exile by Ian Davidson
In 1753, Voltaire - playwright, poet, philosopher, and one of the most feted figures in Europe - was forced into exile by King Louis XV, where he would remain for the last 25 years of his life. This period heralded a startling new beginning for this remarkable character during which Voltaire became a successful entrepreneur and wrote his masterpiece Candide. Cast out by the establishment, he also developed astonishingly modern ideas about human rights, borne out in his campaigns against a series of miscarriages of justice. Ian Davidson has drawn on the rich correspondence between Voltaire and his family, members of the Court at Versailles and the French intellectual elite, to paint a wonderful portrait of the man declared by Diderot to be 'the unique man of the century'.
A powerful and illuminating book * John Carey, Sunday Times *
Excellent... By focusing on Voltaire's years of exile, Davidson brings this most illustrious yet elusive of figures brilliantly to life. Davidson has done a marvellous job, cramming the hectic events of Voltaire's last three decades into a manageable length, while keeping the narrative readable and entertaining, as well as scholarly and informative. * Andrew Crumey, Scotland on Sunday *
This extremely interesting, hugely readable book is an inspiration. We should all strive to age like Voltaire. * Guardian *
Excellent... By focusing on Voltaire's years of exile, Davidson brings this most illustrious yet elusive of figures brilliantly to life. Davidson has done a marvellous job, cramming the hectic events of Voltaire's last three decades into a manageable length, while keeping the narrative readable and entertaining, as well as scholarly and informative. * Andrew Crumey, Scotland on Sunday *
This extremely interesting, hugely readable book is an inspiration. We should all strive to age like Voltaire. * Guardian *
Ian Davidson graduated in Classics from Cambridge and was Brussels and Paris correspondent for for the Financial Times for many years and the main Foreign Affairs columnist during much of his career. He is also the author of The Gold War (with Gordon Weil) and Britain and the Making of Europe.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781843540885 |
| ISBN 10 | 1843540886 |
| Title | Voltaire in Exile |
| Author | Ian Davidson |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Atlantic Books |
| Year published | 2005-07-14 |
| Number of pages | 368 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |