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Castlereagh
On sale
22nd September 2011
Price: £19.99
The best political biography of the year’ Jonathan Sumption, Spectator
‘Wonderful . . . A Life so nearly complete it need never be written again’ Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement
By the author of the Orwell Prize-winning Citizen Clem
Damned in coruscating verse by Shelley and Byron, his coffin hissed at during his funeral, Lord Castlereagh has one of the blackest reputations in British history. But as John Bew shows, this is but a half-drawn portrait. His gripping biography reveals a shy, inarticulate but passionate man; a towering political figure of implacable principles who redrew the map of Europe, fought a duel with a cabinet colleague and would tragically take his own life amid rumours of scandal and madness.
‘Wonderful . . . A Life so nearly complete it need never be written again’ Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement
By the author of the Orwell Prize-winning Citizen Clem
Damned in coruscating verse by Shelley and Byron, his coffin hissed at during his funeral, Lord Castlereagh has one of the blackest reputations in British history. But as John Bew shows, this is but a half-drawn portrait. His gripping biography reveals a shy, inarticulate but passionate man; a towering political figure of implacable principles who redrew the map of Europe, fought a duel with a cabinet colleague and would tragically take his own life amid rumours of scandal and madness.
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Reviews
'John Bew has some heavy lifting to do in this consciously revisionist take. It 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.
'In a magisterial political portrait Bew brings Castlereagh and his world sharply back to life' 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.
'In this well-researched and judicious book, John Bew successfully readjusts the picture ... this excellent biography tells a cautionary tale' Literary Review.
'[Portrays Castlereagh] convincingly and without any historical or bibliographical contortion' London Review of Books.
'Vast, well-researched biography ... [a] solid, accomplished book' Sunday Times.
'A compelling account' Times Literary Review.
'Wonderful ... A Life so nearly complete that it need never be written again' Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement.
'The most brilliant and wise political biography I have read in a long while' Wall Street Journal.
John Bew has some heavy lifting to do in this consciously revisionist take. It is a great testament to his skills as a scholar and writer that he manages to do so with such aplomb . . . stellar
Wonderful . . . Bew's book is not only unparalleled in its size and sweep; it is also drenched in the Irish dimension, enriched by the author's own Ulster heritage, as well as the sagacity, scholarship and charm that make this a Life so nearly complete that it need never be written again
In a magisterial political portrait Bew brings Castlereagh and his world sharply back to life, and reassesses one of Britain's great forgotten statesmen
In this well-researched and judicious book, John Bew successfully readjusts the picture . . . this excellent biography tells a cautionary tale
This new biography by John Bew is a wonderful book, in its scope, its scholarship and the magisterial sweep of the narrative
Vast, well-researched biography . . . as Bew's solid, accomplished book shows, no foreign secretary has worker harder, wielded such influence or inspired such poetic hatreds
The most brilliant and wise political biography I have read in a long while
Bew's achievement is to portray Castlereagh . . . convincingly and without any historical or bibliographical contortion
This is an excellent biography which has given us a far more realistic and nuanced view of this much maligned man
A compelling new biography of the Irishman who dominated early 19th century diplomacy
John Bew is the outstanding historian of his generation. His biography of Castlereagh displays a knowledge of character, a grasp of political intrigue and a talent for story-telling any writer would envy. He brings magnificently to life one of the most enigmatic, and influential, statesmen in Britain's history
Riveting . . . portrays the glory of perhaps the greatest of Britain's foreign secretaries
a magisterial guide to Castlereagh's life that should inform the general understanding of international politics today . . . a masterly account
A finely etched portrait . . . Bew impressively adds yet new dimensions to the man
Excellent . . . a terrific read
In a formidable biography, John Bew has addressed the reputation of Castlereagh, one of the dominant political personalities of Regency Britain
Monumental
Bew is above all a very fine historian, very thorough and an extremely good writer - he tells a damn good story
The best political biography of the year