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Kentucky Clay: Eleven Generations of a Southern Dynasty
Par Katherine Bateman. 2009
Eleven generations of a founding American family are examined in this sweeping history that traces the Clays of Kentucky, a…
true Southern dynasty. The Clays of Virginia and the Cecils of Maryland were second sons of the English aristocracy who gambled on the New World. Some of the most well-known members of this clan include Henry Clay, who ran for president against James K. Polk; his cousin, Cassius Marcellus Clay, prominent abolitionist and Lincoln's advisor against slavery; and the matriarch Kizzie Clay, who buried the family silver and escaped by flatboat to avoid marauding Union soldiers. The history of the early colonial period in America--from the time of their arrival in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1613 and St. Mary's, Maryland, in 1634 through the trek across Virginia to the Appalachian Mountains, their eventual intermarriage in 1800, and their move across the mountains to Kentucky--comes to life through this well-researched family saga that heralds the adventures and accomplishments of the men in the family, as well as reveals the stories and nontraditional roles of the strong, selfish, and headstrong women.Robert E. Lee: Icon For A Nation
Par Brian Holden Reid. 2005
An authoritative and balanced assessment of a great American commander.General Robert E Lee, handsome, immaculately attired and dignified, quickly emerged…
as one of the great heroes of the American Civil War. This is rather surprising for, as Brian Holden Reid points out in his lucid new study, Lee was the most successful general to command troops against the armies of the United States before General Vo Nguyen Giap in Vietnam.Lee's reputation as a peerless commander was greatly embroidered by writers after 1865 who were dedicated to the Lost Cause and presented a sentimental picture of the Old South with Lee as its finest product. His character and achievements in the Civil War were presented as a validation of the Confederate cause. It is important for historians to come to terms with this legacy. Professor Holden Reid briskly surveys the forms that the Lee legend took after his death in 1870 and discusses the reasons behind the way it crystallised as it did. As a non-American he brings a fresh, detached eye to this process.Holden Reid argues that Lee's qualities as a general do not require any exaggeration or embellishment. Lee's short period of field command, just under three years, was marked by imagination, decisiveness, stamina, and a determination to win the Civil War rather than just avoid losing it. Holden Reid defends Lee stoutly against later critics who have argued that his offensive strategy was self-defeating. He believes that it was the only realistic course offered to the Confederacy to win its independence. He acknowledges though that all great commanders have their faults. Lee exhibited occasional over-confidence, under-estimated his enemy, and failed to develop his staff in any modern sense. The result is an authoritative and balanced assessment of a great American commander.Mad, Bad and Dangerous: The Eccentricity of Tyrants
Par Tom Ambrose. 2015
A penetrating and incisive study of the fanaticism and foibles of some of history's most illustrious namesFrom Assad to Nero,…
Gaddafi to Ivan The Terrible, this work attempts a thorough illumination of the minds of some of the most powerful people in history. While leaving some room to describe the amusing incidents and eccentricities associated with a host of men and women of power, it also reaches into the terrifying depths and depravities of minds that shaped the destinies of peoples and nations. Using a unique combination of history, politics, and psychology, this book fully describes how power not only corrupts but deranges.Inheritance: A Psychological History of the Royal Family
Par Dennis Friedman. 2014
In exploring Royal dynamics, Inheritance sheds light on problems found in any familyOn its first publication in the 1990s, Dennis…
Friedman's Inheritance caused a furor in England as he traced the many problems of the Royal family as it was then back to Queen Victoria's nursery, unveiling a host of psychodramas played out against a privileged background of English palaces and Scottish castles. In a post-Diana age, the arrival of a new Prince George to the seemingly stable and blissfully happy William and Kate seems to refute Fiedman's thesis--but what of the notoriously wayward Prince Harry? Many questions are raised in this book addressing the complex and turbulent royal relationships, perhaps the most fundamental being the rigid and traditional royal upbringing which still awaits the baby prince. As the royal line is followed down the generations no direct descendent is overlooked and no issue is sidestepped.Robin Hood: The Unknown Templar
Par John Paul Davis. 2009
The legendary hero of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood, is a figure who has in equal measure attracted and baffled historians…
for decades. With the first mention of him coming in Old English ballads, it was long assumed that it was almost impossible that he ever existed at all, and that he firmly belonged in the realm of Errol Flynn, Kevin Costner, and even Mel Brooks movies. Only a few historians have dared to venture that Robin of Sherwood was, in fact, a living and breathing human being. Historian John Paul Davis, while undertaking research on the Knights Templar, has uncovered new evidence on the folk hero that suggests that his ties to that order were much closer than previously supposed. Sticking closely to historical sources as well as the ballads, Davis has produced a new portrait of this intriguing figure with colorful and unique insights into the era that he lived in, reckoned by Davis to be at least 100 years closer to our own than previously supposed. Lavishly illustrated throughout, Robin Hood: The Unknown Templar will be of keen interest to anyone who has been even merely charmed by his legend; potentially explosive reading for those with their own theories of who Robin Hood really was.The Age of Caesar: Five Roman Lives
Par Pamela Mensch, James Romm, Mary Beard, Plutarch. 2017
A brilliant new translation of five of history’s greatest lives from Plutarch, the inventor of biography. Pompey, Caesar, Cicero, Brutus,…
Antony: the names resonate across thousands of years. Major figures in the civil wars that brutally ended the Roman republic, their lives still haunt us as examples of how the hunger for personal power can overwhelm collective politics, how the exaltation of the military can corrode civilian authority, and how the best intentions can lead to disastrous consequences. Plutarch renders these history-making lives as flesh-and-blood characters, often by deftly marshalling small details such as the care Brutus exercised in his use of money or the disdain Caesar felt for the lofty eloquence of Cicero. Plutarch was a Greek intellectual who lived roughly one hundred years after the age of Caesar. At home in the world of Roman power, he preferred to live in the past, among the great figures of Greek and Roman history. He intended his biographical profiles to be mirrors of character that readers could use to inspire their own values and behavior—emulating virtues and rejecting flaws. For Plutarch, character was destiny for both the individual and the republic. He was our first master of the biographical form, a major source for Shakespeare and Gibbon. This edition features a new translation by Pamela Mensch that lends a brilliant clarity to Plutarch’s prose. James Romm’s notes guide readers gracefully through the people, places, and events named in the profiles. And Romm’s preface, along with Mary Beard’s introduction, provide the perfect frame for understanding Plutarch and the momentous history he narrates.Diario de Ana Frank (bilingüe): Un Fiel Testimonio De Los Horrores De La Guerra
Par Ana Frank. 2017
Ana Frank era una niña judeo-alemana. El 12 de junio de 1942 cumplió 13 años y le regalaron un diario,…
en él escribió sus experiencias en un escondite, construido en un edificio de oficinas, mientras se ocultaba de los nazis en Holanda, junto con sus padres, su hermana y otros cuatro judíos. Miedo, tristeza, desesperación, alegría y esperanza son sentimientos plasmados por esta pequeña escritora, quien soñaba con el fin de la guerra y vivir libremente con su familia.The Gothic King: A Biography of Henry III
Par John Paul Davis. 2013
The first biography in many years of Henry IIIThe son and successor of Bad King John, Henry III reigned for…
56 years from 1216, the first child king in England for 200 years. England went on to prosper during his reign and his greatest monument is Westminster Abbey, which he made the seat of his government--indeed, Henry III was the first English King to call a parliament. Though often overlooked by historians, Henry III was a unique figure coming out of a chivalric yet Gothic era: a compulsive builder of daunting castles and epic sepulchres; a powerful, unyielding monarch who faced down the De Montfort rebellion and waged war with Wales and France; and, much more than his father, Henry was the king who really hammered out the terms of the Magna Carta with the barons. John Paul Davis brings all his forensic skills and insights to the grand story of the Gothic King in this, the only biography in print of a most remarkable monarch.Sophia of Hanover: From Winter Princess to Heiress of Great Britain, 1630–1714
Par J N Duggan. 2010
The detailed memoirs and letters of a gifted and prolific chronicler provide an insider's view of life for the top…
echelons of society in the 16th century Sophia, Electress of Hanover (1630-1714), granddaughter of James I, and mother of George I, is best remembered as the link between the Houses of Stuart and Hanover. A true European, Sophia spoke English, French, German, Dutch, and Italian fluently, and was open-minded and intellectually curious. Her writings cover an astonishing variety of subjects: religion, philosophy, international gossip, household hints, politics, and the details of her family life.Empire of the Sikhs: The Life and Times of Maharaja Ranjit Singh
Par Patwant Singh, Jyoti M. Rai. 1925
Ranjit Singh has been largely written out of accounts of India's past by British historians, yet he was one of…
the most powerful and charismatic figures in Indian history. He unified the warring chiefdoms of the Punjab into an extraordinary northern empire, built up a formidable army, kept the British in check to the south of his realm, and closed the Khyber Pass through which plunderers had poured into India for centuries. His consummate humanity was unique among empire-builders. He gave employment to defeated foes, honored faiths other than his own, and included Hindus and Muslims among his ministers. A colorful character, he was inspired by the principles of peaceful coexistence uniquely articulated by the Sikh Gurus, firm in upholding the rights of others, and unabashed in exercising his own. The authors of this first full-length biography in English make use of a variety of eyewitness accounts, from reports by Maratha spies at the Lahore Durbar to British parliamentary papers and travel accounts. The story ends with the controversial Anglo-Sikh Wars following Ranjit's death, which saw the fall of his empire in the hands of his successors whose internecine conflict was exploited by the British. Coinciding with the 300th anniversary of the consecration of the Sikh holy scriptures, this book honors a vital figure in Sikh history.Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power
Par Jon Meacham. 2012
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review * The Washington Post…
* Entertainment Weekly * The Seattle Times * St. Louis Post-Dispatch * Bloomberg BusinessweekIn this magnificent biography, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Lion and Franklin and Winston brings vividly to life an extraordinary man and his remarkable times. Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power gives us Jefferson the politician and president, a great and complex human being forever engaged in the wars of his era. Philosophers think; politicians maneuver. Jefferson's genius was that he was both and could do both, often simultaneously. Such is the art of power. Thomas Jefferson hated confrontation, and yet his understanding of power and of human nature enabled him to move men and to marshal ideas, to learn from his mistakes, and to prevail. Passionate about many things--women, his family, books, science, architecture, gardens, friends, Monticello, and Paris--Jefferson loved America most, and he strove over and over again, despite fierce opposition, to realize his vision: the creation, survival, and success of popular government in America. Jon Meacham lets us see Jefferson's world as Jefferson himself saw it, and to appreciate how Jefferson found the means to endure and win in the face of rife partisan division, economic uncertainty, and external threat. Drawing on archives in the United States, England, and France, as well as unpublished Jefferson presidential papers, Meacham presents Jefferson as the most successful political leader of the early republic, and perhaps in all of American history. The father of the ideal of individual liberty, of the Louisiana Purchase, of the Lewis and Clark expedition, and of the settling of the West, Jefferson recognized that the genius of humanity--and the genius of the new nation--lay in the possibility of progress, of discovering the undiscovered and seeking the unknown. From the writing of the Declaration of Independence to elegant dinners in Paris and in the President's House; from political maneuverings in the boardinghouses and legislative halls of Philadelphia and New York to the infant capital on the Potomac; from his complicated life at Monticello, his breathtaking house and plantation in Virginia, to the creation of the University of Virginia, Jefferson was central to the age. Here too is the personal Jefferson, a man of appetite, sensuality, and passion. The Jefferson story resonates today not least because he led his nation through ferocious partisanship and cultural warfare amid economic change and external threats, and also because he embodies an eternal drama, the struggle of the leadership of a nation to achieve greatness in a difficult and confounding world.Praise for Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power "This is probably the best single-volume biography of Jefferson ever written."--Gordon S. Wood "A big, grand, absorbing exploration of not just Jefferson and his role in history but also Jefferson the man, humanized as never before."--Entertainment Weekly"[Meacham] captures who Jefferson was, not just as a statesman but as a man. . . . By the end of the book . . . the reader is likely to feel as if he is losing a dear friend. . . . [An] absorbing tale."--The Christian Science Monitor"This terrific book allows us to see the political genius of Thomas Jefferson better than we have ever seen it before. In these endlessly fascinating pages, Jefferson emerges with such vitality that it seems as if he might still be alive today."--Doris Kearns GoodwinFrom the Hardcover edition.Elihu Washburne: The Diary and Letters of America's Minister to France During the Siege and Commune of Paris
Par David Mccullough, Michael Hill. 2012
This is the remarkable and inspiring story--told largely in his own words-- of American diplomat Elihu Washburne, who heroically aided…
his countrymen and other foreign nationals when Paris was devastated by war and revolutionin1870-71. Elihu Washburne rose from a hardscrabble existence in New England and the Midwest to become a congressman and diplomat. A confidante of Lincoln and Grant during the Civil War, Washburne was appointed Minister to France by Grant in 1869, arriving in Europe shortly before the outbreak of the Franco- Prussian War. When Bismarck ordered the Prussian army to lay siege to Paris, intent on forcing the French to surrender, Minister Washburne--alone among major power diplomats--remained at his post, determined to protect Americans and German nationals trapped in Paris. After the French capitulation, new horrors struck Paris. The government was toppled by a band of violent revolutionaries, known as the Commune, who embarked on a reign of terror that filled the streets with blood. Once again, Washburne stepped forward to help wherever he could until the Commune collapsed and its bloody orgy ended. During his ordeal Washburne endured cannon bombardments, brutally cold weather, dwindling food supplies, bouts of ill health, and long separations from his family. He witnessed the plight of starving women and children, riots in the streets, senseless executions, and countless acts of unspeakable violence and bloodshed. In the midst of it all, Washburne kept a remarkable personal diary that chronicled the monumental events swirling about him. He knew he was at the center of history and was determined to record what he saw. The diary--and letters he wrote to family and officials in Washington--provides a vivid personal account of life during some of Paris's darkest days. Filled with political and military insight, Washburne's writings also have an unmistakable charm, at times blending homespun expressions with quotations from Shakespeare and the Bible. Michael Hill provides essential background information and historical context to the excerpts from Washburne's diary and letters, which are drawn from the original manuscript sources and collected into one volume for the first time. Through his own words, we come to know and admire Washburne as he struggles to stay alive, perform his duty, and not let his country down. The story of Elihu Washburne is a great American story--the tale of an American hero rising to greatness in the midst of difficult and extraordinary times.Bad Boys of the Black Hills: ...and Some Wild Women, Too
Par Barbara Fifer. 2008
The lively romp details some of the Wild West's most engaging stories, specifically in the Black Hills and Deadwood, home…
to prostitutes and poets, desperadoes and dancehall girls, fortune tellers and fugitives. Readers will meet a host of rowdies ranging from madams to stagecoach robbers, from tall-tale tellers to killers.Edmund Booth: Deaf Pioneer
Par Harry G. Lang. 2004
Edmund Booth was born in 1810 and died in 1905, and during the 94 years of his life, he epitomized…
virtually everything that characterized an American legend of that century. In his prime, Booth stood 6 feet, 3 inches tall, weighed in at 210 pounds, and wore a long, full beard. He taught school in Hartford, CT, then followed his wife-to-be Mary Ann Walworth west to Anamosa, Iowa, where in 1840, he built the area's first frame house. He pulled up stakes nine years later to travel the Overland Trail on his way to join the California Gold Rush. After he returned to Iowa in 1854, he became the editor of the Anamosa Eureka, the local newspaper. Edmund Booth fit perfectly the mold of the ingenious pioneer of 19th-century America, except for one unusual difference -- he was deaf. Edmund Booth: Deaf Pioneer follows the amazing career of this American original and his equally amazing wife in fascinating detail. Author Harry G. Lang vividly portrays Booth and his wife by drawing from a remarkable array of original material. A prolific writer, Booth corresponded with his fiancé from the American School for the Deaf in Hartford, and he kept a journal during his days on the California trail, parts of which have been reproduced here. He also wrote an autobiographical essay when he was 75, and his many newspaper articles through the years bore first-hand witness to the history of his times, from the Civil War to the advent of the 20th century. Edmund Booth depicts a larger-than-life man in larger-than-life times, but perhaps its greatest contribution derives from its narrative about pioneer days as seen through Deaf eyes. Booth became a respected senior statesman of the American Deaf community, and blended with his stories of the era's events are anecdotes and issues vital to Deaf people and their families. His story proves again that extraordinary people vary in many ways, but they often possess a common motive in acting to enhance their own communities.Old man Denton s life is plagued by a secret He is victim of his momentary crime of greed…
committed during Juneau s mining heydays As his mind unravels in illness he longs for absolution for his youthful crime After a lifetime of sorrow and regret the greed of his past sparks the hopes and dreams of a disillusioned Juneau tourist merchant and an Islamic radical As they seek Denton s hidden treasure their ambitions blind them to strong forces seeking justiceIn the true story reflected in Lt Allen s journal you will learn of the generosity of Alaskan…
Natives Lt Allen s party would not have survived without adapting to the customs of the Alaskans and following their trails They also would have starved without the food from the Alaskan people This was the longest exploration of unknown land at this time in the world Many quests had tried to go inland but had not returned This was mainly due to their ill treatment of the Natives Lt Allen traveled in a small party and welcomed the help of the Alaskans He writes here in his journal from a traveler s perspective not from the traditional military aspect They traveled through the heart of this great land called Alyeska The three great rivers they traveled had been explored very little by miners or trappers This was a land largely unexplored by white people but where Natives had already lived for more than 10 000 years Lt Allen s journal is published here from the original journal published in 1887 to share with you who love to read of history and learn about Alaska Enjoy the view of Alaska in the 1800s from Lt Allen s journal descriptions of the land and the peopleA Search for Adventure Leads to Alaska
Par Wolf Hebel. 2013
In spite of spending his early childhood in Berlin, Germany during WWII, Wolfgang had developed a love for animals and…
nature as well as for adventure. After the war, living with his parents and his younger siblings in Braunschweig, Germany, he finished school, became a journeyman glassblower, got married and settled down to, what would be for most people, a promising future. But his childhood dreams of adventure grew to a restless longing for distant lands, and soon he had talked his young wife into emigrating to Canada with him. A year later the couple was on their way to California, USA and heading toward a divorce. Being single again in California during the 60s had attractions for a young man in his 20s, but with a couple of like-minded friends Wolfgang soon was heading north again, all the way to Alaska. In Alaska new opportunities for the fulfillment of his childhood dreams pre- sented itself and were gladly taken advantage of. Today in advanced age, Wolf, as he is known nowadays, is still living on his own terms with his dog, Thorak, in a small village on the Yukon, and his philosophy is that everything happens for a reason!Eighteen Wheels North to Alaska: A History of Trucking in Alaska
Par Cliff Bishop. 2009
In spite of the obstacles the Alaska truckers were presented with they never weakened in their determination to get the…
job done. These pioneer drivers never conquered or tamed Alaska's roads and weather, but they learned to operate on the back trails and paths--always making their way to the trip's end. In spite of all the challenges, they never quit. The following from Teddy Roosevelt is an appropriate salute to Alaskan truckers: "It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that high place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." Eighteen Wheels North to Alaska: A History of Trucking in Alaska is the story of Alaskan drivers who guided, coaxed, pushed, pulled, plowed, and somehow made it to the end of the road--and beyond--over high mountain passes, whiteout conditions, seventy below zero temperature, through mud, muck, and tundra terrain--even onto the Arctic Ocean ice beyond the shore.The Legend of River Mahay: Story of love, survival and triumph over adversity
Par Deborah Wood. 2007
Homesteaders wounding each other in a deadly shootout. Bear attacks. Surviving 60-below zero on the North Slope. Riverboating Class VI…
whitewater, considered impossible to run without risk of life and limb. Practical jokes. Moose Dropping festivals. Plane crashes. Drownings. Saving lives. Love and Passion. Divorce. Eccentric curmudgeons. All these describe the true-to-life people, stories and tales of high adventure that await you in The Legend of River Mahay. Read about the man, the legend, and the lifestyle that made his name a household word in Alaska. His story will keep you spellbound, laughing and crying from start to finish, and in the end, entice you to become a part of the allure that is Alaska. The Legend of River Mahay is a classic that reveals to us that being an Alaskan is not just a name, but rather, a celebration of an adventure lifestyle; a dream that all of us have within us. This book is also an allegorical tale of the struggle that all Alaska pioneers embrace. Take the adversities with bears and substitute fear, self doubt, isolationism, failure, and hardships that all pioneers combat to survive, succeed and evolve in the wilderness. This is a story about a man who wants to know what is always on the other side of the ridge, and who does what it takes to get there. Christopher Batin, Editor and Publisher, Alaska Angler/Alaska Hunter Publications. Although The Legend of River Mahay illustrates a man and his dream, it also presents life in an Alaska Bush community where the odds are good that the goods are odd. Deborah Cox Wood relates Steve Mahay's yen for adventure, his personal'Mahay Way' philosophy, adventures on the river, his personal life and family, as well as his relentless pursuit of living by God's rules--all amidst the history and local color of Talkeetna, Alaska, population 378 and one old grouch. Larry Kaniut, Author of Alaska Bear TalesL'impératrice Wu Zetian
Par Laurel A. Rockefeller, Agnès Metanomski. 2016
La femme la plus haïe de l'histoire de la Chine ! Voyagez plus de mille ans en arrière dans le…
temps et rencontrez la première et unique femme empereur de la Chine. Née Wu Zhao et attribuée le titre de règne « Zetian » quelques semaines seulement avant sa mort en 705 CE, elle était la fille indésirable du chancelier Wu Shihuo -- trop intelligente, trop éduquée et trop intéressée par la politique pour être une bonne épouse, selon les interprétations contemporaines des Entretiens de Confucius. Est-il surprenant que jusqu'à ce jour elle demeure la femme la plus haïe de toute l'histoire de la Chine et une de ses plus controversées ? Explorez la vie de l'impératrice Wu et découvrez pourquoi le monde est un endroit bien plus différent parce qu'elle a osé faire ce qu'aucune femme en Chine, avant et depuis, n'a jamais rêvé de faire.