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First published in 1986. In this book Neville Thompson traces Wellington’s life after 1815 using then new archival and documentary records. The work examines the development of Wellington’s character and outlook, and assesses the significance of his persistent involvement in politics over three decades. It shows the Duke was a crucial figure in the development of the compromise between reform and the preservation of traditional institutions and practices. This title will be of interest to students of history.
A highly personal, anecdotal family memoir of the Wellington legacy. Jane Wellesley is a member of one of Britain's most illustrious families. Her father, the 8th Duke of Wellington, was born in 1915, a hundred years after the first Duke's momentous victory over Napoleon at Waterloo, but only a little over sixty years after the death of his celebrated ancestor. When the 'Iron Duke' died Queen Victoria wept with the nation, mourning the loss of 'the greatest man England has known'. A million and a half people swarmed London's streets to watch his cortege pass on its way to St Paul's. Few facts can now be added about the public man, but Jane's family memoir animates the First Duke as husband and father, as brother and several degrees of grandfather. Her journey through this richly compelling family history begins and ends with the first Duke, visiting the battlefield of Waterloo with her father to set her fascinating tale in motion. Through her parents she reaches back to earlier generations, weaving together characters and places, establishing connections, and exploring in greater depth than usual the Wellington women, who are often reduced to footnotes in conventional histories. She unearths memories, visits places from her parents' past, and discovers much about the lives of her grandparents and the generations before them. Most of us view the First Duke of Wellington as an iconic figure, whose name has been claimed by pubs, squares, streets, and, of course, rubber boots. In this highly personal account, the public man gives way to the private, and Wellington's legacy is seen through the eyes of those who have followed in his footsteps. Jane Wellesley triumphantly succeeds in wresting the Duke from his lonely column to reclaim him for his family, and so for the reader.
Hardly is a figure more maligned in British history than Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh. One of the central figures of the Napoleonic Era and the man primarily responsible for fashioning Britain's strategy at the Congress of Vienna, Castlereagh was widely respected by the great powers of Europe and America, yet despised by his countrymen and those he sought to serve. A shrewd diplomat, he is credited with being one of the first great practitioners of Realpolitik and its cold-eyed and calculating view of the relations between nations. Over the course of his career, he crushed an Irish rebellion and abolished the Irish parliament, imprisoned his former friends, created the largest British army in history, and redrew the map of Europe. Today, Castlereagh is largely forgotten except as a tyrant who denied the freedoms won by the French and American revolutions. John Bew's fascinating biography restores the statesman to his place in history, offering a nuanced picture of a shy, often inarticulate figure whose mind captured the complexity of the European Enlightenment unlike any other. Bew tells a gripping story, beginning with the Year of the French, when Napoleon sent troops in support of a revolution in Ireland, and traces Castlereagh's evolution across the Napoleonic Wars, the diplomatic power struggles of 1814-15, and eventually the mental breakdown that ended his life. Skillfully balancing the dimensions of Castlereagh's intellectual life with his Irish heritage, Bew's definitive work brings Castleragh alive in all his complexity, variety, and depth.
'I am standing in the dining room of my father's house in Ireland, gazing up at ten Pakenham family portraits. What thoughts went on behind those passive, chalky faces? How can I bring them out of the shadows?' Eliza Pakenham, granddaughter of the seventh Earl of Longford, chronicles the fortunes of her colourful ancestors against the backdrop of Napoleonic wars and Irish revolutions. Through her painstaking research and discovery of hidden records, she unearthed the story of an extraordinary dynasty peppered with intriguing characters: Kitty, Duchess of Wellington, kept apart from her love for over a decade; Tom, second Earl of Longford, who fathered three illegitimate children; and Ned, the darling of the family, a war hero. Through them we learn of life in times of peace and war, of the pain of bereavement, and rapid changes in politics and society. A vivid and absorbing account of a fascinating generation, brought truthfully to life.
All too many historians have dismissed FitzRoy James Henry Somerset, first Baron Raglan, as at best, an indifferent and, at worst, an incompetent on the basis of his association with the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade. Yet as this long overdue biography of a pivotal military figure of the 19th Century reveals Raglan’s achievements over fifty years should not be judged on so narrow a basis. True, as Commander of the Expeditionary Force to the Crimea, he must take his share of responsibility for the hardship suffered by the men under him particularly during the winter of 1854-55 but the fact remains that Raglan never lost a battle for which he was fully responsible. Commissioned in 1804 he served under Sir Arthur Paget and the Duke of Wellington, throughout the Peninsular War losing an arm at Waterloo. He held key posts, including Military Secretary for an astonishing 25 years and Master General of the Ordnance and his influence was far reaching. Raglan is revealed in this objective study as a brave, thoughtful, caring and capable man, who found himself an easy target for critics of an outdated and inadequate military administrative system. Very personal attacks, some from official quarters, mortally wounded him and he died in June 1855, a mere seven months after being appointed a field marshal amid public acclaim. In this first full biography of Raglan, John Sweetman examines not just the man himself but the workings of an Army that was straggling to keep up with social and technological change. Readers will find this a fine exposé of a man who was placed in a no-win situation through little fault of his own. John Sweetman graduated from Brasenose College Oxford (Modern History) before taking a PhD at Kings College, London. He later became Head of Defence and International Affairs at RMA Sandhurst. He is the author of numerous military works. Now retired he lives at Camberley.
The remarkable story of an extraordinary dynasty.