Bismarck

The Man and the Statesman

By: A.J.P. Taylor

Narrated by: Nigel Patterson

In this compelling biography, historian A. J. P. Taylor reevaluates Bismarck's motives and methods, focusing on the chancellor's rise to power in the 1860s and his removal from office in 1890.

©1955 A. J. P. Taylor (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Mr. Taylor has performed the difficult task of compressing the most earth-shaking career between Napoleon and Hitler into fewer than 300 pages with conspicuous success." ( Times Literary Supplement)

Excellent book

The writing and narration are excellent. The book assumes you know basic history of the time, which I did not. However, by pausing and looking up a few things, I was able to understand. Getting a sense as to who Bismarck was as an individual was excellent.

surprisingly good

considering the mediocre reviews this books received online, I found it interesting, well paced, and reasonably balanced

Old school history

Would you believe I was assigned this in a ninth grade history class. That was back in 1970 when students actually read books. Taylor went against the popular view that Bismarck was the master manipulator of European diplomacy. A view largely popularized by Bismarck himself. Taylor describes him much more of an opportunist. One who would take up a cause and abandon it just as quickly if it suited his interests. It didn’t take all that much chicanery to trick the French into war when they were so eager to do it in the first place.

Not what I expected

I have read many biographies including Churchill, Neopoleon, Grant, Hoover, Eisenhower and more
this does not follow the norm. Typically we learn of the subect's early years and the formation of the person and the leaderl they become. We learn of either privilege or austere up bringings and how these form their decisions later in life. Most writers bring life to their subject with clever stories, opionions and insight. This book does none of that. it jumps in and has all the depth and passion of a business journal I can't recommend this book.

Great narration

The narrator makes a great effort to pronounce foreign works and names correctly. He did an excellent job.