Wellington

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Elizabeth Longford

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Pages: 672 (Hardcover)

ISBN: 0297812734

Pub: Weidenfeld & Nicholson

Pub date: 1992-10-01

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 225649

Reader Reviews:

Retained for life (0/0 people found this helpful)

This is a comprehensive and compelling account of the Duke of Wellington's rise to be the greatest military leader of his time and the elder statesman of Conservative politics.

Elizabeth Longford gives a portrayal of Wellington far removed from the legendary cold and stern Iron Duke to reveal a compassionate, principled and forgiving man. His life was determined by his disciplined adherence to his principles.

As a military leader in India, and in Europe he proved to be a strategist of singular genius, not only on the battlefield but also embracing the goodwill of the occupied populace, the dreaded hearts and minds of modern terminology.

Wellington dominated British politics from the House of Lords, serving under Lord Liverpool and Robert Peel, and as Prime Minister (he subsequently rejected the Premiership twice). He had his hand in all of the major issues of the day, introducing the modern police force, Catholic emancipation, and assisting Peel in the repeal of the Corn Laws. The Great Reform Act of 1832 only went through with his eventual acquiescence. Longford dispels the authoritarian image too often perpetuated to reveal him to be a flexible and pragmatic politician, as evidenced in his policies on Catholic emancipation, constitutional reform, and the Corn Laws.

This is the seminal one volume biography of Wellington.

Good but the 2-volume set is better (3/3 people found this helpful)

This is a 1-volume abridgement of one of the best bios of the Duke ever written. If you're really interested, spend the money and get the original 2 volumes. Wellington - the Years of the Sword and Wellington - Pillar of State. Absolutely wonderful!

Accessible yet comprehensive (1/2 people found this helpful)

Wellington is an enigmatic figure in British history, both revered for his military talent and critisized for his unapproachability.

In this book you are shown his life from India onwards (the book deals with his earlier life but not in great detail.) The book seeks to explain Wellington in a variety of fields, from his military genius to his political life but fals down in several areas, mostly due to the fact the certain areas of his life are glossed over and then a whole chapter devoted to a short episode.

Despite this, the book is very impressive and is a joy to read, if a little unfulfilling in the long term.

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