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.

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.

Good, but read a primer first

a good history, written with wit and attention to detail, but absolutely dense with minute and somewhat opaque historical references a newcomer to Bismarck will have practically no way of understanding. Those hoping for more personal, anecdotal material may also be disappointed. This is a work that keeps the focus strictly on the minutiae of Bismarck's domestic and foreign intrigues. In the end, one gets a clear sense of the statesman, but perhaps not the man. His close political allies, associates and other contemporaries are also extremely submerged in this account. One doesn't get a sense of how he interacted with these people on a personal level. Only the great chancellor and William 1 truly occupy the stage in this telling. To get the most out of this book requires a robust and broad understanding of the period and it's principal actors; a deep dive for those looking for a blow by blow account of his intricate, behind the scenes policy manouevers. A little dry, slighly myopic at times, but a solid work.

Very educational

I learned as much about European history as I did about Bismarck and how all of it mirrors today’s politics.