Dreadnought : Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War - Softcover

Robert K. Massie

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0224032607 ISBN 13: 9780224032605

Publisher: Jonathan Cape London, 1992

Synopsis

A gripping chronicle of the personal and national rivalries that led to the twentieth century’s first great arms race, from Pulitzer Prize winner Robert K. Massie
 
With the biographer’s rare genius for expressing the essence of extraordinary lives, Massie brings to life a crowd of glittery figures: the single-minded Admiral von Tirpitz; the young, ambitious Winston Churchill; the ruthless, sycophantic Chancellor Bernhard von Bülow; Britain’s greatest twentieth-century foreign secretary, Sir Edward Grey; and Jacky Fisher, the eccentric admiral who revolutionized the British navy and brought forth the first true battleship, the H.M.S. Dreadnought.
 
Their story, and the story of the era, filled with misunderstandings, missed opportunities, and events leading to unintended conclusions, unfolds like a Greek tragedy in this powerful narrative. Intimately human and dramatic, Dreadnought is history at its most riveting.
 
Praise for Dreadnought
 
“Dreadnought is history in the grand manner, as most people prefer it: how people shaped, or were shaped by, events.”—Time
 
“A classic [that] covers superbly a whole era . . . engrossing in its glittering gallery of characters.”—Chicago Sun-Times
 
“[Told] on a grand scale . . . Massie [is] a master of historical portraiture and anecdotage.”—The Wall Street Journal
 
“Brilliant on everything he writes about ships and the sea. It is Massie’s eye for detail that makes his nautical set pieces so marvelously evocative.”—Los Angeles Times

About this title

From the Publisher:

Robert Massie's DREADNOUGHT is one of the really great history reads of the last decade.

As Europe prepared for The Great War, Massie takes us through the great naval arms race. The parallel between the US/Russian nuclear arms race and the British/German arms race is inescapable. What makes this book such a special experience is the depth of character Massie explores of all those who make up the diplomatic and naval history that DREADNOUGHT depicts. The relationship between Queen Victoria and Kaiser Wilhelm is particularly intriguing. Wilhelm's admiration, and even envy, for everything British, obviously played an important part in the events to come.

The portrait of Jackie Fisher, First Sea Lord, a man who brought monumental changes to the British Navy, is worth the price of admission.

As Director of Production at Ballantine, it is such a privilege to be part of the team that participates in bringing to a large audience such a great piece of writing.

From the Inside Flap:

sic [that] covers superbly a whole era...Engrossing in its glittering gallery of characters."
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Robert K. Massie has written a richly textured and gripping chronicle of the personal and national rivalries that led to the twentieth century's first great arms race. Massie brings to vivid life, such historical figures as the single-minded Admiral von Tirpitz, the young, ambitious, Winston Churchill, the ruthless, sycophantic Chancellor Bernhard von Bulow, and many others. Their story, and the story of the era, filled with misunderstandings, missed opportunities, and events leading to unintended conclusions, unfolds like a Greek tratedy in his powerful narrative. Intimately human and dramatic, DREADNOUGHT is history at its most riveting.

About this edition

• Publisher: Jonathan Cape London
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0224032607
• ISBN 13: 9780224032605
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 1007