Awful End of Prince William the Silent [Hardcover]

Lisa Jardine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 17, 2005

A brilliantly detailed and gripping account of the assassination in 1584 of Prince William of Orange, and the shockwaves it sent through an age. The illustrious Making History Series, edited by Lisa Jardine and Amanda Foreman, explores an eclectic mix of history's tipping points. Here, the most eminent of guest writers have been invited to present a subject closest to their heart, presenting the grand theatre of the past in a collection of inventive and provocative essays. The series awakens fresh interest in subjects long before us -- the decline of Aztec Empire, Waterloo, Nuremberg -- as well as uncovering the seemingly quiet moments of chance which turned subsequent events on their head. In The Awful End of Prince William the Silent, series editor Lisa Jardine explores the historical ramifications of just such a instance, the first assassination of a head of state with a hand-held gun. The shooting of Prince William of Orange in the hallway of his Delft residence in July 1584 by a French catholic -- the second attempt on his life -- had immediate political consequences: it was a serious setback for the Protestant cause in the Netherlands, as its forces fought for independence from the Catholic rule of the Hapsburg empire. But, as Jardine brilliantly illustrates, its implications for those in positions of power were even more far-reaching, as the assassination brutally and irrevocably heralded the arrival of a lethal new threat to the security of nations -- a pistol that could be concealed and used to deadly effect at point-blank range. Queen Elizabeth I, William's close Protestant ally, was devastated by his death and, being the subject of assassination plots herself, thrown into panic; in the aftermath of William's death, legislation was enacted in the English parliament making it an offence to bring a pistol anywhere near a royal palace. Elizabeth's terror was not misplaced -- as Jardine observes, this assassination was the first in a long and bloody line that would take in those of Abraham Lincoln in 1865 and Archduke Ferdinand in 1914 and is all too relevant today.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for On A Grander Scale (2002): 'A wonderful book which looks set to be the definitive life of Wren for a long time to come' Kathryn Hughes, Mail on Sunday 'A full and fascinating biography' Antonia Fraser, New Statesman 'Jardine!has made important archival discoveries!her prose sparkles.' Sunday Telegraph For The Curious Life of Robert Hooke (2003): 'Lisa Jardine is a new star on England's literary and historical scene. She has a gift, which so few historians possess, of making the past seem relevant to our own times.' Paul Johnson

About the Author

Lisa Jardine CBE is Director of the Centre for Editing Lives and Letters, and Centenary Professor of Renaissance Studies at Queen Mary, University of London. She is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and an Honorary Fellow of King's College, Cambridge and Jesus College, Cambridge. She writes and reviews for all the major UK national newspapers and magazines and for the 'Washington Post', and has presented and appears regularly on arts, history and current affairs programmes for TV and radio. She is a regular writer and presenter of 'A Point of View', on BBC Radio 4. She judged many important literary prizes including the 2000 Orwell Prize and the 2002 Man Booker Prize. She is the author of a number of best-selling general books, including 'Worldly Goods: A New History of the Renaissance', 'Ingenious Pursuits: Building the Scientific Revolution', and biographies of Sir Christopher Wren and Robert Hooke. Lisa Jardine is married to the architect John Hare and has three children.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 270 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; First Edition edition (May 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0007192576
• ISBN-13: 978-0007192571
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,662,251 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars William "the Silenced", November 8, 2005

By 

Nikolai G. "Egir" (London, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Awful End of Prince William the Silent (Hardcover)

A small, but eloquently written study, dealing with the assassination of William of Nassau, Prince of Orange. Some will expect to read about the birth and evolution of the wheel-lock pistol here, others - extremely detailed information about the deed announced in the title. Don't want to spoil it for you, but on the evolution of the "dag" the information is not very detailed. There are a few paragraphs speaking about the pistoleers and the change of tactics, but its mostly about the diplomatic background and the diplomatic gains and losses of the potentates of the period. A large part of the book deals with the impact of the Prince's violent death on English society and diplomacy, and also gives an overview of the English intervention in the Netherlands. The account of the killing itself is not very extended, yet it doesn't seem to lack anything important to the common reader. A small part is dedicated to the assassin himself, but personally I would like to read a more detailed analysis of the man's character, psychology, ideology, of his connections, political, religious. The book remains silent on this, providing little information about any subsequent investigation, no depositions of the various witnesses, etc. The general impression is that this book is more about the diplomatic "game" around the the Prince's assassination and especially its aftermath and its results on the English policies in the Netherlands. Not a lot of information on the Spanish though, nor indeed on the French. The pistol (the wheel-lock "dag" specifically) is treated more as a revolutionary new tool of the potential assassin than a new weapon which played a part in the transformation of warfare.

In all a pleasant read, generally educative, not boring, in some ways very informative. However it lacks some details which would be very useful and interesting. In two words: not bad. In another three: could be better.