History of Britain, A - Volume III: The Fate of the Empire 1776 - 2000 (History of Britain (Talk Miramax)) [Hardcover]

Simon Schama (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Renowned historian Schama has done it again with the third and final volume of this magnificent work, displaying his gift for combining scholarship and grace in a highly accessible narrative. Schama begins with the French Revolution and the "back to nature" philosophy of Jean-Jacques Rousseau that made such an indelible impression on Britain. Radicals such as Tom Paine and Mary Wollstonecraft demanded revolutionary changes to Britain's oligarchic government. The big question on everyone's lips was: Would Britain experience European-style, violent revolution? As Schama makes clear, Britain settled for incrementalism instead. Schama examines the omnipresent urge for political and social reform by devoting much of the middle part of the book to the evolving role of women. He gives us an array of Victorian female pioneers, from photographer Julia Margaret Cameron to Dr. Elizabeth Garrett, who were part of a network of social reformers seeking to ameliorate the lives of the poor. This reformist, "civilizing mission" also spread to the empire, as exemplified here by Thomas Babington Macaulay, who believed the British would eradicate poverty and ignorance in India. The natives, however, often held a differing view of British "civilization." Schama skillfully describes the 1857 Sepoy Revolt in India, and also depicts the horrors of massive famines there and in Ireland. Looking at the last century's gradual decolonization and imperial decline, Schama masterfully recounts the lives of Winston Churchill and George Orwell, who he says personify Britain's "difficult" 20th century. Schama has written a delightfully readable book that should be mandatory for anyone interested in British history. Color and b&w illus.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 576 pages
• Publisher: Miramax (December 18, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786868996
• ISBN-13: 978-0786868995
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.9 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #342,434 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Shimmering Schama, November 26, 2002

By 

Bruce Loveitt (Ogdensburg, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: History of Britain, A - Volume III: The Fate of the Empire 1776 - 2000 (History of Britain (Talk Miramax)) (Hardcover)

Let me start off this review by saying that I am a great admirer of Mr. Schama. I have read "Citizens", "Landscape And Memory" and "Rembrandt's Eyes" and thought they were all wonderful. I would give all of those books a 5 star rating. So, what happened here? I think what happened is that Mr. Schama was being pulled in 2 different directions. This book is meant to accompany the television programs that the author is hosting for the BBC. Instead of just writing whatever book he might ordinarily have written, I think Mr. Schama was hindered by the restrictions the TV format placed on him. For the TV shows he had to come up with various "hooks", a few well-known personalities that would help him illustrate whatever point or points he was trying to make at that point in the narrative. Additionally, the television format required Mr. Schama to be ruthlessly selective in what he chose to include or exclude. There just isn't the time to put in everything that you'd like to. These requirements distort the writing process. Mr. Schama is aware of the problem and addresses it in the preface to the book. But this "preemptive strike", this acknowledgement by the author that he is aware of the problem, doesn't make the problem go away. The author is such a good historian, and such a good writer, that this book is still well- worth reading. Mr. Schama has pulled out, like rabbits from a hat, some interesting tales of little-known historical figures. Here we have Thomas Day, a great believer in the theories of Jean-Jacques Rousseau: "...Day...believed in the inter-connectedness of all created life and was therefore a vegetarian...Would he want to treat all creatures with the same consideration, asked a sardonic lawyer friend, even spiders? Would he not want to kill them? 'No,' answered Day, 'I don't know that I have a right. Suppose that a superior being said to a companion- "Kill that lawyer." How should you like it? And a lawyer is more noxious to most people than a spider.'......(Day's) peculiar life ended abruptly in September 1789 in his 42nd year, during an experiment to test his pet theories about taming horses with gentleness rather than breaking them. An unbroken colt he was riding failed to respond to the tender touch, and threw Day on his head." The book is filled with nice touches like this. There are many entertaining anecdotes about the well-known, such as Wordsworth, Coleridge, Queen Victoria, George Orwell, Winston Churchill, etc.....and the not-so-well-known, such as Mr. Day. This provides a counterbalance to the heavyweight material.....for example, the intricacies of British politics (Pitt vs. Fox; Gladstone vs. Disraeli; Labour vs. Liberal vs. Conservative); the big-issues (home-rule for Ireland; women's suffrage; the Raj; industrialization; etc.). But, despite the quality of both Mr. Schama's thinking and writing, in the end we feel strangely unsatisfied. Too much has been left out. Despite what you might have anticipated by the book starting with 1776, there is nothing here concerning the American Revolution; a handful of pages concerning the 20 year struggle against Napoleonic France; no mention of the War Of 1812; virtually nothing on the Crimean and Boer Wars or WWI; nothing on the relationship between Britain and South Africa, or Britain and Canada, or Britain and Australia/New Zealand, etc.; and, surprisingly, considering Mr. Schama's wide-ranging interests, except for mentioning some writers, there is very little cultural history contained in these pages- nothing about art, music, dance, architecture, etc.; and almost no mention of scientific and technological achievements. So, if you are a fan of Mr. Schama, read this book for the beautiful prose and for the author's always interesting insights concerning the areas he has chosen to cover. But, if you are looking for a detailed, all-inclusive history of Great Britain- you will need to look elsewhere.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Per usual, Schama is brilliant, December 24, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: History of Britain, A - Volume III: The Fate of the Empire 1776 - 2000 (History of Britain (Talk Miramax)) (Hardcover)

This third and final volume is a winning culmination of Schama's wonderful "A History of Britain." Schama himself affirms that this is "a" History of Britain, not "the" History of Britain. Yes, it's impressionistic, but this also allows Schama to use his brilliant writing skills. Nobody narrates history like Schama. The previous reviewer's comments about Schama not considering the War oif 1812, etc., seems beside the point. This is not a textbook, and Thank God for that! If you're a Schama fan (as I am), you won't be disappointed by this book. I especially enjoyed Schama use of George Orwell (my favorite writer) as a locus for describing Britain in the early 20th Century. If you're at all interested in history, you should buy this wonderful book.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun Read, May 16, 2003

By 

"rolihlahla82" (Wisconsin, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: History of Britain, A - Volume III: The Fate of the Empire 1776 - 2000 (History of Britain (Talk Miramax)) (Hardcover)

If history bores you and you enjoy reading, I think Schama intends more to educate through entertainment than to simply educate. This is not the typical history book and is well-written. There are plenty of funny, interesting, and most often brief acounts given that help one understand and provide laughs at times. Schama is not a British historian and has lived in the US for maybe the last 25 years. But on account of being British, a Columbia professor, and--based on reading his three volumes on British history--an excellent writer, he has been encouraged and has writen about British history.
After reading this book I got a good feel of the life at the time, and I think that is largely due to the historical records Schama uses that show the emotions and logic of the times. The beautiful pictures also help in fostering a sense of what Britain is and was like. This book is a very easy and enjoyable to read, and I think this book is perfect for the reader unfamiliar with British history but does not take to history per se.