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Churchill and Empire by [Lawrence James]

Churchill and Empire Kindle Edition

by Lawrence James (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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One of our finest narrative historians, Lawrence James has written a genuinely new biography of Winston Churchill, one focusing solely on his relationship with the British Empire. As a young army officer in the late nineteenth century serving in conflicts in India, South Africa, and the Sudan, his attitude toward the Empire was the Victorian paternalistic approach—at once responsible and superior. Conscious even then of his political career ahead, Churchill found himself reluctantly supporting British atrocities and held what many would regard today as prejudiced views, in that he felt that some nationalities were superior to others, his (some might say obsequious) relationship with America reflected that view. This outmoded attitude was one of the reasons the British voters rejected him after a Second World War in which he had led the country brilliantly. His attitude remained decidedly old-fashioned in a world that was shaping up very differently. This ground-breaking volume reveals the many facets of Churchill’s personality: a visionary leader with a truly Victorian attitude toward the British Empire.

Print length

464 pages
Language

English
Sticky notes

On Kindle Scribe
Publisher

Pegasus Books
Publication date

June 15, 2014
File size

3988 KB
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

One of our finest narrative historians, especially on imperial subjects, Lawrence James is the author of The Rise and Fall of the British Empire, Raj, and The Aristocrats. He lives near Oxford.

Review

“[A] brisk, thorough, and revisionist study … James has a gift for narrative. … Churchill and Empire is a thoughtful, searching look at British imperial rule and its most eloquent champion.” (National Review)

“Scholars usually reject Churchill's view of the British Empire as an essentially beneficent and civilizing force as self-serving hypocrisy. But James does not superficially endorse this view. Careful readers will find an account that reveals genuineness to the dilemma he faced: whether the process of bringing civilization to those who lacked it was compatible with their coercion.” (Choice)

“This is a stylish, intelligent, and readable book.” (The New York Times Book Review)

“James has a gift for writing generally pithy prose.” (The Financial Times)

“Should enlighten and entertain readers who wish to learn more about an empire that was more extensive and arguably more influential that that of Rome.” (The Washington Post) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00IDEQNJC
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pegasus Books; Reprint edition (June 15, 2014)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 15, 2014
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3988 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 464 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #2,493,202 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #82 in Biographies of British Prime Ministers
- #229 in U.K. Prime Minister Biographies
- #4,864 in Biographies of Political Leaders

Customer Reviews:
40 ratings

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4.4 out of 5

40 global ratings

5 star		67%
4 star		16%
3 star		11%
2 star		7%
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Top reviews from the United States

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Thomas E. Reed

Excellent writer and highly informed

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 25, 2014

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Only read key parts thus far. Excellent writer and highly informed. My only criticism thus far is that the author, in my view, too readily excuses the gross racial biases of Churchill. He does so on the grounds that we should not evaluate a person by current standards: My views is that the golden rule has been around for centuries and apparently exist in every culture and recognized religion (see the book titled, The Golden Rule). Another question I have relates to the Atlantic Charter of 1941: Was Churchill playing an unfair realpolitik card when he signed that excellent, liberating Charter that promised self-determination? When have a chance to read more on this issues and this book, I hope to return and possibly add more to the review. It is clear that Churchill certainly was a powerful leader and contributed a great deal to humanity and civilization. I do not deny that.

One person found this helpful

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Miroku Nemeth

Deceptive marketing in the title for the twenty-first century. Posing as a critique of empire, it is a reactionary throwback.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 8, 2015

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Too much of a secular hagiography (though, in some ways, it is more of a kind of history of the times of Churchill than a straightforward biography) and too little critique of imperialism for what I expected in a contemporary book with a title like it has, "Churchill and Empire: A Portrait of an Imperialist". It is, actually, a kind of apology for Churchill as an imperialist more than anything else, though however fervid James may be as an imperialist himself, he seems to have to tone it down for a modern reader, and for the most part resorts to the kind of racism and paternalistic perspective that makes one read a bit between the lines to understand. Good review of history in a way, and a bit of a different read for me as it takes a British imperialist perspective rather than an American perspective, but I chose this over other biographies in the hope it would actually deal with empire and imperialism in a more mature and critical manner. Instead,it was a preservation of a perspective that is best left upon the dust bin of history

3 people found this helpful

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john martin jones jr

Others are better in covering the WW I &II years

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 11, 2014

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Of the many books about Churchill that I have read over the years, this one is, in many ways, the most interesting. Others are better in covering the WW I &II years, and others better at brining to life the years between the wars. But this one is, I think, the best at showing the great, but strange, mind of the man as he faced the fall of what he held most dear -the British Empire.

5 people found this helpful

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Home office

Worth reading

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 29, 2014

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If you are interested in the subject, this was an interesting read. I will say it seemed a little bit disjointed at times, sort of as if it was making observations on random events without a strong unifying or narrative theme.

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Paul Q. Fuqua

it's also a great read. So do yourself a favor

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 25, 2014

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Not only is this a meticulously researched work, it's also a great read. So do yourself a favor. Get hour hands on a copy and start reading it ASAP. You will be very glad you did,

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 17, 2013

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Wonderful and incisive look at the great man. No one is perfect and this shows some of his failings but does not detract from his greatness. He still is my pick for the icon of the 20th century.

12 people found this helpful

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Anatol Rozumny

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 30, 2015

it was good reading

Excellent! Clearly written and hard to put down once ...

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 24, 2014

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Excellent! Clearly written and hard to put down once you start. A fascinating story about one of the greatest leaders of our time

One person found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Victor

Interesting book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 22, 2014

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Even though I have read more than a dozen books of and about Churchill, I got some new interesting historical information from this book. It is very well written. It is especially interesting seeing that Churchill's official biographer, Sir Martin Gilbert, did not, to my knowledge, write a special book like this - which is perhaps understandable. The book is a thorough work, as usual from the 'pen' of Lawrence James.

2 people found this helpful

Frankan

A bright light on 20th century history.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 20, 2014

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An excellent book for readers of recent history. I found that it gave me fresh insights into the events of last century and particularly Churchill's part in them and I would be surprised if it did not have a similar effect on most readers. It is not without relevance today either.

Patten44

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 30, 2015

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"Churchill and Empire". Both the same thing.

Paulo L.

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on February 12, 2015

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Excellent price for a new hardback edition. A very resistant parcel, the book arrived in perfect condition.

Richard FFord

Beautifully written

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 7, 2013

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This is beautifully written, by a skilled historian. I remember some of the events to which he refers. And more importantly, I recognise many of the attitudes and 'givens' which were instilled in us in the immediate post-Churchillian period. A thoroughly excellent read, highly informative

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