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Robert K. Massie

Peter the Great: His Life and World Paperback – October 12, 1981

by Robert K. Massie (Author)

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From the Modern Library’s new set of beautifully repackaged hardcover classics by Robert K. Massie—also available are Nicholas and Alexandra and The Romanovs

Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe and Russia unfolds the magnificent story of Peter the Great, crowned co-tsar at the age of ten. The acclaimed author of Catherine the Great, Robert K. Massie delves deep into the life of this captivating historical figure, chronicling the pivotal events that shaped a boy into a legend—including his “incognito” travels in Europe, his unquenchable curiosity about Western ways, his obsession with the sea and establishment of the stupendous Russian navy, his creation of an unbeatable army, his transformation of Russia, and his relationships with those he loved most: Catherine, the robust yet gentle peasant, his loving mistress, wife, and successor; and Menshikov, the charming, bold, unscrupulous prince who rose to wealth and power through Peter’s friendship. Impetuous and stubborn, generous and cruel, tender and unforgiving, a man of enormous energy and complexity, Peter the Great is brought fully to life.

The Modern Library of the World’s Best Books

Peter the Great
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize

“Enthralling . . . as fascinating as any novel and more so than most.”—The New York Times Book Review

Nicholas and Alexandra

“A magnificent and intimate picture . . . Not only the main characters but a whole era become alive and comprehensible.”—Harper’s

The Romanovs

“Riveting . . . unfolds like a detective story.”—Los Angeles Times Book Review

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Enthralling . . . as fascinating as any novel and more so than most.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Urgently readable . . . the work of a master of narrative history.”—Newsweek

“Written in a style that combines vigor, clarity, and sensitivity . . . should be the envy of historians and novelists alike.”—Chicago Sun-Times

“Fascinating . . . an absorbing book.”—The Plain Dealer

“Exceptional.”—The New Yorker

From the Inside Flap

"Enthralling . . . As fascinating as any novel and more so than most." The New York Times Book Review
The Pulitzer Prize-Winning Bestseller by the author of DREADNOUGHT.
Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe and Russia unfolds the magnificent story of Peter the Great, one of the most extraordinary rulers in history. Impetuous and stubborn, generous and cruel, tender and unforgiving, a man of enormous energy and complexity, Peter the Great is brought fully to life in this exceptional biography.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product details

Paperback: 928 pages
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks; Reissue edition (October 12, 1981)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0345298063
ISBN-13: 978-0345298065
Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 1.6 x 9.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Customer Reviews: 602 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #44,405 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #109 in Russian History (Books)
- #58 in Royalty Biographies
- #34 in Historical Russia Biographies

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602 customer reviews

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Laurie Kelley

One of My Favorite Books Ever: A Classic

September 16, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I've read hundreds of books but this is on of my all-time favorites. Massie is a meticulous researcher and an excellent writer and storyteller. This book brings to life a fascinating man, and his incredible times, and how Peter brought Russia out of the dark ages with his vision, willpower, restless soul and ceaseless energy. The battle scenes are incredible: I read the Battle of Poltava like it was happening before me, like watching a football game with the best newscaster. A true page-turner. You will find yourself enveloped in military strategy of two great men (Charles XII of Sweden and Peter the Great) and their armies, how they thought, what moves they made, mistakes they committed, and the final outcome. Massie takes you from a bird's eye view of a battle, right down to the most minute of details. I don't know how he does it! This is my third time reading this book. The last time? 1987, when I was in labor with my firstborn. A long night, so I grabbed my favorite book. The author's son has hemophilia (like Tsar Nicholas II's did), and the next day, I gave birth to a son with hemophilia. When the doctor gave me the diagnosis, I looked at the book in awe. Perhaps this explains my personal love for this book. But it is a classic: so very well written, so perfectly researched, and so expertly told. Read it and you will time travel to the 18th century!

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Victor Vögel

Captivating; Gold Standard of History Writing

July 18, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

"Peter the Great" is one of the best-written history books I've encountered, and it is the gold standard that I compare against other narrative histories. Despite the title, this is not a biography -- it is an incredible narrative history of the times of Peter the Great. I found this to be not only an outstanding book about Russian history, but also an excellent book about Western history in the 17th and 18th centuries. The best chapters cover Peter's grand tour through the Netherlands, Germany and England, and the book successfully brings to life the Europe of Peter's time. I also learned a lot about the warfare and military strategy of the times. My one critique would be that the chapters on the war with Sweden could probably be a bit shorter; there's more detail than most people need. Reading "Peter the Great" is better than reading historical fiction; the story is captivating and I really couldn't put the book down.

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Kathryn Kiracofe

Great story - Great Tsar - Great City

August 21, 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Amazing book! After spending several days in St. Petersburg, Russia last summer I was very interested in learning about the Russian Tsar responsible for its creation. Mr. Massie’s book on Peter The Great is a thorough biography that reads like a good novel. Mr Massie demonstrates the intricacies of the confluence of culture, identity, ideas and technologies of Western Europe, The Baltic Countries, Ottoman Empire and Russia during the time of Peter’s reign. St Petersburg feels like a Western European city in some regards - the canals, the palaces, the long boulevards and wide plazas. You realize this was by Peter’s design as he was very much taken by Western European architecture, fashion, technology and naval prowess. Peter could also be as brutish as many iron-fisted Tsars - demanding duty and subservience of all his subjects - including his own family. Peter was a high energy intellectual who surrounded himself with foreigners more often than the Russian aristocrats (boyars) of his time. His interest in ship building became his mark on Russian history. His ability to defeat the Swedish gave birth to the dazzling city on the Neva River.

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Cabin Dweller

The Indubitable Mr. Macabre

July 30, 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

As told by the bottomless pit of worldliness, Robert Massie, the story of Peter the Great is not just epic but colossal. This book checks your sense of moral judgement at the door; none without a fully developed sense of context should read. Right and wrong and "western" or at the time Moslem etiquette has to be suspended as an act of historical curiosity.

King George I was not English. Peter's second wife was Lithuanian. Pushkin has an African ancestor, one of the few if not the only African in the book. The German suburb in Moscow was comprised of various European residents, living well or at least better than the illiterate, drunk, abusive, lawless Russians. Among all, there is a staggering infant mortality rate and otherwise remarkably short lifespans. It was the suburb that drew Peter away from the Orthodox heritage: to boats and sailing, to the Embassy across Europe, to the shaving of beards and the shrinking of impractical - except in winter - clothing.

Owing perhaps to scarce records, or else just to a lull in domestic events, Charles XII of Sweden becomes the dominating figure in the middle of the book. Louis XIV was indulged as much as human spirit could tolerate, until the battles eventually turn to strange events with the Sultan in the Ottoman Empire, with Charles still angling for any revenge on his great foe while wearing his diplomatic welcome comically thin.

To no one's surprise, this is an archive of torture, punishment, humiliation, and fear. Many times, and not just because the book is so long, many times per chapter in fact, the ax across the neck is an act of mercy. In their creativity, the Russians (with so many foreign lieutenants) anticipate the devious methods of Stalin and his purges, and Lenin and his Revolution. To no one's surprise there is torture, just as there is the mobilization, march, and victorious debauchery, but these aspects of barbarism do become relentless as the pages turn.

This is a story without art. It traces one man's desire for a people to create a history, when eventually it would develop a taste for any aesthetics.

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