Synopses & Reviews
"Elegant biography . . . a fast-moving, entertaining, and finely written story." --Simon Schama,
The New Yorker George Nathaniel Curzon's controversial life in public service stretched from the high noon of his country's empire to the traumatized years following World War I. As viceroy of India under Queen Victoria and foreign secretary under King George V, the obsessive Lord Curzon left his unmistakable mark on the era. David Gilmour's award-winning book is a brilliant assessment of Curzon's character and achievements, offering a richly dramatic account of the infamous long vendettas, the turbulent friendships, and the passionate, risky love affairs that complicated and enriched his life.
Born into the ruling class of what was then the world's greatest power, Curzon was a fervent believer in British imperialism who spent his life proving he was fit for the task. Often seen as arrogant and tempestuous, he was loathed as much as he was adored, his work disparaged as much as it was admired. In Gilmour's well-rounded appraisal, Curzon is seen as a complex, tragic figure, a gifted leader who saw his imperial world overshadowed at the dawn of democracy. David Gilmour is the author of several acclaimed works of literary and political history, including The Long Recessional: The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling and The Last Leopard: A Life of Giuseppe di Lampedusa. A fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a former fellow of St. Anthony's College, Oxford, he is a regular contributor to the Financial Times and The New York Review of Books. He lives in Edinburgh.
Winner of the Duff Cooper Prize
A Los Angeles Times Best Book
A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book
A Booklist Editors' Choice
George Nathaniel Curzon's controversial life in public service stretched from the high noon of his country's empire to the traumatized years following the First World War. As viceroy of India under Queen Victoria and foreign secretary under King George V, the obsessive and tempestuous Lord Curzon left his unmistakable mark on the era. David Gilmour's award-winning and masterful booknow with a new foreword by the authoris a brilliant assessment of Curzon's character and achievements, offering a dramatic account not only of a remarkable public career but also of a turbulent private life, with its infamous vendettas, many long friendships, and passionate, risky love affairs.
Born into the ruling class of what was then the world's greatest power, Curzon was a fervent believer in British imperialism who spent his life proving he was fit for the task. His prodigious energy made him the most traveled minister ever to sit in a British cabinet, a writer of immense volumes on Asia, and a compulsive restorer of ancient buildings in Britain and India. Often seen as arrogant and pompous, Curzon was loathed as much as he was adored, his work disparaged as much as it was admired. In Gilmour's work, he emerges as a complex, contradictory figure, a man of great talents and glaring defects whose career was a spectacular blend of triumph and disappointment. "[A] superb biography."Ian Buruma, The New York Review of Books
"David Gilmour makes it clear that his aim is to rescue Curzon from his critics. A person's lack of manners, he argues, should not condemn him to perpetual derision. Curzon was undoubtedly annoying, but he also restored India's greatest monuments; rationalized its police; reformed its currency, universities, and railways; and reorganized its irrigation system. There is no question that he deserves a fresh appraisal, and in Gilmour, the author of a biography of Rudyard Kipling, he has a willing and an able champion . . . Gilmour shows how different the real Curzon was from the pampered caricature . . . Curzon: Imperial Statesman makes a powerful case for its subject. This is a biography in the old-fashioned mode. Curzon's private life only rarely intrudes, Gilmour never delves into forensic psychology, and there is no attempt to spare the reader the intricacies of British party politics. In other words, this is a biography for adults. Curzon, who preferred facts to sentiment, would have been pleased."Amanda Foreman, The New York Times Book Review
"Until now no single work adequately chronicled Curzon's entire life. Gilmour's absorbing, intelligent, quizzical, and stylish biography covers with equal authority and panache late-Victorian country-house weekends, maneuverings within the War Cabinet, and the background of the Treaty of Lausanne . . . No clearer and more vivid account has been written of the high point of the Raj."The Atlantic Monthly
"[An] elegant biography . . . A fast-moving, entertaining, and finely written story."Simon Schama, The New Yorker
"A magnificent work . . . entirely convincing in its evocation of Curzon's extraordinary character. It is, in short, the definitive life."David Cannadine, The Observer
"Gilmour has given this extraordinary man the treatment he deserves . . . A narrative that is trustworthy and enthralling."Nigel Nicolson, The Spectator
"[A] scrupulously researched, well-written account of Curzon's life and career."Merle Rubin, The Washington Times
"Masterly . . . As timely as it is scholarly, well-researched and comprehensive . . . It is extremely unlikely that a better portrait of either a British viceroy or the climax of the Raj will be written in the foreseeable future."William Dalrymple, Los Angeles Times Book Review
"Gilmour explains superbly how Curzon worked through the local peoples themselves to create a fully functioning, successful state in Asia . . . Americans who wish to elevate their country from a republic to an empire should read this book, which superbly illuminates the opportunities, the glories and the pitfalls of such an endeavor."Andrew Roberts, The Wall Street Journal
"A superb new biography . . . A tragic story, brilliantly told."Andrew Roberts, Literary Review
"An absorbing, witty, and intelligent biography . . . Gilmour's mix of erudition, hard analysis and quizzical amusement will give this volume a unique place on the ever more crowded shelves of political biography."Ben Pimlott, The Independent on Sunday
"A biography as definitive as such a work can ever be . . . A splendid book."Lord Blake, Evening Standard
"Gilmour has brought to this study qualities which few biographers attain . . . Curzon's story, sometimes portrayed as a study in failure, is here restored to the high ground . . . Gilmour has given the whole life its due."Martin Gilbert, The Guardian
"Well researched, soundly constructed, sometimes witty, sometimes eloquent, always admirably fair. Curzon needed and deserved a significant new biography; Gilmour has done him proud."Philip Ziegler, The Daily Telegraph
"One of the best biographies of our time . . . A book of outstanding excellence."Piers Brendon, New Statesman
"A magisterial and, one hopes, definitive biography . . . [A] massive study . . . Curzon, who had a keen sense of history, has been well served."Gerard Alexander, The Virginia Quarterly Review
"Gilmour charts Curzon's life through success and failure, turning in a well-formed view of the late imperial era in the bargain. An outstanding biography of an important historical figure."Kirkus Reviews
"In our enlightened age, to label someone as an imperialist 'empire man' is usually a pejorative designation. So it is useful to be reminded that many of the men who administered the British Empire were men of immense intellect, creativity, and curiosity. In Gilmour's previous biography of the supposed arch-imperialist Kipling (The Long Recessional, 2002), he revealed the complexities of his subject while n0 displaying a wonderful grasp of the spirit of the Victorian age. Here he chronicles the life of one of the true giants of the latter stages of the empire. Curzon was born into a family of relatively impoverished aristocrats. He saw public service as both a duty and a means to personal advancement. As viceroy of India, he instituted vital and progressive reforms in taxation and showed a devotion to preserving India's historical monuments. Yet he remained a staunch devotee of British stewardship of the subcontinent, and his attitudes toward Indians can, charitably, be described as patronizing. Although he later served admirably as foreign secretary, his arrogance and knack for offending people probably prevented his selection as prime minister. Despite his undeniable accomplishments, Curzon died a lonely, embittered man. This is a superbly written account of a proud, talented, but rather tragic figure."Jay Freeman, Booklistt (starred review)
Review
"[An] absorbing, intelligent, quizzical, and stylish biography . . . No clearer and more vivid account has been written of the high point of the Raj--its workaday management as well as its pomp." --Benjamin Schwartz,
The Atlantic Monthly
Synopsis
"Elegant biography . . . a fast-moving, entertaining, and finely written story." --Simon Schama, The New Yorker
George Nathaniel Curzon's controversial life in public service stretched from the high noon of his country's empire to the traumatized years following World War I. As viceroy of India under Queen Victoria and foreign secretary under King George V, the obsessive Lord Curzon left his unmistakable mark on the era. David Gilmour's award-winning book is a brilliant assessment of Curzon's character and achievements, offering a richly dramatic account of the infamous long vendettas, the turbulent friendships, and the passionate, risky love affairs that complicated and enriched his life.
Born into the ruling class of what was then the world's greatest power, Curzon was a fervent believer in British imperialism who spent his life proving he was fit for the task. Often seen as arrogant and tempestuous, he was loathed as much as he was adored, his work disparaged as much as it was admired. In Gilmour's well-rounded appraisal, Curzon is seen as a complex, tragic figure, a gifted leader who saw his imperial world overshadowed at the dawn of democracy.
Synopsis
Elegant biography . . . a fast-moving, entertaining, and finely written story. --Simon Schama, The New Yorker George Nathaniel Curzon's controversial life in public service stretched from the high noon of his country's empire to the traumatized years following World War I. As viceroy of India under Queen Victoria and foreign secretary under King George V, the obsessive Lord Curzon left his unmistakable mark on the era. David Gilmour's award-winning book is a brilliant assessment of Curzon's character and achievements, offering a richly dramatic account of the infamous long vendettas, the turbulent friendships, and the passionate, risky love affairs that complicated and enriched his life.
Born into the ruling class of what was then the world's greatest power, Curzon was a fervent believer in British imperialism who spent his life proving he was fit for the task. Often seen as arrogant and tempestuous, he was loathed as much as he was adored, his work disparaged as much as it was admired. In Gilmour's well-rounded appraisal, Curzon is seen as a complex, tragic figure, a gifted leader who saw his imperial world overshadowed at the dawn of democracy. David Gilmour is the author of several acclaimed works of literary and political history, including The Long Recessional: The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling and The Last Leopard: A Life of Giuseppe di Lampedusa. A fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a former fellow of St. Anthony's College, Oxford, he is a regular contributor to the Financial Times and The New York Review of Books. He lives in Edinburgh.
Winner of the Duff Cooper Prize
A Los Angeles Times Best Book
A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book
A Booklist Editors' Choice
George Nathaniel Curzon's controversial life in public service stretched from the high noon of his country's empire to the traumatized years following the First World War. As viceroy of India under Queen Victoria and foreign secretary under King George V, the obsessive and tempestuous Lord Curzon left his unmistakable mark on the era. David Gilmour's award-winning and masterful book--now with a new foreword by the author--is a brilliant assessment of Curzon's character and achievements, offering a dramatic account not only of a remarkable public career but also of a turbulent private life, with its infamous vendettas, many long friendships, and passionate, risky love affairs.
Born into the ruling class of what was then the world's greatest power, Curzon was a fervent believer in British imperialism who spent his life proving he was fit for the task. His prodigious energy made him the most traveled minister ever to sit in a British cabinet, a writer of immense volumes on Asia, and a compulsive restorer of ancient buildings in Britain and India. Often seen as arrogant and pompous, Curzon was loathed as much as he was adored, his work disparaged as much as it was admired. In Gilmour's work, he emerges as a complex, contradictory figure, a man of great talents and glaring defects whose career was a spectacular blend of triumph and disappointment. A] superb biography.--Ian Buruma, The New York Review of Books
David Gilmour makes it clear that his aim is to rescue Curzon from his critics. A person's lack of manners, he argues, should not condemn him to perpetual derision. Curzon was undoubtedly annoying, but he also restored India's greatest monuments; rationalized its police; reformed its currency, universities, and railways; and reorganized its irrigation system. There is no question that he deserves a fresh appraisal, and in Gilmour, the author of a biography of Rudyard Kipling, he has a willing and an able champion . . . Gilmour shows how different the real Curzon was from the pampered caricature . . . Curzon: Imperial Statesman makes a powerful case for its subject. This is a biography in the old-fashioned mode. Curzon's private life only rarely intrudes, Gilmour never delves into forensic psychology, and there is no attempt to spare the reader the intricacies of British party politics. In other words, this is a biography for adults. Curzon, who preferred facts to sentiment, would have been pleased.--Amanda Foreman, The New York Times Book Review
Until now no single work adequately chronicled Curzon's entire life. Gilmour's absorbing, intelligent, quizzical, and stylish biography covers with equal authority and panache late-Victorian country-house weekends, maneuverings within the War Cabinet, and the background of the Treaty of Lausanne . . . No clearer and more vivid account has been written of the high point of the Raj.--The Atlantic Monthly
An] elegant biography . . . A fast-moving, entertaining, and finely written story.--Simon Schama, The New Yorker
A magnificent work . . . entirely convincing in its evocation of Curzon's extraordinary character. It is, in short, the definitive life.--David Cannadine, The Observer
Gilmour has given this extraordinary man the treatment he deserves . . . A narrative that is trustworthy and enthralling.--Nigel Nicolson, The Spectator
A] scrupulously researched, well-written account of Curzon's life and career.--Merle Rubin, The Washington Times
Masterly . . . As timely as it is scholarly, well-researched and comprehensive . . . It is extremely unlikely that a better portrait of either a British viceroy or the climax of the Raj will be written in the foreseeable future.--William Dalrymple, Los Angeles Times Book Review
Gilmour explains superbly how Curzon worked through the local peoples themselves to create a fully functioning, successful state in Asia . . . Americans who wish to elevate their country from a republic to an empire should read this book, which superbly illuminates the opportunities, the glories and the pitfalls of such an endeavor.--Andrew Roberts, The Wall Street Journal
A superb new biography . . . A tragic story, brillian
About the Author
David Gilmour is the author of many works of literary and political history, including The Long Recessional: The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling (FSG, 2002) and The Last Leopard: A Life of Giuseppe di Lampedusa. He lives in Edinburgh.