Great Feuds in History: Ten of the Liveliest Disputes Ever

by Colin Evans

Paperback, 2002

Publication

Wiley (2002), Edition: 1, 256 pages

Original publication date

2001

Description

Praise for Great Feuds in History "Everyone loves a good fight, especially on the world stage, and Evans calls these contests with skill and flair." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Evans captures all the drama and controversy in these streamlined accounts brimming with invigorated, well-paced prose." -- Publishers Weekly In Great Feuds in History, Colin Evans puts us in the middle of ten of history's most significant struggles-high-stakes personal conflicts that had a lasting impact on the societies around them and on generations that followed. Spanning five hundred years of political rivalry, spiritual conflict, and ancestral discord, here are ten fascinating true tales of ambition, greed, jealousy, passion, and fear that are as gripping and meaningful today as they were in their own turbulent times. * Queen Elizabeth I versus Mary, Queen of Scots * English parliament versus King Charles I * Aaron Burr versus Alexander Hamilton * The Hatfields versus the McCoys * Joseph Stalin versus Leon Trotsky * Roald Amundsen versus Robert Scott * The Duchess of Windsor versus the Queen Mother * Bernard Law Montgomery versus George Patton * Lyndon B. Johnson versus Robert F. Kennedy * J. Edgar Hoover versus Martin Luther King Jr.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member StoutHearted

This is a book that's pretty fun and the language the author uses makes for quick reading, but borders on the gossipy rather than neutral historical reporting. The whole point of the book is to get the dirty details of the feud; a summation of "the good parts."

The choices are good for the limited

number of feuds being covered, but with the exception of Martin Luther King's with Hoover, it's a white-centric list. The feuds span centuries, from Protestant Elizabeth I's struggle for the throne and religious authority over the Scottish Catholic Queen Mary, to the aforementioned Hoover-King struggle for political influence. Some feuds seem more influential than others. Was Hoover's feud with King really any more monumental that Hoover's harrassment of other famous people during his day? However, It is a fascinating read on what was going on in the backrooms of the civil rights struggle. The book shines with the tragic story of Amundsen and Scott's race to be the first to reach the South Pole. It's a tale of drama, deceit, and madness, and practically writes itself. Some chapters fall into danger of becoming too gossipy to be reliable. Elizabeth I is reduced to a jealous, looks-obsessed ninny instead of the shrewd political leader she was.

With only ten feuds, the book begs to be expanded and to include other world leaders. The author stuck to those well-known by English-speaking audiences, and on the whole is more entertaining than a reliable historical reference.

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Language

English

Original language

English

ISBN

0471225886 / 9780471225881

Physical description

256 p.; 6.08 inches

Pages

256

Rating

½ (20 ratings; 3.6)

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