Against the monumental canvas of seventeenth- and
eighteenth-century Europe and Russia, unfolds the magnificent story
of Peter the Great, crowned at the age of 10. A barbarous, volatile
feudal tsar with a taste for torture; a progressive and enlightened
reformer of government and science; a statesman of vision and
colossal significance: Peter the Great embodied the greatest
strengths and weaknesses of Russia while being at the very forefront
of her development.
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, and his relationships with those he loved
most: Catherine, his loving mistress, wife, and successor; and
Menshikov, the charming, unscrupulous prince who rose to power
through Peter's friendship. Impetuous and stubborn, generous and
cruel, a man of enormous energy and complexity, Peter the Great is
brought fully to life.
'Enthralling. As fascinating as a novel and more so than most' New
York Times. 'Urgently readable ... the work of a master of narrative
history' Newsweek. 'Exceptional' New Yorker. Robert K. Massie was born
in Lexington, Kentucky in 1929. He studied American History at Yale
University and Modern European History at Oxford University, which he
attended as a Rhodes scholar. He lives in Irvington, New York.
