Great Leaders, Great Tyrants?: Contemporary Views of World Rulers Who Made History

by Arnold Blumberg

Overview

Can a political leader be effective without being tyrannical? Most biographies tend to treat the tyrannical aspect of a great leader's career as a contradiction to be minimized. This book examines both the creative and tyrannical aspects as the anticipated consequences of the exercise of power. Biographical profiles of 52 major world leaders throughout history feature pro/con essays reflecting contemporary views of the creative and tyrannical aspects of their record. Coverage is global, from Indira Gandhi to Fidel Castro, and spans history from the Egyptian king Akhenaton to Mikhail Gorbachev. Among the leaders profiled are Otto von Bismarck, Oliver Cromwell, Charles de Gaulle, Elizabeth I, Ho Chi Minh, Lenin, Louis XIV, Mao Zedong, Napoleon I, Kwame Nkrumah, Juan Peron, and Tito. All biographies are written by subject specialists. This work encourages critical thinking and debate about the exercise of power.

Coverage is global, from Indira Gandhi to Fidel Castro, and spans history from the Egyptian king Akhenaton to Mikhail Gorbachev. Among the leaders profiled are Otto von Bismarck, Oliver Cromwell, Charles de Gaulle, Elizabeth I, Ho Chi Minh, Lenin, Louis XIV, Mao Zedong, Napoleon I, Kwame Nkrumah, Juan Peron, and Tito. Each biography begins with full name, dates of the leader's lifetime, offices held, and a general introduction placing the leader in historical context. A full biographical essay follows. The editor then presents two essays, in debate format, contrasting the creative and tyrannical roles of the subject from a contemporary viewpoint. Each biography concludes with suggestions for additional reading about the subject. An important resource tool, students will use Great Leaders, Great Tyrants? for debate and critical examination of periods of world history and the exercise of power.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313287510
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	01/16/1995
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.88(d)
Lexile:	1370L (what's this?)
Age Range:	14 Years

About the Author

ARNOLD BLUMBERG is Professor of History at Towson State University in Maryland. A specialist in European and Middle Eastern diplomatic history, he is the author of A Carefully Planned Accident: The Italian War of 1859 (1990), Zion Before Zionism (1986), A View from Jerusalem, 1849-1858 (1980), and The Diplomacy of the Mexican Empire, 1863-1867 (1971), as well as numerous articles.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Akhenaton, King of Egypt (c. 1396-1360, B.C.E.) by Sheldon Avery
Mustapha Kemal Pasha Ataturk, President of Turkey (1881-1938) by Karl Larew
Prince Otto von Bismarck-Schoönhausen, Chancellor of Germany (1815-1898) by Eric A. Belgrad
Fidel Castro, Premier of Cuba (1927-) by Gersham A. Nelson
Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia (1729-1796) by Arnold Blumberg
Camillo, Count Benso de Cavour, Prime Minister of Sardinia-Piedmont and Italy (1810-1861) by Lawrence P. Adamczyk
Charles I, King of England (1600-1649) by Gerald W. Morton
Charles V, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (1500-1558) by Eleanor L. Turk
Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England (1599-1658) by Arnold Blumberg
Charles de Gaulle, President of France (1890-1970) by Lucile Martineau
Elizabeth I, Queen of England (1533-1603) by Clifton W. Potter, Jr.
Francisco Franco Bahamonde, Chief of State of Spain (1892-1975) by Robert H. Whealey
Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary (1830-1916) by Lawrence Sondhaus
Indira Nehru Gandhi, Prime Minister of India (1917-1984) by Peter Merani
Mikhail Gorbachev, General Secretary of the Communist Party, and Later President of the Soviet Union (1931-) by David M. Crowe
Henry VIII, King of England (1491-1547) by W. M. Spellman
Herod the Great, King of Judea (c. 75 B.C.E.-4 B.C.E.) by H. W. Basser and Aaron Lichtenstein
Toyotami Hideyoshi, Supreme Daimyo of Japan (1536-1598) by Wayne McWilliams
Ho Chi Minh, President of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam (1890-1969) by Marilynn M. Larew
Ivan IV, The Terrible, Grand Prince and Tsar of Moscow (1533-1584) by Alexander Sydorenko
Bohdan Zynovyi Khel'nyts'kyi, Hetman of the Ukraine (c. 1595-1657) by Alexander Sydorenko
Nikita Sergeevitch Khruschev, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1894-1971) by David M. Crowe
Pierre Laval, Premier of France (1883-1945) by Bertram M. Gordon
V. I. Lenin, Revolutionary Leader of Russia (1870-1924) by J. Martin Ryle
Leopold II, King of the Belgians (1835-1909) by Arnold Blumberg
Louis XIV, King of France (1638-1715) by Andrew Trout
Mao Zedong, Dictator of the People's Republic of China (1893-1976) by Wayne McWilliams
Mary I, Queen of England (1516-1558) by Arnold Blumberg
Ivan Stepanovych Mazepa, Hetman of the Ukraine (c. 1632-1709) by Alexander Sydorenko
Cosimo De' Medici, Head of the Council of the Republic of Florence (1389-1464) by Armin Mruck
Clemens von Metternich, Chancellor of Austria (1773-1859) by Peter W. Becker
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French (1769-1821) by Lawrence P. Adamczyk
Napoleon III, Emperor of the French (1808-1873) by Arnold Blumberg
Kwame Nkrumah, President of Ghana (1909-1972) by Sheldon Avery
Julius Kambarage Nyerere (1922-) by Sheldon Avery
Juan Domingo Peron, President of Argentina (1895-1974) by James A. Baer
Peter the Great, Emperor of Russia (1672-1725) by Harry Piotrowski
Pheidon, King of Argos (First Half of the Seventh Century) by Carol G. Thomas
Philip II, King of Spain (1527-1598) by Paul J. Hauben
Abd al-Karim Qassem, Ruler of Iraq (1914-1953) by Reeva S. Simon
Qin Shih Huang Di, Emperor of China (259 B.C.-210 B.C.) by Wayne C. McWilliams
Stenka Razin, Cossack Rebel in Russia (c. 1630-1671) by Harry Piotrowski
Richard II, King of England (1367-1399) by George B. Stow
Richard III, King of England (1452-1485) by William B. Robison
Maximilien Robespierre, Revolutionary Leader in France (1758-1794) by Robert Forster
Joseph Stalin, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1879-1953) by Johnpeter H. Grill
Pyotr Arkad‘evich Stolypin, Prime Minister of Russia (1862-1911) by Jackson Taylor
Josip Broz Tito, Leader of Yugoslavia (1892-1980) by Alexander Sydorenko
Trajan, Emperor of Rome (53-117) by Thomas H. Watkins
Vespasian, Emperor of Rome (9-79) by Thomas H. Watkins
Wilhelm II, Emperor of Germany (1859-1941) by Eleanor L. Turk
Thomas Wolsey, Lord Chancellor of England (c. 1472-1530) by William B. Robison
Index

Editorial Reviews

Examines both creative and tyrannical aspects as the anticipated consequences of the exercise of power. Biographical profiles of 52 major world leaders throughout history feature pro/con essays reflecting contemporary views of the creative and tyrannical aspects of their record. Coverage is global, from Indira Gandhi to Fidel Castro, and spans history from the Egyptian king Akhenaton to Mikhail Gorbachev. Among the figures profiled are Otto von Bismarck, Oliver Cromwell, Charles de Gaulle, Kwame Nkrumah, Juan Peron, and Tito. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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