The Pity of War

England and Germany, Bitter Friends, Beloved Foes

Nonfiction, History, Western Europe, Germany, British
Cover of the book The Pity of War by Miranda Seymour, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Miranda Seymour ISBN: 9781442241756
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Publication: October 30, 2014
Imprint: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Language: English
Author: Miranda Seymour
ISBN: 9781442241756
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Publication: October 30, 2014
Imprint: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Language: English

In 1613, a beautiful Stuart princess married a handsome young German prince. This was a love match, but it was also an alliance that aimed to meld Europe's two great Protestant powers. Before Elizabeth and Frederick left London for the court in Heidelberg, they watched a performance of The Winter's Tale. In 1943, a group of British POWs gave a performance of that same play to a group of enthusiastic Nazi guards in Bavaria. Nothing about the story of England and Germany, as this remarkable book demonstrates, is as simple as we might expect.

Miranda Seymour tells the forgotten story of England’s centuries of profound connection and increasingly rivalrous friendship with Germany, linked by a shared faith, a shared hunger for power, a shared culture (Germany never doubted that Shakespeare belonged to them, as much as to England), and a shared leadership. German monarchs ruled over England for three hundred years—and only ceased to do so through a change of name.

This extraordinary and heart-breaking history—told through the lives of princes and painters, soldiers and sailors, bakers and bankers, charlatans and saints—traces two countries so entwined that one German living in England in 1915 refused to choose where his allegiance lay. It was, he said, as if his parents had quarreled. Germany’s connection to the island it loved, patronized, influenced, and fought was unique. Indeed, British soldiers went to war in 1914 against a country to which many of them—as one freely confessed the week before his death on the battlefront—felt more closely connected than to their own. Drawing on a wealth of unpublished papers and personal interviews, the author has uncovered stories that remind us—poignantly, wittily, and tragically—of the powerful bonds many have chosen to forget.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In 1613, a beautiful Stuart princess married a handsome young German prince. This was a love match, but it was also an alliance that aimed to meld Europe's two great Protestant powers. Before Elizabeth and Frederick left London for the court in Heidelberg, they watched a performance of The Winter's Tale. In 1943, a group of British POWs gave a performance of that same play to a group of enthusiastic Nazi guards in Bavaria. Nothing about the story of England and Germany, as this remarkable book demonstrates, is as simple as we might expect.

Miranda Seymour tells the forgotten story of England’s centuries of profound connection and increasingly rivalrous friendship with Germany, linked by a shared faith, a shared hunger for power, a shared culture (Germany never doubted that Shakespeare belonged to them, as much as to England), and a shared leadership. German monarchs ruled over England for three hundred years—and only ceased to do so through a change of name.

This extraordinary and heart-breaking history—told through the lives of princes and painters, soldiers and sailors, bakers and bankers, charlatans and saints—traces two countries so entwined that one German living in England in 1915 refused to choose where his allegiance lay. It was, he said, as if his parents had quarreled. Germany’s connection to the island it loved, patronized, influenced, and fought was unique. Indeed, British soldiers went to war in 1914 against a country to which many of them—as one freely confessed the week before his death on the battlefront—felt more closely connected than to their own. Drawing on a wealth of unpublished papers and personal interviews, the author has uncovered stories that remind us—poignantly, wittily, and tragically—of the powerful bonds many have chosen to forget.

More books from Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Cover of the book Social Media Strategy by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book Twelve Greeks and Romans Who Changed the World by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book A Toolkit for Deans by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book Evolution and Religion by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book University Ethics by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book A Guide for Educational Policy Governance by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book Grant Writing by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book The Teacher's Innovation Workbook by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book Managing Historical Records Programs by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book The State and Revolution in the Twentieth-Century by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book The World of the Imagination by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book From Nomads to Pilgrims by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book The Musical Theater of Stephen Schwartz by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book Introduction to Public History by Miranda Seymour
Cover of the book The Postindustrial Promise by Miranda Seymour
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy