Italy - Political Biography, General & Miscellaneous Italian History, Revolutionaries - Biography, General & Miscellaneous European Political Biography

Mazzini

Name: Mazzini
Author: Denis M. Smith
ISBN: 9780300068849

by Denis M. Smith

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Overview

This book by one of the most distinguished historians of Italy is the first modern biography in English of Giuseppe Mazzini, one of the leading figures in the political and intellectual world of mid-nineteenth-century Europe. Denis Mack Smith reexamines Mazzini's ideological impact and portrays him as a vigorous proponent of patriotism, a pre-eminent figure in the struggle for Italian independence and unity, and a fascinating personality whose ideas brought him into contact with Marx, Carlyle, Mill, and Bakunin.

'Denis Mack Smith's new biography easily surpasses its predecessors in any language. This is not surprising, since Mack Smith is one of the finest living writers of historical biographies and the most distinguished living historian of the Risorgimento.'
Derek Beales, New York Review of Books

'This is the definitive biography: the job will not need to be done again.'
A. L. Rowse, London Evening Standard

'The doyen of historians of modern Italy, Mack Smith has written a book which has all the usual admirable qualities of his earlier work, combining an accessible and fluent narrative style with lightly worn but meticulous scholarship ... It is to be hoped that Mack Smith's book heralds a reassessment, not just of Mazzini's place in nineteenth-century Italian history, but also of his intellectual contribution to the creation of a Europe of the nations that remains as urgent in our time as it was in his.'
Richard Bellamy, Times Literary Supplement

'Definitive, highly readable biography of a revolutionary far more relevant to our time than Marx, Lenin, or Mao.'
The London Times

'Superbly reasonable and eminently readable ... Itshould and most probably will be required reading for all students of modern European history.'
Patricia A. Kollander, Historian

Denis Mack Smith is a fellow of the British Academy and a Commendatore of the Italian Order of Merit. Fellow of Wolfson College and Emeritus Fellow of All Souls, Oxford, he has written many books, including biographies of Mussolini, Cavour, and Garibaldi, as well as 'Italy and its Monarchy', published by Yale University Press.

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Editorials

Library Journal

In a long and distinguished career, Smith (history, Oxford) has written extensively on the Risorgimento (the period of modern Italy's liberation and unification). This political biography is a natural follow-up to his excellent Cavour (LJ 5/1/85). Unlike the wily statesman Cavour and the romantic soldier Garibaldi, Giuseppe Mazzini was Italy's principal political architect. He championed nationhood and basic democratic ideals, and though he was essentially a moderate, his selfless dedication to the cause of a free and united Italy condemned him to a life of poverty and exile. This scrupulously researched volume, which clearly captures Mazzini's essence, will resurrect the ideas and contributions of a great patriot for those with at least a passing familiarity with 19th-century Italian history. Recommended for informed readers and academic collections.-Mark R. Yerburgh, Fern Ridge Community Lib., Veneta, Ore.

Booknews

Italian nationalist and radical reformer Guiseppe Mazzini (1805- 72) was a leading political figure of his day and left an enduring mark on the history of Europe. His current obscurity can be traced to the reluctance of subsequent Italian governments to lionize someone who championed such causes as religious reform, social security, universal suffrage, and women's rights; and hung out with the likes of Marx, Bakunin, and John Stuart Mill. Mack Smith (Italian history, Oxford) presents the first biography in English since 1902. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)