Peter the Great

While yet long this book brings the reader into the beginning of moderation of Russia. Peter the Great begins dragging the boyars into more more European dress and views. Excellent read

This is THE book on Peter the Great. It will continue to be read when our grandchildren are very old, and probably beyond that. Not only does Massie take us through every facet of Peter's life, his tortured family background, his foreign friends and mistresses; Massie also immerses us in the world affairs of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Thus it is that we meet the Dutch/English monarch, William of Orange, the boy king of France, Louis XV, the doomed genius Charles XII of Sweden, the Polish ruler Augustus, the strict King Frederick Wilhelm of Prussia (Fritz the great's dad) and the Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor. Voltaire wrote that Peter the Great and Charles XII of Sweden were the most remarkable men to walk the earth since antiquity. Massie makes a persuasive case for Peter to retain that title. A relentless improver, innovator, experimentor, architect and strategist, he is one of the most ingenious and hyperactive leaders in history. He was not, as Massie points out, an utterly gentle soul, nor a humanitarian by any stretch, but he did within a matter of decades transform his country as radically a country has ever been changed. If ever a biography deserved unqualified praise, this is the one.

I am working on a doctorate in Russian history, and, consequently, have read many, many, books on Russia. This book is by far the best book on Russian history. Robert Massie's Peter the Great is an elegantly-written work which not only provides abundant and overflowing information about the "great" man, but which, like no other book, transports the reader into the world of late 17th century and early 18th century Russia. I know that many "serious historians" pooh-pooh this work and others because it is not "serious history." This attitude is tragic. If you are interested at all in good history and good story-telling, this is the book for you, even if your interest is not specifically in Russian history. The author presents his subject, Peter the Great, as a "real person"--one with both inspiring qualities and with not so inspiring qualities. Yes, there are alot of details about the military, however, these details all illustrate Peter's great attention to the creation of a navy from scratch and of the development of an army that went on to rival the greatest in the world. I cannot say enough good things about this book, and cannot thank the author enough for having written it and having inspired me to continue my own studies.

Wow! Massie's Peter The Great is a fascinating study; an enjoyable read and a spectacular trip back through Russian history in the early 1700's. Even if you are not a history buff, you will enjoy Peter's thirst for knowledge, personal hands-on development of the Russian Navy, his massive economic, architectural and social reforms, ingenious manner of self-education by traveling incognito throughout Western Europe, his unique personality displayed through a mock Tsar who promotes Peter to Vice-Admiral, all-night drinking binges with his mock court and Peter's personal heroics. Peter certainly earned his title and likewise I feel Massie can add "The Great" to his name. The best compliment I can give to Massie is I now have a tremendous thirst to study Peter's archenemy, Charles Xll, and learn Charles's perspective of Peter The Great.Buy the book