The Romanovs: 1613-1918
Simon Sebag Montefiore (Author)
Paperback: 736 pages
Publisher: W&N; (1 Feb. 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1474600875
ISBN-13: 9781474600873
Product Dimensions: 13.2 x 4.6 x 19.6 cm
Book description
The Romanovs were the most successful dynasty of modern times, ruling a sixth of the world's surface. How did one family turn a war-ruined principality into the world's greatest empire? And how did they lose it all?
This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Montefiore's gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, and peopled by a cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets. Written with dazzling literary flair, drawing on new archival research, THE ROMANOVS is at once an enthralling chronicle of triumph and tragedy, love and death, a universal study of power, and an essential portrait of the empire that still defines Russia today.
Review
'Simon Sebag Montefiore's The Romanovs is epic history on the grandest scale . . . A story of conspiracy, drunken coups, assassination, torture, impaling, breaking on the wheel, lethal floggings with the knout, sexual and alcoholic excess, charlatans and pretenders, flamboyant wealth based on a grinding serfdom, and, not surprisingly, a vicious cycle of repression and revolt. Game of Thrones seems like the proverbial vicar's tea party in comparison . . . Reading Montefiore's excellent account, it is hard to imagine how the monarchy could ever have survived under their catastrophic leadership' (Antony Beevor FINANCIAL TIMES)
'Captivating . . . The story of the Romanovs has been told countless times but never with such a compelling combination of literary flair, narrative drive, solid research and psychological insight. The Romanovs covers it all, from war and diplomacy to institution building and court intrigue, but it is chiefly an intimate portrait that brings to life the twenty sovereigns of Russia in vivid fashion . . . Montefiore writes with subtlety and sophistication about the nature of court life, the dynamics of power and the shifting configurations of the various players' (Douglas Smith LITERARY REVIEW)
'Don't let its size fool you:There's never been a more inviting 700-plus-page historical tome. That's because the author, who matches rigorous scholarship with a novelist's eye for delicious details, is clearly having so much fun. And why not? In three centuries, the Romanovs produced titans and weaklings, war and peace, and enough salacious behavior to make us say, "Turn off thy Kardashians! Pick up thy Montefiore!"' (Oprah Winfrey O MAGAZINE)
'Montefiore has an eye for the telling detail which lifts an unfamiliar narrative. His mammoth history of Russia's royal dynasty features many such vivid, amusing and surprising particulars. Indeed it is startlingly lubricious and gory . . . Gore and sex aside, the author's pen produces reams of fluent, sometimes sparkling prose. Many of his reflections on the Romanov era apply well to Vladimir Putin's domains now . . . The Russian court was an entrepot of power: its role as a broker allowed participants to amass wealth and bonded them in shared loyalty. But it also allowed them to compete without resorting to civil war or revolution. That sounds pretty much like the modern Kremlin' (THE ECONOMIST)
'Charts the rise and fall of Russia's Romanov dynasty, which began in 1613 and ended with the whole royal family being shot dead in a basement in 1918. It has been painstakingly researched and the attention to historical detail is breathtaking. The lives of 20 tsars and tsarinas are recorded in exquisite detail through words and pictures. Although some of their escapades are not for the faint-hearted (the Russians were barbaric in their punishments) the rich and vibrant history is utterly compelling. It grabs you by the hand and thrusts you into the world of Imperial Russia with all its decadence and finery. Montefiore has become a popular presenter of BBC history programmes on subjects ranging from Jerusalem to Spain, and here his clear, concise narration and wonderful tone make this a delight to read. Ideal for students of history or for those just seduced by the BBC's version of War and Peace and wanting to brush up on their history' (Tania Findlay THE SUN)
'With its sordid power struggles, violence and brutality, its cast of magnificent monsters, tragic victims and grotesque 'holy men', this is an extraordinary and gripping tale . . . By turns horrific, hilarious and moving, but ultimately tragic, this is essential reading for anyone interested in Russia' (Adam Zamoyski THE SPECTATOR)
'Wonderfully compelling and insightful . . . Sebag Montefiore provides fabulously revealing pen-portraits of the 20 Romanov tsars, as well as their spouses, mistresses and senior advisers . . . The author has already written excellent books on Catherine the Great and Stalin. This one is even better, combining as it does his expert knowledge of Russian history with the narrative wizardry displayed in his previous bestseller, Jerusalem. The Romanovs is the gripping and scarcely credible tale of the most successful royal dynasty since the Caesars, and Sebag Montefiore tells it brilliantly' (Saul David EVENING STANDARD)
'An impressive book that combines rigorous research with exquisite prose' (Gerard de Groot THE TIMES)
'Montefiore's journey through 300 years of the Romanov dynasty is a study of brutality, sex and power . . . riveting . . . the research is meticulous and the style captivating' (John Kampfner THE OBSERVER)
'This magnificent and magisterial history . . . is a wonderfully ambitious account of 300 years of Russian history . . . an authoritative and gripping account of the Romanovs. This is a superb book and it will surely become the definitive work'
About the Author
Simon Sebag Montefiore is a prizewinning historian whose bestselling books have been published in over forty languages. CATHERINE THE GREAT AND POTEMKIN was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize; STALIN: THE COURT OF THE RED TSAR won the History Book of the Year Prize at the British Book Awards; YOUNG STALIN won the Costa Biography Award, LA Times Biography Prize and Le Grand Prix de Biographie; JERUSALEM: THE BIOGRAPHY was a number one bestseller. Montefiore is also the author of the acclaimed novels SASHENKA and ONE NIGHT IN WINTER.
从阅读体验的角度来说,这本书对于初涉该领域的人士似乎并不算“友好”,它要求读者有一定的耐心和背景知识储备。叙事节奏相对缓慢而扎实,大量的人名、地名以及复杂的历史头衔的出现,在中途确实对我构成了不小的挑战。然而,一旦度过了最初的适应期,你会发现这种“慢热”正是其魅力所在——它拒绝用快餐式的碎片信息来迎合浮躁的阅读习惯,而是引导读者沉浸式地理解历史进程的复杂性和渐进性。我不得不时不时地停下来,在脑海中构建那一庞大的贵族谱系和错综的政治网络。这种需要动脑筋去消化的阅读过程,带来的满足感是巨大的。它不仅仅是信息的输入,更是一种思维的训练,强迫你以更宏大的尺度和更长远的时间线去审视历史的必然与偶然。
评分这本书最打动我的一点,是它关于“衰亡”这一主题的哲学反思。它并未将王朝的终结简单归咎于某一次革命或某一位沙皇的失误,而是将目光投向了更深层次的结构性矛盾——是僵化的体制如何一步步丧失了与时代同步的能力?是贵族的特权如何异化成了阻碍社会前进的桎梏?作者在描写宫廷的奢靡与人民的疾苦并存时,那种不动声色的对比,比任何激烈的控诉都更具力量。他让我们看到,一个强大的帝国,并非轰然倒塌,而是如同被蛀空的古树,从内部开始腐朽,最终在历史的必然浪潮面前,显得如此脆弱和无可挽回。阅读至最后,心中涌起的不是简单的惋惜,而是一种对兴衰规律的深刻敬畏,这种宏大叙事带来的历史宿命感,久久不能散去。
评分这本书的装帧设计简直是艺术品。硬壳封面采用了一种略带纹理的深色纸张,摸上去有种沉甸甸的历史厚重感,边缘的烫金字体在光线下闪烁着低调而奢华的光芒,仿佛能透过封面窥见沙皇时代的宫廷气派。内页纸张的选择也非常考究,既保证了阅读时的舒适度,又不会因为过分光滑而反光刺眼。更让我惊喜的是,书的内嵌插图和地图布局处理得极其精妙。那些历史照片和版画的复刻,清晰度高得惊人,配合着精心设计的字体排版,使得每一次翻阅都像是在进行一次精心策划的博物馆之旅。不同章节之间的过渡页处理也别出心裁,通常会采用一些与该时期相关的艺术作品片段作为背景,这种视觉上的连贯性和美感,极大地提升了阅读的沉浸体验。它不仅仅是一本书,更是一件值得珍藏的文化载体,从拿在手里的那一刻起,我就知道我购买的绝不仅仅是文字信息,而是一段可以触摸、可以品味的时光。
评分作者的叙事手法简直是教科书级别的范本,流畅得让人几乎忘记了这是一部严谨的学术著作。他似乎拥有将冰冷的历史事件注入鲜活生命力的魔力,笔触时而如磅礴的交响乐,描绘宏大的战争场面和政治角力,气势恢弘,令人屏息;时而又转为细腻的室内剧,聚焦于宫廷内部的爱恨情仇和权力倾轧,那种对人性幽微之处的洞察力,精准得让人感到一丝不寒而栗。最难能可贵的是,他处理复杂的人物关系时,从不简单地贴上“好人”或“坏人”的标签,而是将每一个皇室成员都置于他们所处的时代熔炉中进行审视,展现出多维度的复杂性。读起来完全没有一般历史书的枯燥感,反而像是在追看一出长达数百年的、情节跌宕起伏的家族史诗,每一个转折都让人忍不住想立刻翻到下一页,探究命运的下一步走向。
评分这部作品在史料的运用和考据的深度上,展现出了令人钦佩的功力。我能明显感觉到作者在梳理跨越数百年的史料时所付出的巨大心血。那些引用的原始文献、私人信件以及外交档案的碎片,都被他巧妙地编织进了主线叙事中,非但没有让文本显得零碎,反而如同精美的马赛克,共同拼贴出了一个立体而真实的王朝图景。在关键的历史节点上,比如重大改革的推动或致命错误的决策,作者总是会拿出多方位的佐证来支撑其论点,使得结论具有极强的说服力。对于那些热衷于探究历史细节的读者来说,这本书简直是一座宝藏,因为它不仅仅告诉你“发生了什么”,更深入地解释了“为什么会发生”,以及“当时的参与者是如何看待这一切的”。这种基于坚实基础上的精彩演绎,是任何肤浅的概览都无法比拟的。
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