Evening star., 1925-02-02
THE PUBLIC
LIBRARY
}. BOOKS ON MODERN EURO.
PEAN HISTORY.

Two centuries following the close
OF the Reformation are full of con-
fusion. The disintegration of Chris
tendon and the subsequent birth of
the sovereign states marked a policy
of aggrandizement at the expense of
each other, movements toward recon
struction after the devastating civil
and religious wars, and constitutional
development, are excellently present
ed in two general survey books,
Wakeman's "Ascendancy of France"
(F307- W13D, and Hassali's Balance
of Power" (F30-275b).
In the seventeenth and eighteenth CEN
turies England was engrossed first in
struggles between the X ing and the law
and later between the King and Parlia-
| ment. England Under the Stuarts"
tTts5-T724e), by G. NJ. Trevelyan,
| cannot be praised too highly, and
Macaulay's History of England"
| (F455-M11) will continue to be read
| until the English language is itself
| forgotten. 1t has been said that no
! one has ever surpassed Macaulay in
the power of making the past live
Many biographies of oliver Cromwell.
| who has been called 'the greatest
ruler England has had since King AL
| fred" have been written. Frederic
Harrison, who Is master of the art
or writing short biographies, has con-
tributed what Davies calls "a we'll
nigh perfect little volume" on Crom-
well to the Twelve English Statesmen
| series (E-C88h).
Proceeding to the eighteenth century
w. l.. Lecky's History of England
| In the Eighteenth Century (F456-
| L49D gives an admirable account of
/ events from the accession of Queen
| Anne down 10 the Napoleonic wars,
but TO the reader who is too busy to
read the seven volumes. Grant Robert
| sons single volume, "England Under
the Hanoverians" (F456-R54D, is rec
commended, particularly for its dealing
! with foreign and colonial affairs
| Macaulay's Essays on William Pitt"
| tE-P6sSma). Lord Morley's "Walpole"
| tE-Wl6Sm) and Life OF Edmund
Burke" tE-B9l7m), are excellent BIZ
| ographies of these three outstanding
statesmen. Trevelyans intensely in
| teresting British History in the Nine
| teenth Century" (F456-T72S) is only
one of many good books dealing with
the history Of Great Britain during
| that period.
In Voltaires Age of Louis XIV
! N39-VSS5.E, v.24-30) we have the
! most famous of all French men of
! letters writing the history of the
| most famous of all French kings"
Another good book on this period is
| j. NJ PERKINS France Under Louis
| XIV" (F3926-P415). and after reading
it no one would find himself in the
dark as to the deeper causes of the
! French revolution. Lord Morley has
| written excellent literary as we'll as
| historical essays on some of the great
| men who heralded and to some
| extent made the French revolution
J Turgot, Condorcet. Robespierre. two
volumes on Rousseau, two on Diderot
and one on Voltaire.
| Mr.. Hilaire Belloc has written a
brilliant essay on the Revolution
(Home University Library. F393-
B415). II. A. L. Fishers Napoleon
(F3s442-F537n) is excellent for the
reader to begin with and return to.
for nowhere else can so clear, ac-
curate and concise a birds-ey view
of the career of the great emperor
be found" OF the larger books,
Fournier's Napoleon |" (F39442-
Fs2S.E) is probably the best The
Second Empire" (F395-Gs33) by
Philip Guedalla, published in 1923. is
a very readable account of this
period of French history.
The story of the rise and growth
of Prussia from the far-off days
| when the Hohenzollern family were
still wealthy burghers of Nuremburg
down to the outbreak of war in 1914,
! is presented without bias in Grant
Robertsons and Marriott's ''Evolu-
tion of Prussia (F47Pr-M35). a
useful supplementary book is Nor
! wood Young's FREDERICK the Great
(F47Pr-YSSD.
good comprehensive book on
recent European history is Hazen's
Europe Since 1915" (F307- -H33S).