From New York Times bestselling historian H. W. Brands comes the riveting story of how America's second generation of political giants--Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and John Calhoun--battled to complete the unfinished work of the Founding Fathers and decide the shape of our democracy.
H. W. BRANDS holds the Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin. He has written a dozen biographies and histories for Doubleday, two of which, The First American and Traitor to His Class, were finalists for the Pulitzer Prize in biography. The General vs. the President was a New York Times bestseller.
“Lively and learned . . . Brands has produced a narrative that
pulsates vigorously . . . The three senators wear themselves out
and all but die on the job, their respective causes still
unresolved, their long public service having earned them fame, but
not the political prize for which they most lusted: the presidency
(though not for want of trying).”
—Harold Holzer, Wall Street Journal
“A historical spellbinder . . . A lively, vivid, and thoroughly
researched account of a time when discord gripped the nation and
wouldn’t let go.”
—David Holahan, Christian Science Monitor
“Brands’s easy prose and superior, simple organization makes this
work an engrossing, entertaining, and educating read on issues
important then that echo today in the modern debate on the limits
of federal government power.”
—Robert Davis, New York Journal of Books
“They were called ‘The Great Triumvirate’—three senators whose
rivalries, alliances, and work in the tumultuous battles of the
19th century profoundly influenced the course of American history.
H. W. Brands tells the story of Clay, Calhoun, and Webster with
verve and clarity, reminding us of a bygone age when giants truly
walked the floor of the United States Senate.”
—Jon Meacham, author of The Soul of America: The Battle for Our
Better Angels
“H. W. Brands has brought us a searching and excellent account of
three legendary Americans whose leadership and rivalries did so
much to shape the period of our history between that of the
Founders and the Civil War. Heirs of the Founders should
remind those of our own time how important Clay, Calhoun, and
Webster are to the nation we live in today.”
—Michael Beschloss, author of Presidents of War
“H. W. Brands, with his characteristic combination of sweep and eye
for detail, tells the story—always exciting, often inspiring,
ultimately tragic—of the titans who tried to guide the handiwork of
the Founding Fathers through the turbulent first half of the
nineteenth century. He weaves a cautionary tale for our own time of
troubles.”
—Richard Brookhiser, author of John Marshall: The Man Who Made the
Supreme Court
"Brands uses the life stories of three consequential
early-19th-century American politicians—all with unfulfilled
aspirations to become president—to show how tensions inherent in
the founding fathers’ vision of the country led to the calamity of
the Civil War . . . This fascinating history illuminates rifts that
still plague the country today."
—Publishers Weekly
"An engrossing and revealing account of personal rivalries that
played out on a national scale."
—Booklist
 |
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
