Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar Paperback - 2006
by Adam Nicolson
Add to wish list
For the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar, Nicolson draws from a wide range of sources to investigate the battle, and the ambitions, fears and principles that drove the British fleet to such a devastating victory.
Summary
In Seize the Fire, Adam Nicolson, author of the widely acclaimed God's Secretaries, takes the great naval battle of Trafalgar, fought between the British and Franco-Spanish fleets in October 1805, and uses it to examine our idea of heroism and the heroic. Is violence a necessary aspect of the hero? And daring? Why did the cult of the hero flower in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in a way it hadn't for two hundred years? Was the figure of Nelson -- intemperate, charming, theatrical, anxious, impetuous, considerate, indifferent to death and danger, inspirational to those around him, and, above all, fixed on attack and victory -- an aberration in Enlightenment England? Or was the greatest of all English military heroes simply the product of his time, "the conjurer of violence" that England, at some level, deeply needed?It is a story rich with modern resonance. This was a battle fought for the control of a global commercial empire. It was won by the emerging British world power, which was widely condemned on the continent of Europe as "the arrogant usurper of the freedom of the seas." Seize the Fire not only vividly describes the brutal realities of battle but enters the hearts and minds of the men who were there; it is a portrait of a moment, a close and passionately engaged depiction of a frame of mind at a turning point in world history.
Reader reviews for Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
Write a review for this book
Important Terms and Guidelines
- Please focus on the book’s content and context. Also, add any personal comments as to how you enjoyed the book. Substantiate your likes and dislikes. You may make comparisons to other books.
- Reviews must be at least 140 characters in length.
- Please do not reveal critical plot elements.
- This is not a help line. Contact customer support if you need help.
Your review must not include:
- Obscenities, discriminatory language, or other insulting language not suitable for public domain
- Advertisements, “spam” content, or references to other products, offers or websites.
- Email addresses, URLs, phone numbers, physical addresses or other contact information.
- Overly critical comments about other reviews or reviewers
- Time-sensitive material (i.e. promotional tours, seminars, lectures, etc.)
- Availability, price, or alternative ordering/shipping information
From the publisher
From the rear cover
In October 1805 Lord Horatio Nelson, the most brilliant sea commander who ever lived, led the British Royal Navy to a devastating victory over the Franco-Spanish fleets at the great battle of Trafalgar. It was the foundation of Britain's nineteenth-century world-dominating empire. Adam Nicolson's Seize the Fire is not only a close and revealing portrait of a legendary hero in his final action but also a vivid account of the brutal realities of battle; it asks the questions: Why did the winners win? What was it about the British, their commanders and their men, their beliefs and their ambitions, that took them to such overwhelming victory?
Details
- Title Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
- Author Adam Nicolson
- Binding Paperback
- Edition Reprint
- Pages 384
- Volumes 1
- Language ENG
- Publisher Harper Perennial, New York
- Publication date 2006-08-29
- Illustrated Yes
- Features Bibliography, Illustrated, Index, Price on Product - Canadian, Table of Contents
- ISBN 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Weight 0.7 lbs (0.32 kg)
- Dimensions 8.06 x 5.36 x 0.91 in (20.47 x 13.61 x 2.31 cm)
-
Themes
- Chronological Period: 1940's
- Chronological Period: 19th Century
- Chronological Period: 1800-1850
- Cultural Region: British
- Cultural Region: French
- Cultural Region: Spanish
- Cultural Region: Western Europe
- Category History - Military / War
- Library of Congress subjects Great Britain - History, Naval - 19th century, Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1815
- Dewey Decimal Code 940.274
More Copies for Sale
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$4.33A$5.78 Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$4.33
A$5.78
Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Very good
- Paperback
- Condition
- Very good
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$5.09A$7.23 Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$5.09
A$7.23
Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Good
- Paperback
- Condition
- Good
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$8.16Free Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$8.16
Free Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$8.19A$5.78 Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$8.19
A$5.78
Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$8.54A$5.78 Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$8.54
A$5.78
Delivery to USA
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Very good
- Paperback
- Condition
- Very good
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 4
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$9.91Free Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$9.91
Free Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire : Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$11.03Free Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$11.03
Free Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire : Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$11.03Free Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$11.03
Free Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire : Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar
by Nicolson, Adam
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 4
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$11.03Free Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$11.03
Free Delivery to USA
Stock photo: cover may vary
Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson's Battle of Trafalgar (P.S.)
by Adam Nicolson
- Used
- Condition
- Used
- Edition
- Illustrated
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780060753627 / 0060753625
- Quantity available
- 1
- Seller
- Item price
-
A$13.77A$7.23 Delivery to USA
Show details
Add to wish list
Item price
A$13.77
A$7.23
Delivery to USA
