Hero of the Empire
The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill
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4.7 • 3 Ratings
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
From the bestselling author of Destiny of the Republic, this thrilling biographical account of the life and legacy of Wintson Churchill is a "nail-biter and top-notch character study rolled into one" (The New York Times).
At the age of twenty-four, Winston Churchill was utterly convinced it was his destiny to become prime minister of England. He arrived in South Africa in 1899, valet and crates of vintage wine in tow, to cover the brutal colonial war the British were fighting with Boer rebels and jumpstart his political career. But just two weeks later, Churchill was taken prisoner. Remarkably, he pulled off a daring escape—traversing hundreds of miles of enemy territory, alone, with nothing but a crumpled wad of cash, four slabs of chocolate, and his wits to guide him.
Bestselling author Candice Millard spins an epic story of bravery, savagery, and chance encounters with a cast of historical characters—including Rudyard Kipling, Lord Kitchener, and Mohandas Gandhi—with whom Churchill would later share the world stage. But Hero of the Empire is more than an extraordinary adventure story, for the lessons Churchill took from the Boer War would profoundly affect twentieth century history.
Look for Candice Millard’s latest book, River of the Gods.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Millard (Destiny of the Republic) takes a relatively minor episode in the life of Winston Churchill his escape from prison during the Boer War and makes hay with it, painting young Churchill as a brilliant soldier, talented raconteur, and politician in waiting. Churchill's escape from a jail cell in Pretoria and subsequent trek through enemy territory are presented as the first signs of the grit and determination he would later show as prime minister. Apart from some enjoyable biographical detail (Millard has a weakness for hair "shining like a dark jewel" and interiors of "rich yellow silk"), the book contains little of interest for readers who are not already die-hard Churchill buffs. Churchill's racism is consistently underplayed, the politics of the Boer War are ignored, and figures such as Leo Amery are reduced to drawing-room caricatures. By dwelling on Churchill's privileged upbringing, Millard effectively extinguishes any sympathy the reader might feel for a pompous young man who once wrote, in typically overblown fashion, that if his plans for political office fell through, "It will break my heart for I have nothing else but ambition to cling to." Not even some late attention to the wider world beyond Churchill can save the book from its hagiographic bent.
