false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg 4999 3 <p> In the aftermath of World War II, Prussia--a centuries-old state pivotal to Europe's development--ceased to exist. In their eagerness to erase all traces of the Third Reich from the earth, the Allies believed that Prussia, the very embodiment of German militarism, had to be abolished. </p><p> But as Christopher Clark reveals in this pioneering history, Prussia's legacy is far more complex. Though now a fading memory in Europe's heartland, the true story of Prussia offers a remarkable glimpse into the dynamic rise of modern Europe. </p><p> What we find is a kingdom that existed nearly half a millennium ago as a patchwork of territorial fragments, with neither significant resources nor a coherent culture. With its capital in Berlin, Prussia grew from being a small, poor, disregarded medieval state into one of the most vigorous and powerful nations in Europe. <i>Iron Kingdom</i> traces Prussia's involvement in the continent's foundational religious and political conflagrations: from the devastations of the Thirty Years War through centuries of political machinations to the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, from the enlightenment of Frederick the Great to the destructive conquests of Napoleon, and from the "iron and blood" policies of Bismarck to the creation of the German Empire in 1871, and all that implied for the tumultuous twentieth century. </p><p> By 1947, Prussia was deemed an intolerable threat to the safety of Europe; what is often forgotten, Clark argues, is that it had also been an exemplar of the European humanistic tradition, boasting a formidable government administration, an incorruptible civil service, and religious tolerance. Clark demonstrates how a state deemed the bane of twentieth-century Europe has played an incalculable role in Western civilization's fortunes. <i>Iron Kingdom</i> is a definitive, gripping account of Prussia's fascinating, influential, and critical role in modern times. </p> 8536 10 4 2006 Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947 total:36|5:0|4:1|3:0|2:0|1:0| 36 146 98 11 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 5 1 false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Jun 07 11:17:19 -0700 2009 Sun Jun 07 11:36:35 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 5 1 false Fri Jun 19 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 19 13:09:03 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 19 13:15:13 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Sun Jun 10 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Mar 16 08:29:12 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 17 08:45:28 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Sat Mar 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Mar 14 20:07:26 -0700 2009 Sat Mar 14 20:12:08 -0700 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Thu Mar 05 11:25:03 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 05 11:31:43 -0800 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 27 18:21:25 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 27 18:32:44 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Sep 27 08:23:14 -0700 2007 Mon Nov 26 10:21:15 -0800 2007
Being the history of a country, it didn't get into as much about the Hohenzollerns and broader issues as I had hoped it woul...more...]]> 2790912 0140293345 9780140293340 3 2 4.06 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2790912.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 5 0 false Thu Mar 12 02:39:06 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 12 09:54:07 -0700 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 5 0 false Thu Jun 12 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 12 12:49:36 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 12 12:54:15 -0700 2008 2790912 0140293345 9780140293340 3 2 4.06 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2790912.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Sun Apr 05 06:26:22 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 08 05:58:33 -0700 2008 Sun Apr 05 06:26:22 -0700 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Sun Nov 04 13:47:37 -0800 2007 Sat Oct 13 08:32:04 -0700 2007 Sat Oct 13 08:37:04 -0700 2007 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Thu Nov 26 19:14:55 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 26 19:14:55 -0800 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Sat Nov 21 09:36:18 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 21 09:36:18 -0800 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Thu Nov 12 18:11:31 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 18:11:35 -0800 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Sun Nov 08 14:00:36 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 08 14:00:48 -0800 2009 2790912 0140293345 9780140293340 3 2 4.06 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2790912.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Fri Oct 16 08:44:14 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 16 08:44:14 -0700 2009 2790912 0140293345 9780140293340 3 2 4.06 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2790912.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Fri Oct 09 04:34:25 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 04 09:18:33 -0800 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Thu Oct 08 02:45:11 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 08 02:45:11 -0700 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 0 0 false Mon Nov 02 09:15:37 -0800 2009 Mon Sep 14 08:04:15 -0700 2009 Mon Nov 02 09:15:37 -0800 2009 4999 0674023854 9780674023857 32 9 4.06 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165517301m/4999.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4999.Iron_Kingdom_The_Rise_and_Downfall_of_Prussia_1600_1947 4 0 false Thu Sep 10 02:35:50 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 02:35:50 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=4999