The Sword of Luchana: Baldomero Espartero and the Making of Modern Spain, 1793-1879

Author:   Adrian Shubert
Publisher:   University of Toronto Press
ISBN:  

9781487508609


Pages:   480
Publication Date:   13 August 2021
Format:   Hardback
Availability:   Temporarily unavailable   Availability explained
The supplier advises that this item is temporarily unavailable. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out to you.

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The Sword of Luchana: Baldomero Espartero and the Making of Modern Spain, 1793-1879


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Overview

Born into obscurity in a rural backwater of central Spain in the waning years of the eighteenth century, Baldomero Espartero (1793–1879) led a life resembling that of a character created by Stendhal or Gabriel García Márquez. As a seventy-five-year-old man he was offered – and turned down – the throne of an industrializing nation. During his illustrious life, he fought against Napoleon, Simón Bolívar, and other Latin American independence leaders; won a seven-year civil war; served as regent for the child queen Isabella II; and spent years in exile in England. He governed as prime minister and also received multiple noble titles, including that of prince, which was normally reserved for members of the royal family. By his sixties, Espartero represented an almost mythical figure. Based on comprehensive archival research in Spain, Argentina, and the United Kingdom, The Sword of Luchana explores the public and private lives of this archetypal nineteenth-century hero. Adrian Shubert gives voice to the mass of ordinary Spaniards who revered Espartero as the embodiment of liberty and freedom, and to Jacinta Martínez de Sicilia y Santa Cruz, his wife of more than fifty years who played a key role in his public career. Including unprecedented access to Espartero’s personal papers, and set against the background of wars and revolutions in Spain and its American empire, The Sword of Luchana is a compelling account of the history of a crucial period of war, revolution, and political and social change.

Full Product Details

Author:   Adrian Shubert
Publisher:   University of Toronto Press
Imprint:   University of Toronto Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.90cm , Height: 3.20cm , Length: 23.50cm
Weight:   0.800kg
ISBN:  

9781487508609


ISBN 10:   1487508603
Pages:   480
Publication Date:   13 August 2021
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Temporarily unavailable   Availability explained
The supplier advises that this item is temporarily unavailable. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out to you.

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Reviews

Adrian Shubert's historical biography of the enigmatic figure of General Espartero is an innovative and sweeping re-telling of Spain's tumultuous nineteenth century, told from the perspective of Spain's first public celebrity and, equally important, that of his impressive wife. Shubert builds on revisionist nineteenth-century historiography about liberalism, nationalization, and gender to weave a relevant and compelling story of a life and a time worth remembering. - Pamela Radcliff, Professor and Chair of the Department of History, University of California, San Diego This is a thorough biography of the most influential general in nineteenth-century Spanish politics. An early mixture of charismatic leadership and populism, General Espartero embodied both patriotic feelings and defense of the constitutional monarchy against absolutism. - Jose Alvarez Junco, Professor Emeritus of the History of Thought and Political and Social Movements, Complutense University of Madrid With this book, Adrian Shubert revendicates not only the figure of Baldomero Espartero but also the often misunderstood and neglected, especially in the English-speaking world, image of nineteenth-century Spain. This is a true tour de force of an ambitious, restless, and always original historian. - Antonio Cazorla-Sanchez, Professor of History, Trent University


Author Information

Adrian Shubert is a University Professor in the Department of History at York University.

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