Description
Book SynopsisA man who lived his life mostly in the shadows, Edward M. House is little known or remembered today; yet he was one of the most influential figures of the Wilson presidency. Wilson''s chief political advisor, House played a key role in international diplomacy, and had a significant hand in crafting the Fourteen Points at the Paris Peace Conference. Though the intimate friendship between the president and his advisor ultimately unraveled in the wake of these negotiations, House''s role in the Wilson administration had a lasting impact on 20th century international politics. In this seminal biography, Charles E. Neu details the life of Colonel House, a Texas landowner who rose to become one of the century''s greatest political operators. Ambitious and persuasive, House worked largely behind the scenes, developing ties of loyalty and using patronage to rally party workers behind his candidates. In 1911 he met Woodrow Wilson, and almost immediately the two formed what would become one of t
Trade ReviewNeu has used House's diary and other papers to craft a remarkably vivid account of the political operator's life... Neu's engrossing narrative has such immediacy that readers share House's hurt and disappointment when Wilson abruptly ended their close friendship... A significant, brightly written American story. * Kirkus Reviews, starred review *
Colonel House is an enduring analysis of one of the most complicated and important power relationships in American history, indeed in world history. This is a monumental work that stand the test of time. * Samuel R. Williamson, author of Austria-Hungary and the Origins of the First World War *
A wonderful book and gripping all the way through. Charles Neu has done a splendid job. * Larry McMurtry, author of The Last Picture Show, Terms of Endearment, and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Lonesome Dove *
Charles Neu's long-anticipated biography of Colonel Edward House is a major achievement that has been worth the wait. The research is exhaustive. The analysis and evaluations are judicious, fully persuasive. The portraits of personalities and depictions of diplomatic vignettes are vivid. Neu's assessment of the U.S. political scene and the international relations of the Woodrow Wilson era is far-ranging and impressive. Readers now have available a comprehensive and enthralling study of one of the commanding figures in twentieth-century American history. * David Mayers, Boston University, author of FDR's Ambassadors and the Diplomacy of Crisis *
At long last, Edward M. House has found the biographer he deserves. Charles Neu employs a sharply critical eye in winnowing fact from fantasy about the man whom contemporaries could call both America's 'finest diplomatic brain' and 'that devious son of a bitch.' * John Cooper, author of Woodrow Wilson: A Biography *
A powerful and fascinating biography of a powerful man. Colonel House and Woodrow Wilson were unlikely partners, but they shared an interest in American politics in an era in which the United States was emerging as a world power. A great read for cold winter nights or a day at the beach. * Lou Galambos, Professor of History and Editor of the Eisenhower Papers, Johns Hopkins University *
Neu has written a detailed, well-researched, definitive biography of House. Although other works have been written about House and Wilson, this book combines their lives into one volume (with the focus on House and his place in history) and affirms the important role of Texas politicians and leaders in the history of the United States. * Janet Schmelzer, Southwestern Historical Quarterly *
Table of ContentsPROLOGUE: A Great Adventure ; PART I. THE TEXAS YEARS, 1858-1912 ; 1. A Spacious Youth. ; 2. Search For A Career. ; 3. The Challenge Of Texas Politics. ; 4. The <"Twilight Years.>" ; 5. <"The Man And The Opportunity.>" ; 6. The Ideal Society. ; PART II. WILSON IN POWER, 1913-1914 ; 7. The Making of Wilson's Cabinet ; 8. Foreign Horizons. ; 9. The New Freedom. ; 10. Reform and Intervention. ; 11. <"The Great Adventure.>" ; PART III. THE GREAT WAR, 1914-1917 ; 12. America And World War I. ; 13. The Search For Peace. ; 14. London, Berlin, Paris. ; 15. Return To London. ; 16. American Interlude. ; 17. The Lure Of Peace. ; 18. The House-Grey Memorandum. ; 19. The Failure Of Peace. ; 20. Presidential Politics. ; 21. Re-election And The Plea For Peace. ; 22. America Goes To War. ; PART IV. AMERICA AT WAR, 1917-1918 ; 23. America Prepares For War. ; 24. The Strains Of Coalition Warfare. ; 25. Envoy To The Allies. ; 26. Crises At Home And Abroad. ; 27. The Turning Point. ; 28. The End Of The War. ; PART V. PEACEMAKING, 1919-1920 ; 29. Waiting for the Peace Conference. ; 30. The Peace Conference, I. ; 31. The Peace Conference, II. ; 32. The Fight For The League. ; PART VI. ELDER STATESMAN, 1921-1938 ; 33. The End Of The Wilson Era. ; 34. New Beginnings. ; 35. Marking Time. ; 36. Victory At Last. ; 37. The Crisis Of The 1930s. ; EPILOGUE: Crossing the River.
