Description
Book SynopsisA magnificent and timely examination of an age of fear, subversion, suppression and espionage, Adam Zamoyski explores the attempts of the governments of Europe to police the world in a struggle against obscure forces, seemingly dedicated to the overthrow of civilisation.The advent of the French Revolution confirmed the worst fears of the rulers of Europe. They saw their states as storm-tossed vessels battered by terrible waves coming from every quarter and threatened by horrific monsters from the deep. Rulers'' nerves were further unsettled by the voices of the Enlightenment, envisaging improvement only through a radical transformation of existing structures, with undeniable implications for the future role of the monarchy and the Church.Napoleon''s arrival on the European stage intensified these fears, and the changes he wrought across Europe fully justified them. Yet he also brought some comfort to those rulers who managed to survive: he had tamed the revolution in France and the heg
Trade Review‘Vivid, terrifying and often quite funny … an interesting take on 1848 … this superbly drawn story is full of painful allegories’ The Times
‘Splendidly provocative … perceptive and often amusing … full of arresting details and sharp asides … Adam Zamoyski writes like a dancer at a court ball: gracious, patrician, masterful, sure-footed … Phantom Terror is a thumping great pleasure to read … history at its best’ Spectator
‘Scintillating and original’ Economist
‘We know the Napoleonic era well, but the Decades after Napoleon’s fall are often neglected. Adam Zamoyski covers those years, showing how fear of revolution caused the autocrats of Europe to repress freedom on an unprecedented scale’ Simon Sebag Montefiore, Mail on Sunday
