Book Description
"For 850 years the walls of Moscow's Kremlin have witnessed the 'reigns' of a kaleidoscope of characters - the weird and wonderful, the cruel, criminal and conniving, the stealthy, wealthy and wise, the eccentrics, the extroverts and the extraordinary. If it is true that we achieve the best understanding of history by studying its personalities, then the reader will gain a fine knowledge of Russia's past from Sol Shulman's profiles of its leaders. From the truly terrible Ivan and the great Peter to the more recent, with the dour Lenin, the ruthless Stalin, the ambitious Gorbachev and the cavalier Yeltsin, all the kings of the Kremlin have had distinctive traits." "The author's style is both light and thorough with quotes validating an already lively and informative text. He offers sufficient background data to enable his subjects to be placed in context but, in the main, concentrates on the men themselves, how they reached the top position, how they influenced the national strategy, how they changed the Kremlin and how it changed them." "Those seeking new insights into Russia and its leaders will gain much from this account whilst historians and students will relish the opportunity to be led through this time-chart of Russian rule by a native of that land."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
