“Saxon semi-successes,” by Jeremy Black (original) (raw)

Taking over of a country that has practices which seem scarcely compatible with peaceful governance and public order is not generally a brilliant idea: it was easier to control Germany and Japan from 1945 than Iraq from 2003.

And so also in the monarchical Europe of the ancien régime. Some countries had a history of overthrowing their monarchs, lapsing into civil war, and pursuing a factionalism that extended to alliances with foreign powers. And yet the system could work. The English did not treat their monarchs well in either the late fifteenth century or the seventeenth, but new dynasties came to power and did well. It could be a difficult process. Each of the Tudors faced rebellion and conspiracies, while the same was true for George I (r. 1714–27), on whom Tim Blanning has already written a book, and George II (r. 1727–60). But, ultimately, they succeeded.

This throws light on the subject of Blanning’s new book, Augustus (1670–1733), who became Elector of Saxony in 1694 and was elected King of Poland in 1697, forced to abdicate in 1706, and then returned, thanks to Russian support, in 1709. Augustus is introduced in this impressive, well-written, and consistently interesting book as a political failure who was nonetheless a cultural patron of great significance. Blanning makes a very good case for both, but it is worth pointing out that most monarchies ended in failure. Prussia, which might appear to have done much better, came to ruin at the

Jeremy Black’s Introduction to Global Military History (Routledge) has just been released in its fourth edition.

This article originally appeared in The New Criterion, Volume 43 Number 3, on page 68

https://newcriterion.com/article/saxon-semi-successes/