Born in 1133, King Henry II of England reigned from 1154 until his death in 1189. Before he was forty, he controlled England, large parts of Wales, the eastern half of Ireland and, thanks to his marriage with Eleanor of Aquitaine, the western half of France. He famously fought with his former friend, Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, with Eleanor, and with his rebellious children. But Henry was one of England's greatest kings. He replaced feudal anarchy with strong central government, laid the foundations of British common law and the jury system, and greatly increased the efficiency of the Exchequer.

This work is actually two "essays" which circulated together, one addended to the other. The first, Indian converts: or, Some account of the lives and dying speeches of a considerable number of the Christianized Indians of Martha's Vineyard, in New-England, is written by Experience Mayhew. Experience was one in a long line of missionary ministers to the Wampanoag Indians on Martha's Vineyard. This work is essentially a treasure trove of small biographies of Native Americans and their amazing faith in God, despite enormous persecution by their fellow man...

In this book, writer Henry James gives wonderful and probing insights into the lives and works of many famous and interesting writers, some known personally by him. We see into the creative workings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, George Eliot, Anthony Trollope, Robert Louis Stevenson, Constance Fenimore Woolson, Alphonse Daudet, Guy De Maupassant, Ivan Turgenieff and George du Maurier.

A brief history of the life Henry the Fifth. - Summary by KevinS

Hypatia is John Toland's biography of the one he calls "a most beautiful, most vertuous, most learned, and every way accomplish’d lady, who was torn to pieces by the clergy of Alexandria, to gratify the pride, emulation, and cruelty of their Archbishop, commonly but undeservedly stiled St. Cyril." - Summary by Leni

"THE author of this volume desires . . . to say . . . that it is his earnest hope that this record of a hero may be an aid to brave and true living in the Republic, so that the problems knocking at its door for solution may find the heads, the hands, and the hearts equal to the performance of the duties imposed by them upon the men and women of this generation. William Lloyd Garrison was brave and true. Bravery and truth were the secret of his marvelous career and achievements. May his countrymen and countrywomen imitate his example and be brave and true, not alone in emergent moments, but in everyday things as well."

Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour was an Italian statesman and a leading figure in the movement for Italian unification. A nobleman born in Turin, Cavour founded the political newspaper "Il Risorgimento." An ardent admirer of Britain's constitution monarchy, with whose statesmen he forged strong diplomatic ties, he rose to become prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia under King Victor Emmanuel II. By skillful maneuvering, Cavour enlisted the military support of Emperor Napoleon III of France in freeing the Italian states from Austrian tyranny, and in an uneasy alliance with the military leader Giuseppe Garibaldi, he forged the modern Italian state. - Summary by Pamela Nagami, M.D.

In this Little Blue Book Number 512, Will Durant describes François-Marie Arouet, the writer, historian, and philosopher known as Voltaire as "unprepossessing, ugly, vain, flippant, unscrupulous, even at times dishonest" and "tirelessly kind, considerate, ...as sedulous in helping friends as in crushing enemies." "My trade is to say what I think," wrote Voltaire, and he did so in ninety-nine "sparkling and fruitful" volumes. He advocated for freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and for the separation of church and state...

This little Blue Book No. 39, by Will Durant, deals with Aristotle , a Macedonian pupil of Plato, who became the teacher of Prince Alexander. While his pupil went off to conquer the world, Aristotle returned to Athens and founded his school, the Lyceum. There he amassed the first great collection of plants and animals and laid the foundations of biology, logic, literary theory, ethics, and political science. Departing from abstract Platonic universals, Aristotle described such natural processes as the developing embryo of the chick...

It is a remarkable fact that little attention, if any, has been given to the study of the careers of distinguished women, and the question has often been asked why short biographies should not be prepared, in order that the pupils in our schools might become familiar with the noble and unselfish lives of the many remarkable women whose influence has been inspiring and uplifting. It is hoped that those who read the stories of the lives of the women whose names appear in this volume will find in them an incentive to guide their own lives into useful channels. - Summary by Edith Horton

Despite its brevity, this Little Blue Book #142 by the Oxford historian, Sir F.M. Powicke, provides a valuable overview of the political history of Germany from medieval to modern times, culminating in the career of Otto von Bismarck , the Prussian Junker who masterminded the unification of Germany and served as its first Chancellor. - Summary by Pamela Nagami, M.D.

John Locke was an English philosopher and physician who, after Sir Francis Bacon, was one of the first of the British empiricists and an important contributor to Social Contract Theory. In this fine biography, Thomas Fowler writes of Locke's influence on the history of progress and of civilization. "In an age of excitement and prejudice, he set men the example of thinking calmly and clearly...At a time when the chains of dogma were far tighter, and the penalties of attempting to loosen them far more stringent, than it is now easy to conceive, he raised questions which stirred the very depths of human thought...

I believe that the good Bishop of Salisbury's account of the last days of poor young Rochester would, if carefully read, make more impression on the mind of a fast young man than a hundred sermons from the pulpit would effect. Can anything, indeed, be sadder than that one so highly gifted with intellect, courage, and good looks as Wilmot Lord Rochester, should have left a name almost proverbial for all that is most dissipated and abandoned; and that a career which might have rivalled in the reign of Charles II...

Joseph Addison was an English essayist, poet, playwright, and Whig politician. Today he is most famous for his contributions, with Richard Steele, to the "The Spectator" magazine. In this essay, Macaulay portrays the life and work of this quiet, compassionate man, who amidst the cut and thrust of bitter political and literary rivalries, was always a gentleman, loved by his friends and, in the person of the Spectator, by posterity, as well.

Frederick Adams Woods examined the biographical records and family trees of the great dynasties of Europe, judging and comparing their moral standards and intellectual aptitude to their reputation as rulers. The summarised family histories are produced after a painstaking search including portrait galleries, family lineage, comparisons of reputation, and the origin of allegations of madness and moral bankruptcy, all collated within a single volume. - Summary by Leon Harvey

Volume 1 of Ida Tarbell's biography of Lincoln covers his life from his boyhood to his election to the presidency in 1860. Tarbell, in addition to her famous work in investigative journalism , was a noted Lincoln scholar. Her writings on Lincoln, originally published as articles in McClure's Magazine, were highly acclaimed. - Summary by Ciufi Galeazzi LIfe of Abraham Lincoln, Volume 2

Success! Alluring, fascinating, informative. Why are some people successful while others languish on the scrap heap of life? Hard work? Luck? Nepotism? Genius? Here we have the Life Stories of Successful Men Told by Themselves. 22 people who made their mark on their chosen field, some of whom have gone down in history... Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, Andrew Carnegie. Others were no less successful in their day, but whose names have not made their mark to such an extent. - Summary by Lynne Thompson

Saint Francis of Assisi grew up in a wealthy family and his early life was characterized by splendor, riches and a lavish lifestyle. During an illness, he supposedly had a vision, after which he became disillusioned with his lifestyle and began giving everything away to beggars. His conversion was gradual, but after a pilgrimage to Rome, he supposedly hid in a cave to avoid his father's anger and then began to live a life of poverty and contrition. He is forever associated with simplicity and nature. - Summary by Lynne Thompson

In my Volume on Aristotle in this series, I tried to give an account of ancient, classical, and social Education; in the present volume I have endeavored to set forth the nature of modern, romantic, and unsocial Education. This education originates with Rousseau. With much reluctance I have been obliged to dwell, at considerable length, on the facts of his life, in order to show that his glittering structure rests, not upon any broad and firm foundation of well-generalized and well-sifted experience, but upon the private tastes and preferences of an exceptionally capricious and self-centered nature...

John Milton was an English poet, classicist, and fearless advocate for civil liberty, who served the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He is best known for his epic poem "Paradise Lost" , a work of sublime imagery and hidden heresy. In this long essay, Macaulay combines literary criticism with political history, writing that to Milton, almost alone among his contemporaries, belonged "the glory of the battle which he fought for, the species of freedom which is the most valuable, and which was then the least understood, the freedom of the human mind."

While the Mark Twain Project has created and released a three-volume Mark Twain autobiography with extensive annotations, in the 21st century, this two-volume autobiography was published in 1924 and contains many works never before released. It came 14 years after Twain's death and so, "speaking from the grave", he felt he could be "as frank and free and unembarrassed as a love letter". The autobiographical chapters that he published years earlier in the North American Review, were selected more for their acceptability and potential popularity than for their completely true reflection of his inner thoughts...

A book written by Theodore Dreiser detailing a history of his life and how he became a writer. - Summary by Michele Eaton

Titus Salt was a British manufacturer, politician and philanthropist, renounde for having built Salt's Mill, a large, innovative textile mill, together with the attached village of Saltaire, where he provided cleaner air, better housing, schooling, banking, churches, recreation, shorter hours and higher wages for over 4000 employees. Salt's tireless work and innovation with alpaca thread lead him to fame and fortune. He was awarded a baronetsy by the British Crown in 1869. It is estimated that over 100,000 people attended his funeral...

This engaging book is an inestimable resource for any student of the merry monarch, Charles II. "Odd's fish," he said "I am an ugly fellow!" Yet, as Airy writes, "his power of imagination, his intuitive perception of character, his faculty of statecraft, enabled him to gauge the strength or weakness of an opponent or the frailty of an adherent, and to slip by difficulties which it was inconvenient to meet." But alas, Charles's moral languor led to the dominance of French gold in English affairs, and to parliamentary factions and courtly intrigues, which culminated in the judicial murders of the Popish Plot.

Brought to us by notable reporter and writer, James Creelman, this story of Abraham Lincoln is a more personal and simple portrait of the most popular U.S. President. This account is told in an easy flowing style giving many insights into the spirt and character of the man, making the story of Lincoln accessible both to young people and adults.

This short account of the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is part of the “Life Stories for Young People” series. It is written in an engaging dialogue format beginning with the young Mozart’s first notes on the piano keyboard at age three to his admission to membership in the Accademia Filarmonica at Bologna, Italy, ten years later. This child prodigy astounded the musical world of Europe to become one of the most cherished of all classical composers.

While the Mark Twain Project has created and released a three-volume Mark Twain autobiography with extensive annotations, in the 21st century, this two-volume autobiography was published in 1924 and contains many works never before released. It came 14 years after Twain's death and so, "speaking from the grave", he felt he could be "as frank and free and unembarrassed as a love letter". The autobiographical chapters that he published years earlier in the North American Review, were selected more for their acceptability and potential popularity than for their completely true reflection of his inner thoughts...

John Newton, best known for his hymn "Amazing Grace", for his former life as a slave trader and as eventual opponent of the slave trade in Britain. These 14 short letters cover his early life to about 1755 and are filled with his Christian reflections on the events of his life. Letter 5 contains Newton's description of his life under Amos Clowe, an enslaver, who gave him to his wife as a servant. It is worth noting that this collection was published in 1764 and Newton did not publish his scathing pamphlet Thoughts Upon the Slave Trade until 1788 and thus his letters focus on his life as a "an infidel and libertine" than on the institution he later condemned. - Summary by InTheDesert

Volume 2 of Ida Tarbell's biography of Lincoln begins at chapter 22 with Lincoln's first inauguration, and ends with an account of his funeral. The volume also includes a lengthy appendix which contains, in chronological order, letters. telegrams and speeches of Lincoln which had not been previously published. Tarbell, in addition to her famous work in investigative journalism , was a noted Lincoln scholar. Her writings on Lincoln, originally published as articles in McClure's Magazine, were highly acclaimed. - Summary by Ciufi Galeazzi LIfe of Abraham Lincoln, Volume 1

This is the first of two related Faraday projects. It is about Faraday and deals more with biographical references to Faraday, outlining the important junctures in his life. The second, On the Various Forces of Nature, consists of lectures by Faraday covering a non-mathematical survey of the fundamental forces of nature and some relationships among them. Future projects will feature the 19th century scientists upon whose shoulders Einstein stood while developing his Theory of Relativity, including Humboldt, Lorentz, Michelson, Morley, Curie and Eddington. Summary by William A Jones

This it the most authentic biography of St. Dominic Savio, seeing as it is written by St. John Bosco, Savio's teacher.

James Gillet recounts his adventures with the Texas Rangers 1856-1937. In a very entertaining style he recounts personal stories of wars, feuds, battles with the Apache nation and pursuing robbers and murderers. From these stories, and others like them, arose the many legends of courage and daring among the Texas Rangers. “The Texas Rangers, as an organization, dates from the spring of 1836. When the Alamo had fallen before the onslaught of the Mexican troops and the frightful massacre had occurred, General Sam Houston organized among the Texan settlers in the territory a troop of 1600 mounted riflemen...