Stephanie Barczewski – författare

Country houses have come to be regarded as quintessentially English, not only in terms of their architectural style but because they appear to embody national values of continuity and insularity. The histories of country houses and England, however, have featured episodes of violence and disruption, so how did country houses come to represent one version of English history, when in reality they reflect its full range of contradictions and complexities? This book explores the evolution of the country house, beginning with the violent impact of the Reformation and Civil War and showing how the political events of the eighteenth century, which culminated in the reaction against the French Revolution, led to country houses being recast as symbols of England’s political stability.

Scholars have become increasingly interested in how modern national consciousness comes into being through fictional narratives. Literature is of particular importance to this process, for it is responsible for tracing the nations evolution through glorious tales of its history. In nineteenth-century Britain, the legends of King Arthur and Robin Hood played an important role in construction of contemporary national identity. These two legends provide excellent windows through which to view British culture, because they provide very different perspectives. King Arthur and Robin Hood have traditionally been diametrically opposed in terms of their ideological orientation. The former is a king, a man at the pinnacle of the social and political hierarchy, whereas the latter is an outlaw, and is therefore completely outside conventional hierarchical structures. The fact that two such different figures could simultaneously function as British national heroes suggests that nineteenth-century British nationalism did not represent a single set of values and ideas, but rather that it was forced to assimilate a variety of competing points of view.

From the Charge of the Light Brigade to Scott of the Antarctic and beyond, it seems as if glorious disaster and valiant defeat have been essential aspects of the British national character for the past two centuries. In this fascinating book, historian Stephanie Barczewski argues that Britain’s embrace of heroic failure initially helped to gloss over the moral ambiguities of imperial expansion. Later, it became a strategy for coming to terms with diminishment and loss. Filled with compelling, moving, and often humorous stories from history, Barczewski’s survey offers a fresh way of thinking about the continuing legacy of empire in British culture today.

Country houses and the British empire, 1700–1930 assesses the economic and cultural links between country houses and the Empire between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries. Using sources from over fifty British and Irish archives, it enables readers to better understand the impact of the empire upon the British metropolis by showing both the geographical variations and its different cultural manifestations. Barczewski offers a rare scholarly analysis of the history of country houses that goes beyond an architectural or biographical study, and recognises their importance as the physical embodiments of imperial wealth and reflectors of imperial cultural influences. In so doing, she restores them to their true place of centrality in British culture over the last three centuries, and provides fresh insights into the role of the Empire in the British metropolis.

Presenting a study of the Antarctic explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton as well as their most heroic expeditions, the author looks in detail at just how and why their individual reputations have evolved over the course of the last century. This book covers the two most famous expeditions of the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, Robert Falcon Scott's Terra Nova expedition of 1910-12 and Ernest Shackleton's Endurance expedition of 1914-16. For decades after his tragic death on the return journey from the South Pole, to which he had been beaten by five weeks by the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, Scott was regarded as a saint-like figure with an unassailable reputation born from his heroic martyrdom in the frozen wastes of the Antarctic.In recent years, however, Scott has attracted some of the most intense criticism any explorer has ever received. Shackleton's reputation, meanwhile, has followed a reverse trajectory. Although his achievements were always appreciated, they were never celebrated with nearly the same degree of adulation that traditionally surrounded Scott.Today, Scott and Shackleton occupy very different places in the polar pantheon of British heroes. Stephanie Barczewski explores the evolution of their reputations and finds it has little to do with new discoveries regarding their lives and characters, but far more to do with broader cultural changes and changes in conceptions of heroism in Britain and the United States.

Now in its second edition, Britain since 1688 is an accessible and comprehensive introduction to British History from 1688 to the present day that assumes no prior knowledge of the subject.Chronological in structure yet thematic in approach, the book guides the reader through major events in British history from the Glorious Revolution of 1688, offering extensive coverage of the British Empire and continuing through to recent events such as Britain’s exit from the European Union. Fully revised and updated using the most recent historical scholarship, this edition includes discussion of the Brexit referendum and Britain’s subsequent exit from the European Union, along with increased coverage of Britain’s imperial past and its legacy in the present. New sidebars on themes such as race, immigration, religion, sexuality, the presence of empire and the experience of warfare are carried across chapters to offer students current and relevant interpretations of British history.Written by a team of expert North American university professors and supported by textboxes, timelines, bibliographies, glossaries and a fully integrated companion website, this textbook provides students with a strong grounding in the rich tapestry of events, characters and themes that encompass the history of Britain since 1688.

Now in its second edition, Britain since 1688 is an accessible and comprehensive introduction to British History from 1688 to the present day that assumes no prior knowledge of the subject.Chronological in structure yet thematic in approach, the book guides the reader through major events in British history from the Glorious Revolution of 1688, offering extensive coverage of the British Empire and continuing through to recent events such as Britain’s exit from the European Union. Fully revised and updated using the most recent historical scholarship, this edition includes discussion of the Brexit referendum and Britain’s subsequent exit from the European Union, along with increased coverage of Britain’s imperial past and its legacy in the present. New sidebars on themes such as race, immigration, religion, sexuality, the presence of empire and the experience of warfare are carried across chapters to offer students current and relevant interpretations of British history.Written by a team of expert North American university professors and supported by textboxes, timelines, bibliographies, glossaries and a fully integrated companion website, this textbook provides students with a strong grounding in the rich tapestry of events, characters and themes that encompass the history of Britain since 1688.

This is an anniversary edition of a highly-regarded account of the world's most notorious tragedy at sea. In a night of unforgettable tragedy, the world's most famous liner struck an iceberg on 14 April 1912 and sank. Over 1500 people died. Whose fault it was, and how the passengers and crew reacted, has been the subject of continuing dispute over the 100 years since the disaster. This is an account of Titanic's tragic maiden voyage which also focuses on some of those who died: among them Titanic's captain Edward Smith and builder Thomas Andrews, John Jacob Astor, the richest man on board, and the bandmaster, Wallace Hartley, who played as the ship sank. In this centenary edition, Stephanie Barczewski traces the events of that fatal night. Many of those who died were treated as heroes and how these men were remembered says much about contemporary values of manhood, chivalry and national pride. "Titanic: A Night Remembered" also sets the liner in the context of three ports: Belfast, where she was built; Southampton, which lost 600 citizens as members of her crew; and, Queenstown in Ireland, her last port of call.

Country houses and the British empire, 1700-1930 assesses the economic and cultural links between country houses and the Empire between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries. Using sources from over fifty British and Irish archives, it enables readers to better understand the impact of the empire upon the British metropolis by showing both the geographical variations and its different cultural manifestations. Barczewski offers a rare scholarly analysis of the history of country houses that goes beyond an architectural or biographical study, and recognises their importance as the physical embodiments of imperial wealth and reflectors of imperial cultural influences. In so doing, she restores them to their true place of centrality in British culture over the last three centuries, and provides fresh insights into the role of the Empire in the British metropolis.

This book covers the two most famous expeditions of the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration: Robert Falcon Scott's Terra Nova expedition of 1910-12 and Ernest Shackleton's Endurance expedition of 1914-16. It focuses not only on the two expeditions, but also on the ways in which the reputations of the men who led them have evolved over the course of the last century. For decades after Scott's tragic death on the return journey from the South Pole - to which he had been beaten by only five weeks - he was regarded as a saint-like figure with an unassailable reputation born from his heroic martyrdom in the frozen wastes of the Antarctic.In recent years, however, Scott has attracted some of the most intense criticism any explorer has ever received. Shackleton's reputation, meanwhile, has followed a reverse trajectory. Although his achievements were always appreciated, they were never celebrated with nearly the same degree of adulation that traditionally surrounded Scott.But in the final decades of the twentieth century Shackleton has come to be regarded as the beau ideal of the heroic explorer, a man capable of providing leadership lessons not only for other explorers but also for corporate executives and politicians.Today, Scott and Shackleton therefore occupy very different places in the polar pantheon than they once did. This change has come about with little new information about either man or the expeditions they led coming to light. Their actions and personalities, their virtues and flaws, have not changed. How, when and why attitudes towards Scott and Shackleton have altered over the course of the twentieth century forms the subject of this book. It explores how the evolution of their reputations has far more to do with broader cultural changes in Britain and the United States.

In a night of unforgettable tragedy, the Titanic, the world's largest liner on its maiden voyage, struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic at 11.40 p.m. on 14 April 1912 and sank at 2.20 a.m. the following morning. Over 1500 people died. Whose fault it was, and how the passengers and crew reacted, has been a subject of dispute ever since the first news of the disaster broke. "Titanic: A Night Remembered", as well the story of the ship and its only voyage, is an account of ten of those who died: among them Titanic's captain Edward Smith and builder Thomas Andrews, John Jacob Astor, the richest man on board, and the bandmaster, Wallace Hartley, who played as the ship sank. Stephanie Barczewski traces their lives and careers and what brought all of them together on that fatal night. Many of those who died were treated as heroes (in contrast to men such as J. Bruce Ismay and Sir Cosmo Duff Gordon, who used their influence to get places in lifeboats). How these men and women were remembered in both Britain and America says much about contemporary values of manhood, heroism, chivalry and national pride."Titanic: A Night Remembered" also sets the Titanic in the context of three ports: Belfast, where it was built; Southampton, which lost 600 citizens as members of its crew; and Queenstown in Ireland, its last port of call.

Written by seventeen historians from around the world, its subjects range from Jumbomania in Victorian Britain to popular imperial fiction, the East India Company, the ironic imperial revivalism of the 1960s, Scotland and Ireland and the empire, to transnational Chartism and Belgian colonialism.