Martin Luther, the Augustinian friar who set the Protestant Reformation in motion with his famous Ninety-Five Theses, was a man of extremes on many fronts. He was both hated and honoured, both reviled as a heretic and lauded as a kind of second Christ. He was both a quiet, solitary reader and interpreter of the Bible and the first media-star of history, using the printing press to reach many of his contemporaries and become the most-read theologian of the sixteenth century. Thomas Kaufmann's concise biography highlights the two conflicting "natures" of Martin Luther, depicting Luther's earthiness as well as his soaring theological contributions, his flaws as well as his greatness. Exploring the close correlation between Luther's Reformation theology and his historical context, A Short Life of Martin Luther serves as an ideal introduction to the life and thought of the most important figure in the Protestant Reformation.

The definitive biography of Ivan the Terrible, setting the Tsar's infamous cruelty within the context of his time. Ivan IV, "the Terrible" (1533-1584), is one of the key figures in Russian history, yet he has remained among the most neglected. Notorious for pioneering a policy of unrestrained terror-and for killing his own son-he has been credited with establishing autocracy in Russia. This is the first attempt to write a biography of Ivan from birth to death, to study his policies, his marriages, his atrocities, and his disordered personality, and to link them as a coherent whole. Isabel de Madariaga situates Ivan within the background of Russian political developments in the sixteenth century. And, with revealing comparisons with English, Spanish, and other European courts, she sets him within the international context of his time. The biography includes a new account of the role of astrology and magic at Ivan's court and provides fresh insights into his foreign policy. Facing up to problems of authenticity (much of Ivan's archive was destroyed by fire in 1626) and controversies which have paralyzed western scholarship, de Madariaga seeks to present Russia as viewed from the Kremlin rather than from abroad and to comprehend the full tragedy of Ivan's reign.

AUTHORS NOTE: Dedicated to the 300th birthday of Frederick the Great, this book presents one of the most elusive and controversial rulers of the 18th century, subjected to myriad glories and legends, and whose personality requires a few more centuries to duke it out what kind of combat or person he was. Since German unification under the Great Elector, Frederick II has been unfairly seen as the root of militarist Germany that dominated Europe during the First and Second World Wars. Most biographies focus heavily on the rehabilitation of his reputation that was already overshadowed by Napoleon Bonaparte. But the consistency of his character makes it plain that Frederick II was a military genius, who could lead troops from the front in the thick of the battles, losing horses under him, loosing Generals, and still fearlessly moving forward with bullet wholes through his collar. Frederick II was a self-styled philosopher, a classed "monarch-enluminator," whose domestic reforms and expansions made Prussia an iron kingdom, doubling its holdings. He was Voltaires pen-pal. He admired Voltaire, argued with him, and brain-stormed him. This book also describes the King's passion of poetry, his correspondence with Voltaire, treatment of military and diplomatic causes, warfare, state-society nexus, and ardent sense for art and music. He had composed 121 flute sonatas, 4 concertos, areas, a symphony, and an overture. He wrote the treatise "Anti-Machiavel." He sketched and designed his resort Sanssouci in Potsdam, the grand palace and parks, the opulent equivalents to the Chateau de Versailles, and the European prototype of todays Epcot. Seen as a despot and nobleman at the same time, Frederick was a fascinating character for his rivals. In all complexities of that extraordinary spirit, one thing at least is certain; that spirit, whether it was admirable to some, or odious to others, was moved by a terrific force.