Great bastards of history: the true and riveting accounts of the most famous illegitimate children who went on to achieve greatness

For much of history and across most of the world, being born out of wedlocka love child, a bastardwas a serious impediment to success. Illegitimate offspring were subject to neglect, abandonment, disinheritance, and social exclusion, and often found the usual routes to education, wealth, and status blocked. Surmounting these obstacles required tremendous fortitude and persistence. Great Bastards of History brings together the captivating and stirring stories of fifteen remarkable and influential people who overcame the disadvantages of illegitimate birth to rise to positions of power. As well as providing insights into the personalities of many world-changing figures, it highlights the extraordinary courage, drive, and resolve that ordinary individuals can summon when faced with extreme adversity. Among its subjects are powerful political players including Alexander Hamilton, the abandoned son who became a founding father of the United States, and cultural figureheads such as Leonardo da Vinci, who, despite being denied entrance to trade guilds and universities, was proclaimed one of the greatest men of his day in courts throughout Europe. Equally affecting are some of the less well-known but no less fascinating figures, such as James Smithson, the disinherited son of an English duke, whose bequest to a country he never visited founded the largest museum in the world, the Smithsonian Institution. Deftly blending biography and history, political intrigue, melodrama, and psychological analysis, this is a collection that will uplift, entertain, and inform, while yielding fresh perspectives on some of the most significant events from our past. William the Conqueror : a lucky bastard (1028-1087) -- Leonardo da Vinci : bastard of the Renaissance (1452-1519) -- Francisco Pizarro : a brutal bastard (1475-1541) -- Elizabeth I : from bastard daughter to virgin queen (1533-1603) -- James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth : the bastard who would be king (1649-1685) -- Alexander Hamilton : an illegitimate son becomes a founding father of a new nation (1757-1804) -- James Smithson : the mysterious bastard becomes benefactor of America's most prestigious museum (1765-1829) -- Bernardo O'Higgins : how the viceroy's illegitimate son became a national hero (1778-1842) -- Alexandre Dumas fils : an illegitimate son inherits his father's talents--and vices (1824-1895) -- Henry Stanley : the illegitimate Welshman who found Livingstone (1841-1904) -- Jack London : rebellious mother, rebellious son (1876-1916) -- Lawrence of Arabia : legendary, but not legitimate (1888-1935) -- Billie Holiday : how a parentless and poverty-stricken child became a jazz legend (1915-1959) -- Eva Peron : a struggling actress remakes herself into a cultural icon (1919-1952) -- Fidel Castro : an illegitimate child sparks a revolution--and reinvents a nation (1926- )

Fatherless and frowned upon by society, these figures overcame all odds to achieve greatness, shape society, and leave a lasting mark on the world. They persevered against ostracism, grinding poverty, and ridicule in testaments that should inspire all underdogs. Leonardo da Vinci, Eva Peron, Alexander Hamilton, William the Conqueror, and Lawrence of Arabia are a few of the famous figures found in these pages.

Publishers Weekly

Though informative, this volume profiling famous figures were born out-of-wedlock is an example of hodge-podge history at its most head-scratching; tackling the entire length of Anglo-Saxon history, it's understandable that some well-known bastards won't make the cut, but why include Alexander Hamilton and not Thomas Paine? Why Eva Peron, but not Confucius? Why Billie Holiday, but not Edith Piaf? Among those he does cover, beginning with William the Conqueror and ending with Fidel Castro, Fiorillo labors unconvincingly to make illegitimacy a meaningful part of their stories (on da Vinci: "It is unlikely his achievements would have been so spectacular if he weren't trying to overcome the stigma caused by being a bastard"). Human psychology isn't so clean cut as Fiorillo would like to imagine: subjects like Alexandre Dumas and Jack London enjoyed a relatively peaceful existence with single parents; Billie Holiday and Alexander Hamilton were haunted more by poverty than by illegitimacy; and Queen Elizabeth I was beloved by her father, mother and stepmothers all (and, as her parents had been married when she was born, doesn't actually qualify as a bastard). A handsome design doesn't make up for clumsy writing, a narrow scope and some questionable editorial decisions. 125 color photos.
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For much of history and across most of the world, being born out of wedlock?a love child, a bastard?was a serious impediment to success. Illegitimate offspring were subject to neglect, abandonment, disinheritance, and social exclusion, and often found the usual routes to education, wealth, and status blocked. Surmounting these obstacles required tremendous fortitude and persistence. Great Bastards of History brings together the captivating and stirring stories of fifteen remarkable and influential people who overcame the disadvantages of illegitimate birth to rise to positions of power. As well as providing insights into the personalities of many world-changing figures, it highlights the extraordinary courage, drive, and resolve that ordinary individuals can summon when faced with extreme adversity. Among its subjects are powerful political players including Alexander Hamilton, the abandoned son who became a founding father of the United States, and cultural figureheads such as Leonardo da Vinci, who, despite being denied entrance to trade guilds and universities, was proclaimed one of the greatest men of his day in courts throughout Europe. Equally affecting are some of the less well-known but no less fascinating figures, such as James Smithson, the disinherited son of an English duke, whose bequest to a country he never visited founded the largest museum in the world, the Smithsonian Institution. Deftly blending biography and history, political intrigue, melodrama, and psychological analysis, this is a collection that will uplift, entertain, and inform, while yielding fresh perspectives on some of the most significant events from our past. Jur? Fiorillo is the author of True Stories of Law & Order and True Stories of Law & Order: SVU. She is also a contributing author of History's Greatest Lies and Before They Changed the World William the Conqueror : a lucky bastard (1028-1087) Leonardo da Vinci : bastard of the Renaissance (1452-1519) Francisco Pizarro : a brutal bastard (1475-1541) Elizabeth I : from bastard daughter to virgin queen (1533-1603) James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth : the bastard who would be king (1649-1685) Alexander Hamilton : an illegitimate son becomes a founding father of a new nation (1757-1804) James Smithson : the mysterious bastard becomes benefactor of America's most prestigious museum (1765-1829) Bernardo O'Higgins : how the viceroy's illegitimate son became a national hero (1778-1842) Alexandre Dumas fils : an illegitimate son inherits his father's talents and vices (1824-1895) Henry Stanley : the illegitimate Welshman who found Livingstone (1841-1904) Jack London : rebellious mother, rebellious son (1876-1916) Lawrence of Arabia : legendary, but not legitimate (1888-1935) Billie Holiday : how a parentless and poverty-stricken child became a jazz legend (1915-1959) Eva Peron : a struggling actress remakes herself into a cultural icon (1919-1952) Fidel Castro : an illegitimate child sparks a revolution and reinvents a nation (1926- ) From Leonardo DaVinci to Albert Einstein, Joan of Arc, and Marilyn Monroe, this title gives insight into the personal events and happenings that surrounded the births of these people and shows how these circumstances affected their lives, and how these children went on to change and shape our world, despite the disadvantage of their birth.