Augustus The Strong: A Study in Artistic Greatness and Political Fiasco

by Timothy C.W. Blanning

From the acclaimed author of The Pursuit of Glory and Frederick the Great, a riotous biography of the charismatic ruler of 18th-century Poland and Saxony - and his catastrophic reign.

Augustus is one of the great what-ifs of the 18th century. He could have turned the accident of ruling two major realms into the basis for a powerful European state – a bulwark against the Russians and a block on Prussian expansion. Alas, there was no opportunity Augustus did not waste and no decision he did not get wrong. By the time of his death Poland was fatally damaged and would subsequently disappear as an independent state until the 20th century.

Tim Blanning’s wonderfully entertaining and original new book is a study in failed statecraft, showing how a ruler can shape history as much by incompetence as brilliance. Augustus’s posthumous sobriquet ‘The Strong’ referred not to any political accomplishment, but to his legendary physical strength and sexual athleticism.

Yet he was also one of the great creative artists of the age, combining driving energy, exquisite taste and apparently boundless resources to master-mind the creation of peerless Dresden, the baroque jewel of jewels. Augustus the Strong brilliantly evokes this time of opulence and excess, decadence and folly.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Poland, Germany

416 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2024

About the author

Timothy Charles William Blanning, FBA is Emeritus Professor of Modern European History at the University of Cambridge, where he taught from 1992 until 2009. His work focuses on the history of Europe from the 17th century to the beginning of the First World War.

Reviews

[Simon Mee · Rating 5 out of 5]

He was in a cage — the bars were gilded but it was still a cage — and there was no room in which to turn round. Not that he ever wanted to. This was a culture that did not just allow or encourage, it positively privileged exhibitionism, narcissism, self-indulgence and sensualism. Brimming with energy, self confidence and testosterone, the young Augustus took to it like a duck to water.

What I like about this book is that pulls off centring a mid-ranked character while being selective about the context it provides the reader. Presumably aware of the constraints of length and attention spans, Blanning goes for entertainment, much like its subject.

Augustus was a keen tosser, directing that a special space for fox-tossing should be added to the plans for the reconstruction of the Jagerhof.

Blanning clearly had fun writing about Augustus, in that he focused on what was interesting and did not worry too much about a complete narrative of the period. Significant portions of the Great Northern War are skimmed over, the War of Spanish Succession practically ignored. It says something about Blanning’s confidence as historian that he realises that you can do that when you set out what you want to talk about early – Augustus made bad foreign policy choices which took events out of his control, while remaining an interesting ruler in his cultural contributions.

Blanning sets out the expectations on a ruler of that age early then emphasises events and activities in Augustus’ life that reflected (or didn’t) that ideal. While Blanning’s introduction is quite negative on Augustus, the narrative of his life suggests he did alright (even if Blanning favours only 8 extramarital children managed by Augustus, not 354 as legend tells it).

However, this is not to decribe book as ignorant of the geopolitical situation. The issues of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth are dealt with at length. I would even be daring enough to say that you could read this as an introductory book to the period – yes, you miss key things, but it gives you the “vibe”.

Augustus was not the stuff of which historiographical heroes are made. He was undoubtedly a rascal, self-indulgent, recklessly extravagant, unprincipled, ruthless in the pursuit of sensual pleasure — not to mention all the other pejorative epithets directed by the wagging fingers of indignant moralizers. But he was also a great risk-taker, never dull, lived in exciting times, was always trying this or that, and if not larger than life then certainly brimful with vitality.

[History Today]

Although many of the potential readers of Tim Blanning’s latest book will not previously have heard of its hero – Augustus the Strong, elector of Saxony and king of Poland – they will no doubt expect much from its author. Blanning’s previous works – including, most recently, biographies of Frederick the Great and George I – have earned him an enviable reputation for conveying profound understanding with a memorable turn of phrase. Those who trust the author to entertain and educate will be rewarded from the very start as Blanning maps out the sorry trajectory of Augustus’ life (1670-1733): ‘Augustus of Saxony could have been a happy man. The accident of conception made him a member of the oldest and richest of all the princely families of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, placing in his mouth a spoon of unalloyed silver.’ But, 63 tumultuous years later, ‘as his gangrenous body sank towards oblivion’ and he confessed his life one of continuous sin, Augustus realised that gaining and regaining the spinous crown of Poland had not been worth the effort. Despite this, visitors to Dresden cannot fail to appreciate the artistic legacy of the ‘golden horseman’ defiantly rearing up at the end of the bridge that bears his name.

Blanning begins by guiding the reader along Augustus’ path to inheriting the wealthy Electorate of Saxony (‘the gilded cage’) in 1694. He then explains how and why Augustus became king of Poland in 1697. What follows is a portrait of Augustus’ often bewildering new realm (‘the iron cage’). Blanning lays greater emphasis on the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth’s intractability and vulnerability as a state assailed by multiple crises than on its underlying principles and potential as a civic republican community. The Great Northern War (1700-21) occupies the bulk of the book. Augustus foolishly picked a fight against his teenage first cousin, Charles XII of Sweden, after an epic drinking bout with the Russian tsar Peter (not yet ‘the Great’). Perhaps believing in his own self-fashioned image as the horseshoe-breaking ‘Saxon Hercules’, Augustus expected to cover himself in martial glory and make valuable conquests. Instead, his austere Swedish nemesis drove him from the Polish throne in 1706. Augustus recovered it after Peter defeated Charles at Poltava in 1709. However, he wasted a fleeting opportunity to escape his dependency on the tsar by building a lasting relationship with his citizen-subjects. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth ended the Great Northern War trapped in the web of Peter I’s newly proclaimed Russian empire.

Read the review at https://www.historytoday.com/archive/...

Richard Butterwick-Pawlikowski is Professor of Polish-Lithuanian History at University College London.

[Jillian Forsberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grateful to receive an ARC of this incredible biography. I have read every English language history I could find on Augustus the Strong, and this is by far my favorite.

By comparing Augustus to other leaders during his time and analyzing European royalty, courts, military conquests, and successions systems, the reader is shown exactly why Augustus should be more well known… and exactly why he failed. We are given a rounded view of his peers and his life.

A well done, satisfying book that answered my many questions.

Thank you to the author.

[ANTHONY CUTLER · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn't quite what it holds itself out at. Nevertheless, that was a bonus for me. This is principally a political history, largely concerning Poland and the failures that would, at least arguably, ultimately lead to its partition in 1795. Though the tone is that Augustus was slightly "dumb", he really doesn't come across as wholly incompetent. He wasn't the greatest military leader but did his bit. He didn't take his chance to sort out Poland's politics but that was a venture that might have frustrated the most able. Charles XII didn't do a great job either.

The upshot of this is that Augustus retired back to Dresden to support "art". There really isn't much about that in the book. The story of porcelaine is told in a page or so with a nod that it's been "told elsewhere". That leaves the book very much as the political history, without any extensive military detail.

"Fiasco" goes too far and the artistic greatness isn't shown here.

It's all well told though the intricacies of events are sometimes difficult to follow. Decent job but not exceptional in my mind.

[Stephen Lavington · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some stodginess on the political / military side (unavoidable due to the complexities of the Polish state at the time, as well as the machinations of Sweden and Russia in the Great Northern War) redeemed by a fizzing description of the artistic scene in Saxony in the early eighteenth century alongside a suitably gossipy account of the foibles of Augustus’ court (the penchant for hunting a particularly bloodthirsty topic).

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Explained the history of Poland in more detail especially why the country was divided between three neighboring countries and disappeared for awhile. Following the Great Northern War battles was difficult for me.

Surprised that Augustus was German and spent more time in Saxony than Poland. The “sport” of live animal hunting/killing was depressing. Augustus’s interests in the arts, opera, painting, sculpture etc was another fascinating dichotomy of his personality.

[Liam Ostermann]

I don't know why Goodreads insists this book is only available on Kindle, it was published by Penguin Books! Also I am pretty sure this is the same Tim Blanning who wrote an excellent biography of Frederick the Great.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Augustus the Strong was a ruler of Saxony in an era of almost continuous war and religious enmity. Mr. Blanning has written a detailed biography of this king, to include his faults and personality, but does get bogged down in details of military campaigns at times.

[Faizel Bham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding. Blanning delivers a lot of crucial information and a very objective and insightful analysis in a relatively short book. A pleasure to read.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most interesting.

[olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished the book a while ago, but I keep going back to it to make more notes.
So glad my lecturer recommended this book