Quite a read.
I liked Schama's style. Also his interest in some literary greats like Wordsworth, Coleridge and Orwell.
Churchill got a lot of space ( probably rightly so). Many people parade in this history.
Too many to remember the essence from.
Nevertheless a valuable read, food for thought and a guide to further understanding the many roads of people,s explorations, experiences, lessons to be learned, illusions to be lost.

Too close in time to be “ assuredly” historical. Too odd a selection of tidbits of a history we think we know. Like going through an attic trunk.

This third volume of Simon Schama's account of takes a different lead and pace from the two prior volumes, as it centers itself in the story and evolution of rights, liberties and equalities of the British people rather than the epic deeds that run parallelly with or concurrently to them. Therefore, for example, Queen Victoria or Mary Wollstonecraft revelant as they were in their time we only see them as characters of something greater, a transient realm, a transient empire. Having said this, the recount of the 20th century is profoundly interwoven with the lives of Winston Churchill and George Orwill. The main The account goes somewhat back and forth rather a straightforward chronology of dates and events, the feeling of evolution is much stronger, the perception of History as something truly organic.The lack of épopée can be mistaken with fastidiousnees, thus I recommend this last volume for the keener and more curious minds rather than to a wider audience.

The final volume in this series covers the time from the American Revolution to the turn of the millenium. As usual, some parts were more, some less interesting, and a lot of depth is lost trying to condense almost two and a half centuries into a few hundred pages, but it was a decent historical overview.

Third and final part of Simon Schama's history of Britain. As with the other volumes he often looks at it through a literary or cultural perspective as much as a traditional politic0-historical one, which makes it very accessible to the general reader. Some people don't really like him, but I remember watching the TV series that the books are based on, and very much enjoyed the way he presented it. It's taken me a while to go through all three but I can easily see myself reading them again.

Broken history told through scattered mini-biographies.

The third and final volume of Schama's "A History of Britain" limps to the end with a disjointed 150 year history that isn't really a history at all -- rather it's a series of mini-biographies of personalities that are from the relevant time period but only loosely connected to the events themselves.

The Napoleonic Wars are barely touched on except insofar as we get a little mini-biography of Rousseau. We get an EXTENDED biography of Mary Wolstoncraft (like, way way too long) in what is, I suppose, an attempt to equate her with the travails of women and the gradual rise of proto-feminist/suffrage thought in Britain during the Victorian era -- but it's way too specific to Wolstoncraft herself to be of real utility. We also get short little biographies of John Stuart Mill, and Jeremy Bentham, and (more appropriately) Lloyd George and Churchill. Other figures like Gandhi pass through the narrative, but only a select few get the deep dive biographical treatment from Schama.

The Churchill biography dominates the latter half of the book which is mostly appropriate but it's also frustrating. While Schama warns the reader not to expect a traditional narrative history, his approach of tacking together semi-random biographies that never connect themselves to the actual historical facts/narrative reeks of a somewhat slapdash effort.

Overall, this final volume is the least coherently structured, the least well-argued, and the least satisfying. Much like the Empire it is designed to chronicle, it goes out with a whimper, rather than a bang.

I found this volume of the trilogy the least satisfying - seemed a bit rushed - then I discovered I’d downloaded an abridged version by mistake. I will listen to the full one because I want the full story. However the abridged version still has much to commend it. Schama takes key themes - rise and fall of empire, rise and fall of the Labour Party and the welfare state, universal suffrage, rise and possible fall of the United Kingdom- and links the 19th and 20th century chronology through those themes. As ever he takes a balanced approach - not without judgement but largely without prejudice. It’s fascinating. I thoroughly recommend the trilogy.

Probably the most compelling of the series. The end of the Victorian era through to the end WWII in particular is covered brilliantly, primarily from the perspective of Churchill, who is portrayed sympathetically, although not hagiographically thankfully.

What is written is pretty good but EXTREMELY misleading title. It focuses far too much on individuals, skims or skips over big events and ‘tries’ to cram the last 70 years into half a chapter. For example, more attention is given to Churchill’s childhood than the entirety of the 60s and 70s, combined. Post war immigration i don’t think is even mentioned. I don’t think the Troubles are either although I gave up after the thatcher stuff as it was just so frustratingly brief. Scotland wales and Northern Ireland are ignored too.

I know it’s hard to cover so much history but no one forced him to do this. When you compare this book to the depth of the first and to a lesser extent the second book the difference is staggering.

I don’t think this book is even a good intro/skeleton framework for British history as it’s all just too brief. It reads like a collection of articles or essays about British individuals rather a narrative history of Britain. And even if that’s what it is trying to do I would argue it’s too brief for that also. Disappointing and frustrating.

Beautifully written trilogy in a writing style that is warm, accessible and level headed. History is written by the victors and then re written by the analysts. The accompanying tv series was exceptional

Schama makes clear in the preface that his work is nothing like a textbook — and, indeed, it reads like a LongReads essay.

Schama manages to discuss the more nasty bits of the Empire, always using irony or British humour to tackle the hypocrisy at play. But, despite this, on more than one occasion, I had to roll my eyes at the author’s apparent gullibility (or the assumed naïveté of his audience).

It must be really tough when you’re British and just want to read about the country’s history out of innocent curiosity…and I sympathise. But too many times, the instances of stunning tone-deafness and cruelty came as a punch to the gut. Ordinarily, I’m very wary of rhetoric that whips up the emotions — but the facts of the matter in this case, of European colonialism, are unbearably nauseating.

By the end of the book, as infamous events are nearer in time and the hatred they inspire raw, Schama starts to focus entirely on lone figures — sometimes for as much as the length of a chapter. It’s a disarming tactic: to move from the objective, condemnable acts to discussion of their vague, psychological underpinnings among actors. For instance, the horrors of WWI for the colonies, or the lords’ slow begrudging retreat as sun finally sets on the empire, are explored via the personalities of an eccentric Churchill or the guilt-ridden Orwell. The devastation left in India in the wake of British exit is completely elided — except for a picture of a Hindu-Muslim riot (with no accompanying commentary on how such anarchic violence came about).

If nothing else, Schama’s work has whet my appetite for reading more history — including from the decolonisation angle, or simply more honest narrators. The only saving grace of Schama’s telling (and the Empire, at large) is the kindness and courage of a few souls whose sense of empathy and integrity saw no racial or national boundaries.

A very strong finish to an impressive series. A very personal and in some ways idiosyncratic romp through the history of Britain. This volumen stands out for the interesting perspectives on womens liberation, Victoria, Chruchill and George Orwell with lives of the latter three elegantly used as guides thorugh the ups and downs of the people. Highly recommended.