Diamond Magnates - Couverture rigide

Roberts, Brian

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 0241021774 ISBN 13 : 9780241021774

Editeur : Hamish Hamilton Ltd, 1972

Synopsis

Book by Roberts Brian

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur

‘Mr Roberts, who is deeply versed in South African history, has produced a most reliable and well-researched study of what were indeed the Klondyke days. His book is further enhanced by including a number of little-published portraits of the main participants.'
Times Literary Supplement

`Most interesting, well spiced with scandal and sharp practice.'
Sunday Times

`Mr Roberts gives a fascinating account of these strangely unworldly adventurers and their vast fortunes.'
Sunday Telegraph

The discovery of diamonds in a remote region of the Cape, in the middle of the last century, attracted an extraordinary collection of adventurers to South Africa. From all over the world men flocked to the diamond fields in the hopes of making a quick fortune. When diamond digging gave way to diamond mining, a struggle developed for complete control of the industry. This is the story of the men who, with varying motives, became involved in that struggle.

Cecil Rhodes, son of an English parson, sought financial power to further his vision of Imperial expansion. Barney and Harry Barnato came from London's East End and, with their nephews, Jack, Woolf, and Solly Joel, were determined to establish the financial supremacy of their family. Alfred Beit, a money-making genius from Hamburg, wanted little more than to assist Rhodes in his grandiose schemes. Joseph Benjamin Robinson, who was probably the richest of them, was mainly concerned with bolstering his own avaricious ego. Their struggle was accompanied by controversy and scandal — both financial and personal — and evolved into one of the most ruthless financial clashes of modern history.

Not until late in their lives did they graduate from Kimberley's corrugated-iron shanties to Park Lane mansions and splendid country houses; when they did, they fell victim to international charlatans — the pseudo Baron von Veltheim, the Russian-born Princess Radziwill and the French impostor Henri Lemoine — whose intrigues overshadowed their last days. This book, based on contemporary documents and unpublished material, explores the diamond magnates' personalities with revealing candour.

Présentation de l'éditeur

The discovery of diamonds in a remote region of the Cape, in the middle of the last century, attracted an extraordinary collection of adventurers to South Africa. From all over the world men flocked to the diamond fields in the hopes of making a quick fortune. When diamond digging gave way to diamond mining, a struggle developed for complete control of the industry. This is the story of the men who, with varying motives, became involved in that struggle.

Cecil Rhodes, son of an English parson, sought financial power to further his vision of Imperial expansion. Barney and Harry Barnato came from London's East End and, with their nephews, Jack, Woolf, and Solly Joel, were determined to establish the financial supremacy of their family. Alfred Beit, a money-making genius from Hamburg, wanted little more than to assist Rhodes in his grandiose schemes. Joseph Benjamin Robinson, who was probably the richest of them, was mainly concerned with bolstering his own avaricious ego. Their struggle was accompanied by controversy and scandal — both financial and personal — and evolved into one of the most ruthless financial clashes of modern history.

Not until late in their lives did they graduate from Kimberley's corrugated-iron shanties to Park Lane mansions and splendid country houses; when they did, they fell victim to international charlatans — the pseudo Baron von Veltheim, the Russian-born Princess Radziwill and the French impostor Henri Lemoine — whose intrigues overshadowed their last days. This book, based on contemporary documents and unpublished material, explores the diamond magnates' personalities with revealing candour.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Hamish Hamilton Ltd
• Date d'édition: 1972
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0241021774
• ISBN 13: 9780241021774
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 288
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible