“丘吉爾從他的祖先馬爾伯勒那裏汲取靈感，沒有這個典範人物的鼓舞，就難以想象他會對自己的行為那麼自信。馬爾伯勒認為莎士比亞在他的教育中起瞭非常重要的作用，而莎士比亞則從普魯塔剋那裏學到瞭不少治國方略。這就是現代英雄的知識譜係。精神領域的民主革命清除瞭這種古老的思想傳承，用決策理論取而代之，它既沒有治國方略，更沒有英雄。”

John Churchill, the Duke of Marlborough (1644-1722), was one of the greatest military commanders and statesmen in the history of England. Victorious in the Battles of Blenheim (1704), Ramillies (1706), and countless other campaigns, Marlborough, whose political intrigues were almost as legendary as his military skill, never fought a battle he didn't win. Although he helped James II crush the rebellion of the Duke of Monmouth, Marlborough later supported William of Orange against James II in the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and brilliantly managed England's diplomatic triumphs during the War of the Spanish Succession. Marlborough also bequeathed the world another great British military strategist and diplomat - his descendant, Winston S. Churchill, who wrote this book to redeem Marlborough's reputation from Macaulay's smears. One million words long and ten years in the making, Churchill's Marlborough stands as both a literary and historical masterpiece, giving us unique insights into the Churchill of World War II, for just as Churchill's literary skill helps us understand the complexities of Marlborough's life, so too did his writing of Marlborough help Churchill master the arts of military strategy and diplomacy. This two-volume edition includes the entire text and almost all the original maps.