Grey Eminence: A Study in Religion and Politics
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Condition: Good to fair. Jacket: No dust jacket - some wear and tear on binding. Page Condition: Good - possible tanning. Markings: possible previous owner inscription.
In this haunting biographical study, Aldous Huxley dissects the paradoxical life of François Leclerc du Tremblay—the infamous "Grey Eminence" who wielded immense power from the shadows of Cardinal Richelieu’s court. As a Capuchin monk who sought spiritual transcendence, Father Joseph found himself irrevocably entangled in the brutal realpolitik of the Thirty Years' War. Huxley masterfully portrays him as a man torn between the lofty aspirations of Christian mysticism and the cold, pragmatic demands of statecraft, illustrating the catastrophic consequences when religious conviction is weaponized to serve secular ambition. Beyond the historical narrative, Grey Eminence serves as a profound inquiry into the dangerous intersection of morality and political authority. Huxley’s prose is both erudite and piercing, challenging the reader to consider the fundamental incompatibility of the contemplative life with the machinations of power. This work remains a seminal text for understanding the "sanctified" violence of history, reflecting the author’s own evolving preoccupation with spiritual enlightenment and the preservation of individual conscience in an age of total war.
Author: Aldous Huxley
Format: Hardback
Genre: Biography
Condition remarks:
Condition: Good to fair. Jacket: No dust jacket - some wear and tear on binding. Page Condition: Good - possible tanning. Markings: possible previous owner inscription.
In this haunting biographical study, Aldous Huxley dissects the paradoxical life of François Leclerc du Tremblay—the infamous "Grey Eminence" who wielded immense power from the shadows of Cardinal Richelieu’s court. As a Capuchin monk who sought spiritual transcendence, Father Joseph found himself irrevocably entangled in the brutal realpolitik of the Thirty Years' War. Huxley masterfully portrays him as a man torn between the lofty aspirations of Christian mysticism and the cold, pragmatic demands of statecraft, illustrating the catastrophic consequences when religious conviction is weaponized to serve secular ambition. Beyond the historical narrative, Grey Eminence serves as a profound inquiry into the dangerous intersection of morality and political authority. Huxley’s prose is both erudite and piercing, challenging the reader to consider the fundamental incompatibility of the contemplative life with the machinations of power. This work remains a seminal text for understanding the "sanctified" violence of history, reflecting the author’s own evolving preoccupation with spiritual enlightenment and the preservation of individual conscience in an age of total war.