Cecil Rhodes

The definitive biography of one of the most controversial figures of the 19th century captures a life that was complex and fascinating, evil and good. Illustrated.

Cecil John Rhodes made a fortune from diamonds and gold, became prime minister of the Cape, and had a country named after him, but his ambitions were far greater than that. When he was still in his twenties, after a meeting with General Gordon of Khartoum, Rhodes set up a Secret Society with the aim of establishing a new world order. The society, disciplined on Jesuit-style rules, became Rhodes’s lifelong obsession, and after his death it lived on and grew under the leadership of his executor, Lord Alfred Milner. The society played a key role in the governance of Britain during the Great War and the peace terms to end it, and it was linked to appeasement initiatives involving Hitler, the Duke of Windsor and Mrs Simpson before World War II. Echoes of the Secret Society survive in different guises to this day, including the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) and the Rhodes Scholarships. In The Secret Society, Robin Brown unpacks this astonishing and largely unknown history. He brings Rhodes, his companions and his successors to life by drawing from diaries and letters, and sheds new light on Rhodes’s homosexuality. Ranging from the diamond mines of Kimberley to the halls of power in Westminster, and peopled with characters such as General Gordon, Leander Starr Jameson, W.T. Stead, Olive Schreiner, the Princess Radziwill, Joseph Chamberlain and David Lloyd George, this book is a page-turner that will make you see the world, both past and present, in a different light.

A biography of the businessman and politician, Cecil Rhodes.

A highly accessible examination of an international phenomenon

Cecil John Rhodes (5 July 1853-26 March 1902) was an English-born businessman, mining magnate, and politician who won fame not only for founding the country which became known as Rhodesia, but was also the wealthiest man in the world, sixth Prime Minister of the Cape Colony in South Africa, founder of the diamond company De Beers (which today still controls around 40 percent of the world diamond trade), and British Imperialist of note. This remarkable book details much of Rhodes's life which is often hidden from public view: his racial policies, which were firmly based on segregation; his ardent desire to seek conciliation and peace with the Boers, whom he regarded as of the "same race" as the British, and his support for Irish nationalism under the banner of European unity. Completely reformatted and illustrated.

This study of the relationship between Cecil Rhodes and the Cape Afrikaners fills many gaps in his political biography. Previous biographers have rarely consulted the abundant Cape Afrikaner sources that this book refers to and which contribute to a better understanding of Rhodes' political career. Rhodes, who appeared on the political scene of the Cape Colony in the 1880s, played an important role in the shaping of the political outlook of the Cape Afrikaners during the last two decades of the century.

Cecil Rhodes 'lived only for his schemes and enjoyed life only as a cannon ball enjoys space, travelling to its aim blindly and spreading ruin on its way. He was a great man, no doubt - a man who rendered immense service to his country, but humanity is not much indebted to him.' The time is ripe for a new biography of Cecil Rhodes: the hero of imperialism needs to be seen with the perspective to examine the tremendous changes which have taken place since the British Empire was at its height. This major re-assessment deals with the man, rather than the politics - and shows Rhodes to be ruthless, energetic, idealistic, and very much a product of his time. We see him first as a far from amiable child, the son of a country vicar. As a youth he went to South Africa, where he made a fortune diamond mining. This fortune provided the means to pursue his political ambitions - a crazy dream to put as much red on the map as possible. In fact he only achieved what was to become Northern and Southern Rhodesia. His brutality to the native peoples of Africa, his financial chicanery, his involvement in the farcical Jameson Raid, his suppressed homosexuality, his ideas about racial superiority, and his exaggerated respect for an Oxford education which led to his most lasting memorial - the Rhodes Scholarships - are all covered in this frank biography.