Episode 165: Siege of Paris 1870 with David Lawday

Versus History Podcast

A Time in Paris is the new book by historical novelist David Lawday, the author of the critically-acclaimed book 'Danton'.
As a correspondent for the Economist and U.S. News and World Report, David Lawday lived in France for many years, marrying a French woman and raising his two children there. His long experience of France, in the eyes of an Economist reviewer, made him "an ideal biographer" of Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord, a highly influential French statesman who held positions close to the top of a number of French regimes, notably that of Napoleon Bonaparte. Lawday's biography of the controversial Talleyrand, Napoleon's Master: A Life of Prince Talleyrand, was published in 2006.
David's new book is a powerful historical novel which explores unlikely ties and how war changes hearts, set during one of the turning points in world history. The Siege of Paris – the impact of which is still felt today - has hitherto been under-explored by historians. David certainly helps to bring the subject to life in this fascinating novel.
Check out David's Amazon book page here.