In this account, royal leaders, chivalrous knights, single-handed
conflicts, and romantic assaults make warfare seem like a carnival instead
of a tragedy.
The life of _Oliver Goldsmith_ (1849) ranks among the best biographies yet
written by an American, not because of its originality, but for its
exquisitely sympathetic portraiture of an English author with whom Irving
felt close kinship.
His longest work, the _Life of George Washington_ (1855-1859), lacks the
imaginative enthusiasm of youth, but it does justice to "the magnificent
patience, the courage to bear misconstruction, the unfailing patriotism,
the practical sagacity, the level balance of judgment combined with the
wisest toleration, the dignity of mind, and the lofty moral nature," which
made George Washington the one man capable of leading a forlorn army in the
Revolution, of presiding over the destinies of the young Republic, and of
taking a sure place among the few great heroes of all time. This work is
also an almost complete history of the Revolutionary War. It is unfortunate
that the great length of this _Life_ (eight volumes) has resulted in such a
narrowing of its circle of readers.
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