Useful for anyone interested in the social world of the nineteenth century, the Dictionary of Historical Allusions was conceived as a desk reference to assist in finding, in a single source, the events behind the modern world. Intentionally without providing the length and depth of analysis of a standard history, this book provides in a brief paragraph the essentials of various historical references. Treaties, social and religious movements, battles, laws, and straightforward historical events are all chronicled alphabetically for ease of use. An invaluable source for discovering who and what excited the imagination of the historically curious at the turn of the twentieth century, this fascinating period piece provides a series of glimpses into a larger world that was beginning to grow in complexity beyond the usual lessons of an educated public. Less expensive than an encyclopedia, yet offering a wide range of historical and literary detail, this kind of reference work is seldom found in the computer age. For those curious about the details of a world that has now itself become history, this source has few parallels. An index further enhances the utility of this compendium.

Thomas Benfield Harbottle (d. 1904) was the writer of numerous reference works. In addition to the present Dictionary, he also compiled Dictionary of Battles and Dictionary of Quotations (Classical).