service. book tv in prime time star's now. first history professor jean baker looks back at the life of the architect henry latrobe who created the supreme court in the chambers. in the u.s. capital buildings . then host joe describes harry truman's efforts to prepare american for the cold war. also tonight, it is foundation senior fellow, talks about identity politics. another beat chief of staff are former democratic majority leader harry reid of nevada. argues that the modernization of the senate is damaging to democracy. george washington professor talks about the power struggle between the u.s. and china. in southeast asia as well. for more information visit booktv.org . mark sawyer program guide partied and now here's a look at the life of the

architect of the landmarks. >> tonight's program will be exciting. we have jean baker joining us, and retired professor of history. taught history for more than 30 years. as written 11 books and were here to talk about that . she is fascinating biographies, a mary todd lincoln, and others . tonight shall talk to us about related books of building america, doctor baker will be joining the conversation. and from mount vernon executive director for historic preservation collections. >> hi kevin . >> will handle things off to you. learn more. and you put everything in your hands take care and have a great evening everyone. i will see you another time. thank you so much.

thank you kevin . and thank you to all of those who are joining us for unit and jane, it is wonderful to have you with us tonight . jean: thank you. >> i am really excited about this. i think it's one of those important figures for early america forget it i'm really know that much about . perhaps that is true with any of our audiences as well. and kevin mentioned several of the previous books you have written. susan: on a variety of topics and they don't necessarily seem to lead to trouble quite is always curious about how authors come to find their subjects. how did you get interested and literal. jean: it is been a long road for unit i live in baltimore and he's had an important effect on our cityscape.

he designed our wonderful facility. he designed a huge merchants exchange targeted there are several latrobe people have had an impact on baltimore's history. and as i age, guess that is something that everybody does. i decided that i wanted to stay home, no more of those long lonely research trips and especially illinois. in the bulk of all of latrobe's papers is that when they used to call the historical society that they have changed their name during the pandemic and they are now the maryland center for history and culture. this is a huge repository of latrobe materials is in their library. so here was a local project in a

different one. i do want to go on too long about this but there's one other aspect of why why you decided to do a biography of latrobe. the has to do with the liberal arts college. we teach not just her specialties but you may find yourself as a dead second year of teaching, in the classroom discussing medieval history. and so you do not get into just one subject. is where i began this book on latrobe, about how lucky i am to be able to at least try to explain this fan contesting when man who came to the united states and who really built the

manger spaces of the early republic. >> what a wonderful segue to telling us about that . i know you have great images from the tribes work. and i'm sure all looking forward to seeing those. jean: shall we see the first sliding all begin with the him a biographer, you have begin with the book. this is in england departed this is a raving community that existed in his lifetime. he was born here and in this community, appearances were simply not to be a part of the children's life. the children were going to find this is the very much of a

history kind of a religion, it would be raised by surrogates. so when benjamin was born here in 1764, growth in these various buildings in the dormitories that were in any ways regimented and controlled by older rain pms. no arabs. the interfered with his basic a connection that they should have with jesus. and so when he was 13, he was chosen as one of the boys prayed and believe me, latrobe was a clever boy all his life. and he was sent to a place in what is now eastern germany.

but for reasons that always is unclear although we would like to find the key to her subjects, he rebelled against his moravian background. he was expelled from the community much to the disgruntlement of his parents who were meeting the stars in the church. his father benjamin became an important figure in the church. as was his mother ran the educational program. despite their stature, he was expelled from the schools . and he ended up in 1783, in london.

so susan, maybe we could see the next slide. so here is the young man his know longer trust in the quiet clothes no longer has the mayor of them parties become something else. i spent a lot of time on that hair . i can never figure out where it was. and finally, i decided that this was the way that young cities london, arguably people were the hair. what is also significant about this portrait this by the way is by a swedish artist good, to london under john turner. and was also surprising about this portrait is a very

interesting series of books and eyeglasses for unit this point in his life, benjamin was trying to decide what it was that he wanted to do. it's in london that he begins studying architecture under some of those rights of the georgia. and he also studied engineering. this would be extremely important in my judgment, and the building of america. latrobe is not only a critical architecture in formulating our spaces, but he also was an engineer who developed roads, and surveyed four canals etc. so maybe we can see the next

slide. notices one of the houses that latrobe built as a divine and any building as a young man in london. his english places have to have a special name. in any case, here we i think have manifested i think an example of the real genius of latrobe's ability to design both houses and anything almost that you could think of. we see here, the clear effort to control the windows to make them symmetrical. we see here a geometric space that spanned this is a

sculpture. emily also see in that from part of effort in creating an unusual kind of space but even here, their real classical influences that would be critical to the development of benjamin latrobe's career as an architecture. and there's one other important aspect of his life in london. he marries a marries a woman who was older than he but who nonetheless, he offered him the kind of emotional likely had backed in his moravian upbringing.

sadly, after two children were born to the couple, of the third pregnancy, child died. in his beloved wife lydia died. he was also this was one of the harbingers of his career, he was also in debt. this would be constant during latrobe's whole career. it's not that he spent a lot of money on lavish goods or whatever. but it's that he became so involved in his commissions that he was for example, he used the most expensive stone that you could possibly find. to build that interesting portal. so he ended up and over the

death of his wife, he decided to immigrate to the united states. susan: here we go, are you ready for the next line predispute against. jean: latrobe was a very talented work person. i believe that he was kind of a renaissance man as we call him. this was one of his things that he did on board the eliza which was a small ship that a took to the united states. it is a disastrous trip in any ways. it took two weeks to get out of the english channels intro that

usually two months, took four months for the eliza to ever arrive in the united states. it is one of the early were callers that suggest that he could've possibly had a career as a successful artist. and let's go on to the next slide. now all of you know this. susan help me with us. i think this is now one of your collections that you actually own this. could you tell us a little bit about the process. susan: will have we got it. yes.

this watercolor had been in a family election, one of the washington family descendents for any years. and they elected to sell it several years ago. we researched it. and as you will know, and will likely tell us about, it depicts the visit to mount vernon on a july afternoon in 1796. and it's something that writes about at length in his journal. and we have used the image any times as an illustration. so we were delighted to be able to purchase it. it was that often. and the word sort of got out the mount vernon was interested in some other parties might've been interested in it. we were thrilled to be able to bring it home . jean: is latrobe's biographer, i

looked at this and somewhat of a different way. latrobe of arrived in the spring of 1796. if humans later, is visiting george washington at mount vernon. into latrobe it seemed that it was an indication of the possibilities of the united states. in the monarchy of george the third month when would never have had such access to a powerful player. so when latrobe arrived on horseback at george washington's

estate, it was to him something of a miracle. and of course, he has an entry rated has become friends with washington was george washington's nephew. and had a letter of introduction rated nonetheless, he was thrilled to have this opportunity to meet a man who he considered to be an oval. a noble creator of the american republic. is not so thrilled with the house, mouth burning. a wrote in his journal that it was no better than a country english to gentlemen somebody men who liked to have access to 500 pounds a year. but nonetheless this is now standing moment in latrobe's

early life in the united states. defendants immigrate, give them hope for the future and if we can go on to the next slide, this is the famous bank of pennsylvania. virginia could not keep latrobe. there were not enough convictions. the cities were not large enough. and trend for him to be able to use his power. he defined a commission there were always people in the united states who appreciated him. ahead of the board of directors of the bank of pennsylvania, which was to be located in philadelphia. if this is an iconic building. jean: what is something that as

americans, we all know. this is a typical state capital for accounting municipal building. classical icon of the column to the vocabulary and neo- classical architecture. in latrobe, always liked things for you and we see when here. but we also see this elegant place which he also replicates the rear of the building. we see this with the recessed windows etc. . what is buildings to be sculptures. when we located in terms of other buildings in philadelphia,

was a wreck freighted latrobe always wanted to build the most permanent material possible. this made his reputation, and it was something that he can turn even came up a novel. people one half about this famous place by benjamin latrobe. now think of the next slide. unfortunately, our destructive efforts as americans, and resulted in a demolition. and here we are making 72. there is some indication about how large this was rated was being demolished for reasons

that i have never been clear about. but ultimately, it ended up this particular block is a parking lot. is this an indication of what we believe is important. let's go on to the next slide. there is a famous charles wilson portrait latrobe which was happening while he was living in philadelphia. ms. great friend of the peel family. and this is a portrait that is now in the white house. latrobe was an architect who cannot see very well. classes were essential to his

career. it seems to be he is looking forward to. he just come to the united states and the design and build the famous bacon is looking forward to being an american. this idea of being an american kennel i first began, the because latrobe had been expelled from some school some level. about both the disguises. but it turns out he was not a rebel. and as i kept looking and i was looking for the central theme of his life. and search went on. this see the next slide. as latrobe's struggled to be an

american into play the role of the patriot freighted and do everything the one to do, he joined the militia. keeping wrote a piece on pocahontas. he tried to in any ways to celebrate washington by creating monument rated on the other hand, in his life in the united states, there's always a time when is a critic of what is going on. first of all, he hated our politics. no doubt we can all understand that. he thought that american politics were drafted local .

dark about political mania. he also hated our social system. he went to dinner parties in philadelphia a found that butcher was there with him and then offended him to no end. simply no doubt we would call him a ferocious english snob. but nonetheless, one of the most important of his criticisms is slavery. this is a famous watercolor is using any textbooks. now is a cynical title. overseer doing his duty. here we have enslaved women working hard.

in latrobe is a critic of american slavery. and yet on the other hand, choices like, he certainly had been who took of his horses and carriage. and men who work enslaved. and since difficult compromise and think of any americans undertook previous intellectually, a favorite freighted and in fact, often they used slaved rated so let's go to the next slide. 1803, he had lived in philadelphia during the period after he left virginia, he needed a job.

in his kind of architecture rapidly dried commissions. and he only designed expensive buildings. none of this business of carpenter. he appealed to his friend thomas jefferson . to me one of the great friendships that perhaps was forgotten in american history. jefferson like samuel, quicker who was head of the board of the bank of pennsylvania. appreciated latrobe's genius and appointed him surveyor the buildings which gave him control over what we then called the presidents house. and of course, the u.s. capital. the two most important pieces of

civic architecture in the nation. and this is a view of the tropes vision of the capital. you'll see that it replicates' class . there are the low domes. there's a particle. there's the balance symmetry in the idea of harmonious buildings with everything that fits together. i believe this is speculation of course. it is long dead, that he would've hated the huge dome the so any americans celebrate over capital today. in any case, and jefferson collaborated and there were

times when they were both at odds over how they would be lanterns in these areas. for the skylights. in a falling out. and so latrobe, reduce this watercolor and he said it to jefferson. and wonder how this relationship could be repaired. let's see the next slide. this is a digitized image of latrobe's area. i think it's very accurate. it can do in some sense, or gives you a sense of how inspiring these architectures were. this is a terrific room however members of congress tended to be much too elaborate for the new

republic. and they started to complain about how they could not hear. especially randolph of virginia who said, the none of the speeches could be heard and you can see and tell that in an age without microphones, it would be very hard to hear. latrobe responded to this criticism by saying the speakers were very good anyway. however, they came more and more to try to control him come back on the spinning that they gave to latrobe. and there was a falling out by 18 oh nine and latrobe was no longer the surveyor of the

public buildings. and i do want to say though i had no sides of this, the latrobe also contributed to the presidents house. he believes that it was the plainest building possible and it simply replicated a municipal building in dublin. and so is to latrobe the week of the famous portrait share in the white house. and it's latrobe that we of the idea back on the south side of the white house. that's in the next slide. having worked so hard on the capital and having anticipated they might also work on the

rotunda. in 1914, the u.s. capital was destroyed by the invading british army. in the army had found in any of the officers since on the report that there was only two buildings worth installing worried and they intended to in washington. and of course the capital was one of them. in the british took all of the wooden the furniture and then fired their famous rockets into the center of the building. and essentially, the building was in the east as far as the interior was concerned, it was mainly destroyed. and you know here in famous rotunda has not been finished.

and trabant jefferson both hoped to be able to work on the creation and refurbishing of the building and also the creation of the rotunda. and he did change his design and we see some of his design on the evening news. if you watch the politicians being interviewed, you can see what the famous marble, latrobe like to use native elements. and he is discovered what was called puddle stone. it is great and it has flex of purple and red and yellow.

it is gorgeous. and he used this in the new version of the assembly room unit sewing tree jewel near the same included politicians talking about this to look behind them in the hall at those columns. that's the enduring contribution from latrobe to our civic culture. and having returned to the capital latrobe had hoped that he might stay there. but again, there really was not enough going on or enough commissions for him to do so. it had a short interim time when he left washington and he had gone to design a scene but if

you can imagine. just to suggest how broad his career was buried how any things he did. and he went to pittsburgh as an agent and an employee of robert fulton to design steamboat. he was always looking to some kind of an avenue to create a secure financial move for his family. he had married again in philadelphia and had three children whom he needed to educate. the problem with architecture and public architecture is that he never knew when he was going to be paid any also did not know when he would be fired. and he was in fact fired a second time. and at that point, he moved to

baltimore. it see the next line. here's a portrait, of latrobe. and i love the fact that the eyeglasses had been such a constant part of his portraits and now they are on his face. and i love the idea of the curly hair is still somewhat uncontrolled. now this is the rembrandt portrait. he was charles wilson peels son. this in a family just to give a short shout out to the field family. he named his son rembrandt. raphael, and this is his view of

latrobe. he moved to baltimore. let's go on. latrobe had to declare bankruptcy in washington. when he lost his daughter at the capital, he no longer had a salary. and he was in debt because it steamboat project that failed in pittsburgh. and so with some humiliation, latrobe declared bankruptcy to the city of baltimore in 1816. and he had been working on the

area for number of years. and so he knew the city. this is a cross section and that i include because it seems to me that characterizing the sophistication of latrobe's presentations to the clients. but that's not what the architects do. he clients because you can make . pictures. nonetheless, here is a cross-section view of the catholic basilica in baltimore . and he remains one of the cities most impressive's and most important buildings. and what is significant about it is that is so different for most

cathedrals. it is light. it is dairy. there is a double oh the permits light and latrobe was always playing around with the idea of light in the shadow. in an era without constant electricity to give a slight . this was important illumination of all of his buildings. it was also significant because this was hi stage class . we have the capitals. we have the columns. and of course, we have massive design that was so important to his notion of architecture. in the building remains and i hope that any of your listeners

wherever you are, will take a visit to baltimore and investigate what is a great triumph of him. and let's go on. this is another building latrobe did in baltimore. the merchants exchange. i think of it as sort of a mall, the merchants where you include, there's a bank in here. is a post office close reading room read and here's this dramatic dome. it lighted the whole building. and he in a time baltimore's history when the city was going through something of a

renaissance, after the war of 1812. and again, as suggested, that their city was important and that through his buildings, it would indicate that to others. ... ... hoping for some kind of way to have a stable income in 1818. he had previously built a system in philadelphia.

he's been hired by city council create some order in new orleans. to work there for several years until tragically summer of 1820 of the city's epidemics, he died of yellow fever and buried in new orleans. i think because we were in the midst of our own difficulties, pandemic, it's interesting to note in the 19th century, yellow was great killer.

internal communities have epidemics, it was carried by mosquitoes we know how we get our coronavirus. they could not know how they were exposed to this legal illness killed about people who were infected. interestingly enough, they also should used pieces of cloth which manages station of the disease. things changed but sometimes the

same. i want to conclude some questions from your audience. i want to conclude with the comment, he designed every kind of building that exists from what he called rational private homes designed in terms of kitchen was. two churches, recently in the news, he designed educational he and jefferson collaborated on some of the buildings in the virginia he designed barnes,

anything you can think of. always behind this was the idea that was building america that has important understanding will have significant building can be. winston churchill once said, i think this is when the minister was being, we create buildings but then they shape us. to that extent, henry had a great in the early public subsequent life. >> thank you so much. this has been really fascinating

and i have enjoyed so many of your going to the various moments in his life. reading your biography, it almost feels like a series of cliffhangers as you go from one to another, what's he going to do next, how is going to get out of this? , he doesn't come across as this but he seems to always be hopeful in the. >> that's true. he was an optimist that got him in trouble because he was a speculator. he would invest in some of the games. for example, the idea of being run textile machine, he invested

in all kinds of different projects including his own will symbol and some of them were unsuccessful but going trying. one of the important emphases in his life was always his family. he was a devoted family man and one of the legacies he's left my home city is children after he died in new orleans, they turned lives in baltimore and became businessman and engineer his grandson was seven-time mayor of

the so he has special allegiance to this. >> since you brought up this family, i wanted to ask about mary elizabeth her role in this career she's fantastic one of the things so upsetting when one does this, i could identify images mary, there are but this no image but my view of her because he writes really sexualized about i wish i could

hold you and feel your bosom, it is amazing he always compliments her figure in the she has not in any of the women in washington but mary was willing to go wherever he went to make for him the best possible home. she's there and has left the east coast. they rented a house special in this way because he never designed all these, he never had his own house they have a small house in new orleans and mary

and the children have come down to make for him a proper domestic setting. i think without her, he would have been miserable. >> i want to open it up if we have any questions from the audience asked, going back to the beginning. >> i will share with the audience the first chapter in your book title 80 years which is fascinating but since you asked, interesting about this connection, how much did that background play a part in his future career? >> thank you. i think it played a fair share, a lot of important contribution

trading slows, it is a first class education, especially in math, geometry and as an artist and just the mental discipline of this education, however, if i can find it easily, i think, i probably won't so i will just leave it off. here it is. always disputed how important this is was. i think he never forgave his father. the fact that he did not have

this emotionally close with his relatives, this is what he wrote to his brother, henry. i'm quoting from the letter. how can a man whose short stay at a moravian school considers wealth as vanity and prominence in the industry, a man who didn't have the fortune expect otherwise i would argue that yes, in terms of intellectual parts, the moravian helped but in terms of his ability to get along in the world, it entered him.

>> i think the really interesting part in so many ways as he goes through his life but i think unusual upbringing he had his childhood but yet he goes on create a much more affectionate family his own life. >> yes. >> he served as a mentor to other architects. >> yes not all of them. you can trace his influence. captures, our architects found.

the critical influence here, robert mills have, when he was living in he began to take some young men to mentor the. sometimes it was successful, sometimes not but in terms of mentoring other one could go through the list to sullivan and down. it's a wonderful kind of genealogical but again, there were a lot of architects when when you look at his career, one of the things to understand is

that he tries to establish architecture as a profession that was hard because there's so much competition from carpenters and artists and building houses without any desire to make them splendid faces he wanted to. as far as others did not share his affinity for low class like we have capital today. he probably on the eve of the civil war don't being erected, congress wanted to have more, they want the domes of hand over

the senate he was very special in that way is an issue of case, it is my own view is that he was searching for and that's what i expect he would not have liked the u.s. capital building today. >> fascinating. i was fascinated that frank loyd wright because he talked briefly in your book about house in philadelphia that commission has been recently studied by my colleagues and he was very interested in designing every detail on the and write like.

>> on the inside will this is the madison, hard on the interior furniture in the white house became the white house. >> will have another question, how did he change the founders of classical ideals, the actual cause of heart have political ideals? >> yes, i'm not sure the way late in the evening and this is going the reason i argue he was

a founder of the united states, not of ideals, connected may, two, they were precursors you're not going to ideals and political theorists, find ideals summer of which rope found them. i found them in the roman and greek republics. we have other path being taken

classic ideas and then the trial is building buildings ideals. in terms of how change if you look at and patrolled often the capitals are different and there is a sense of windows lines on

latrobe's buildings it is getting you have given us a couple more questions and phone at, in the not so distant past, you think it was original last month. >> going to on the onion component but latrobe was going to endure forever. he actually there were all kinds of restoration job and to what

happens, happens to buildings, they get encroached upon the basilica before the restoration was the decorations that latrobe hated. it is very limited in terms of agreeing to declarations the colors before were simply. it was dark, whatever. going to leave on that question because i'm not sure anyone is huge controversy which is why going down the wonderland

revocable -- >> we'll go on to question, is aging of an impressive library behind you. if there is one, would you encourage us to. >> and you see this is a new book on latrobe's, can you see it? it's all about his work so of course it's just the one for me. >> that seems like a good one. i look forward to get that.

what? have graciously agreed to write an article for us our upcoming magazine, latrobe visit in 1796. i think that's something all of our members and followers can look forward to and appreciate your passion you certainly got me fired up to look at these buildings with different eyes to look for latrobe and his role in the building of america. thank you for joining us tonight. i want to thank all of our listeners and viewers for joining us, it is your support that makes it possible for mount vernon to continue offering these great programs.

i hope you continue to drink as see us as opportunities present and continue to support our mission to support american history and learn about american history so thank you for joining us. ♪♪ >> you are watching tv on c-span2 every weekend with the latest nonfiction books authors, but tv on c-span2 america's cable television company. today we brought you provide tv to beers as a public service. >> is a look at books published this week. the use of land and the concept

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