Narratives of Empire

The Narratives of Empire series is a heptalogy of historical novels by Gore Vidal. Published between 1967 and 2000, they chronicle the history of Vidal's "American Empire", from dawn to decay, by interweaving the private stories of two fictional American families with the public stories of historical personages. Although the seven novels were not published in order of historical chronology, they can be read in either historical or publication order without sacrificing narrative intelligibility. Vidal insisted on the title “Narratives of Empire” for the series, despite his publishers’ preference for the safer, mainstream “American Chronicles”.[1]

Order Title Story Timeline Description Historical Characters Fictional Characters Published
1 Burr 1775–1805, 1833–1836, 1840 Aaron Burr’s narrative about the “Founding Father” actors chronicles the nation's beginnings Aaron Burr, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson Charlie Schuyler 1973
2 Lincoln 1861–1865 Abraham Lincoln’s presidency and the disloyalties — internal and external — he overcame to save the Union John Hay, John George Nicolay, Abraham Lincoln, William Seward, Salmon P. Chase, David Herold William Sanford 1984
3 1876 1875–1877 The 1876 presidential election and its aftermath, where candidate Samuel J. Tilden lost to Rutherford B. Hayes despite winning the popular vote Samuel J. Tilden Charlie Schuyler, Emma Schuyler, John Day Apgar, William Sanford 1976
4 Empire 1898–1907 Chronicles the birth of the American Empire at the turn of the 20th Century John Hay, Del Hay, William Randolph Hearst, William McKinley, Teddy Roosevelt Caroline Sanford, Blaise Sanford, James Burden Day 1987
5 Hollywood 1917–1923 Chronicles the cinema-shaped self- and world-views of the US populace during the birth of the US film industry Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding Caroline Sanford, Blaise Sanford, James Burden Day 1990
6 Washington D.C. 1937–1952 Political life in the term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt Blaise Sanford, Peter Sanford, James Burden Day, Clay Overbury 1967
7 The Golden Age 1939–1954, 2000 The American Empire’s World War II maturity and Cold War decline; the finale introduces the U.S. at the start of the 21st century Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Hopkins, Harry S. Truman, Gore Vidal Caroline Sanford, Blaise Sanford, Peter Sanford, James Burden Day, Clay Overbury 2000

References

  1. ^ Vidal, Gore. (2006) Point to Point Navigation: a memoir, 1964 to 2000, p. 123.
American Chronicle series by Gore Vidal
a.k.a. Narratives of Empire