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Title: Marconi The Man Who Networked The World

Author:  Marc Raboy
Edition: NA
ISBN: 978-0-19-090593-4
Date: 2016
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Binding: Soft Cover
Size approximately (inches): 5-1/2 x 8-1/4
Pages: 863

Book Condition: Good. Previously owned.  Former library copy with usual stampings and stickers Some shelving and use wear.

Special Notes: NA

About the book*:

Marconi: The Man Who Networked the World by Marc Raboy (Oxford, 2016):

chapter list for Marconi: The Man Who Networked the World by Marc Raboy, Oxford University Press (2016):

Prologue

• Marconi in His Time and Ours

Part I: The Prodigy

1. Bologna: Beginnings

2. Priority and Detractors

3. London: Start‑up

4. The Magician

5. New York: New Frontiers

6. Love and Imperialism

7. The Upstart Technology

8. “The Great Thing”

9. Newfoundland: The World Shrinks 

Part II: The Player

10. Corralling the Brand

11. Regulation

12. Marriage

13. A Life in Litigation

14. The Marconi Aura

15. A New World Order

16. On the Way to Somewhere

17. The Perfect Laureate 

Part III: The Patriot

18. The Godsend

19. Signals of War

20. Wireless and Disaster

21. “The Marconi Scandal”

22. The Invisible Weapon

23. “L’eroe magico”

24. The Statesman

25. The Spark 

Part IV: The Outsider

26. The Master of the House

27. The Beam Indenture

28. Radio

29. The Merger

30. The Anchor 

Part V: The Conformist

31. A Servant of the Regime

32. Science and Fascism

33. “Your Every Wish Is My Command”

34. Controlling His Legacy

35. The Heritage

36. He Only Cared About Wireless… 

Postscript
Acknowledgements
Sources and Abbreviations
Notes
Bibliography
Index

🧭 1. The Visionary Inventor

Born in 1874 to an Italian father and Irish mother, Guglielmo Marconi grew into a cosmopolitan engineer who saw the potential of “Hertzian waves” beyond academic curiosity. By age 22, he had invented a practical wireless telegraph system, founding the Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company in 1896—earning accolades from global leaders, knighthood, and eventually the Nobel Prize before turning 40 

2. Global Wireless Pioneer

Marconi pioneered long-distance wireless: coastal ship-to-ship communication, orchestration of maritime rescues (notably the Titanic), and early transatlantic messaging. He deployed transmitters in Newfoundland, Argentina, Hawaii, Russia, and beyond, shaping a truly global communications network 

3. From Entrepreneur to Patriot

By World War I, Marconi had transitioned from commercial innovator to national asset. His technology became vital in military operations, aiding coordination on the battlefield. In 1914 he was appointed to the Italian Senate and later represented Italy at the Versailles Peace Conference 

4. Personal Life & Public Persona

Raboy explores Marconi’s relationships—his marriages, mistresses, and children—as well as his fierce legal and corporate battles (e.g., against German Telefunken), regulatory skirmishes, and patent strategies. This creates a nuanced portrait of a man balancing genius, ambition, and controversy 

5. Embracing Fascism

In the late 1920s and 1930s, Marconi aligned closely with Mussolini’s regime. He held prominent positions in scientific and academic institutions—such as the National Research Council—and became a key figure in Fascist Italy. Raboy does not shy away from this darker period, detailing Marconi’s complicity and ideological drift .

6. Scope & Critique

At over 800 pages and drawing on multilingual archival sources, Raboy’s biography is meticulously detailed and widely regarded as authoritative. The book is structured into five thematic sections—Prodigy, Player, Patriot, Outsider, Conformist—though some readers find the depth of detail occasionally overwhelming 

🧠 Bottom Line

Marc Raboy’s Marconi is a definitive, richly textured portrait of the inventor who bridged science, commerce, and politics to create the wireless global network. It shines in its exploration of business, regulator, and political entanglements—even as it does not shy away from Marconi’s moral compromises.

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