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What happens to a fragile peace when nations gain the power to strike from the sky?
In The World Peril of 1910, George Chetwynd Griffith imagines a world of airships, powerful weapons and threatened peace. Science promises new powers, but those powers bring danger. This early science fiction adventure turns the wonder of invention toward a darker question: what might progress put at risk?
Flight and weapons of great force stand at the heart of this scientific romance. Action, daring journeys and bold choices drive the adventure rather than quiet reflection. Griffith invites you into an imagined future where machines change the balance of power, and the possibilities of discovery carry the threat of war.
What you’ll discover
- War in the skies Imagine how the power to attack from above changes the meaning of safety below.
- Invention with a dangerous edge Explore a vision of scientific progress where powerful machines threaten an already fragile peace.
- Adventure driven by action Follow the pull of daring journeys and bold choices rather than pauses for quiet reflection.
- An early imagined future Enter an age's vision of tomorrow, shaped by fascination with machines and fear of their use.
- The cost of progress Consider what humanity risks when the power of invention becomes the power to wage war.
Who will love it
This book suits readers who enjoy invasion stories, naval battles, inventors with astonishing machines and a race against the clock. It also rewards anyone curious about how Edwardian writers pictured air power and comets.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A rescue becomes a lasting rivalry
- Castellan puts genius behind his hatred
- A comet makes national quarrels smaller
- Britain refuses the coalition's demands
- Hatred wastes a military advantage
- A coal mine offers planetary hope
- Castellan threatens the world's defense
- Human loyalty reaches beyond national loyalty
- Two dangers meet in one rivalry
Who’s who
- John CastellanA brilliant Irish inventor of a flying submarine who hates England, serves the Kaiser and wants Irish independence and the hand of Auriole.
- Gilbert LennardA quiet astronomer and chemist who finds the comet, plans a giant cannon to stop it and loves Auriole.
- Auriole ParmenterAn American heiress, clever and calm, who learns the truth about the comet and helps carry the plan forward.
- Norah CastellanJohn's sister, who breaks with him over his treason and serves her country by nursing the wounded.
- Denis CastellanJohn's brother, a naval lieutenant loyal to the Crown and a language scholar, who fights beside Erskine aboard the Ithuriel.
- Francis ErskineThe young naval captain who designs and commands the Ithuriel and uses her ram to sink the invaders' ships.
- Ratliffe ParmenterAuriole's father, a plain-spoken American millionaire who pays for the cannon and an aerial fleet to save the world.
- Tom BowcockThe big, honest Lancashire mine manager who turns the Great Lever pit into the giant cannon.
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The World Peril of 1910
by George Chetwynd Griffith · 1907
An Irish inventor sells a flying submarine to the Kaiser while a young astronomer spots a comet aimed at Earth.
Challenging5–10 hours to read20 languages
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In short
Two men swim toward the same drowning girl in an Irish bay. One of them, John Castellan, loses the race by a yard and never forgives it.
The World Peril of 1910 at a glance
- Reading time
- About 6 h 5 min4 h 50 min fast, 7 h 15 min slow
- Length
- 87,000 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1907by George Chetwynd Griffith
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A swimming race sets two rivals apart
The book opens in Clifden, in Connemara, where an Irish inventor draws strange plans. John Castellan sits among designs for engines and a craft that leaves the water and flies like a flying fish.
That same day an Englishman shoots a drake from eighty yards, and Castellan answers with a sour remark. Out on the bay a girl in white sculls her skiff. A boat of careless lads veers into her, and she goes into the water. Both men drop their guns and dive after her.
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Details
- First published
- 1907
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 7 h 5 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Griffith, George Chetwynd. The World Peril of 1910. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-world-peril-of-1910.
Griffith, G. C. (2026). The world peril of 1910. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-world-peril-of-1910 (Original work published 1907)
Griffith, George Chetwynd. The World Peril of 1910. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-world-peril-of-1910.
@book{griffith2026world,
author = {Griffith, George Chetwynd},
title = {The World Peril of 1910},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-world-peril-of-1910},
note = {First published 1907}
}
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What is The World Peril of 1910 about?
It follows an invasion of Britain by a league of European powers aided by flying submarines, and a young astronomer who finds a comet on a collision course with Earth and plans a giant cannon to stop it.
Who is John Castellan?
He is an Irish inventor of Spanish descent who designs the Flying Fish, a craft that swims and flies. He sells it to the German Emperor out of hatred for England and a wish to free Ireland.
What is the Ithuriel?
It is a British warship designed by Captain Erskine, three hundred feet long and armored below the waterline. Its fifty-ton ram and speed let it sink destroyers, cruisers and transports with little damage to itself.
The author
George Chetwynd Griffith
1857–1906 · British science fiction writer
George Chetwynd Griffith was a British science fiction writer and explorer. He was born in Plymouth, England, in 1857 and died at Port Erin on the Isle of Man in 1906. His novels include The Angel of the Revolution, published in 1893, and A Honeymoon in Space, published in 1901.
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