Magician of the North is the first full-scale biography of this extraordinary man. William George Armstrong was a visionary inventor, engineer and businessman who bestrode the 19th-century world like a colossus, bringing global renown to his great Elswick works on the Tyne, while adding luster to Britain's imperial might. In its heyday, Elswick employed 25,000 people in the manufacture of hydraulic cranes, warships and armaments. He created...