Against the Gates of Hell

Based heavily on previously unpublished letters and diaries in Harvard's Houghton Library, Against the Gates of Hell is the riveting story of missionary Henry T. Perry and his life in Turkey from 1866 to 1913. Perry's diaries and letters provide an eyewitness account of the last years of the Ottoman Empire, years that are the foundation for the modern Middle East. They also contain historical testimonies of Moslem/Christian relations that have assumed renewed importance since the events of September 11, 2001. Against the Gates of Hell is a cultural history as well as a biography, depicting that time in American history when Christian missionaries were largely responsible for increasing the United States' international awareness and humanitarian concerns.