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The Unlikely Duke: Memoirs of an eclectic life - from rock 'n' roll to Badminton House
Par Harry Beaufort. 2023
'Beaufort chronicles his unusual and rarified world with flashes of Wodehousian genius'. --- Jools Holland'So funny ... bristling with glamorous…
but eccentric characters'. --- Jilly Cooper'Very funny and touching, gentle, wise and unpretentious. This is a book I absolutely loved.' --- Anne GlenconnerThe 12th Duke of Beaufort, known to his friends as 'Bunter', inherited his Dukedom and Badminton House in 2017, at the age of sixty-five. But he is also a singer and songwriter with the rock group The Listening Device. Now he combines his responsibilities as Duke with his life as a rock performer. In this lively and anecdote-filled memoir, Harry Beaufort takes us behind the scenes of his varied life: from playing poker with politicians, to partying on Ibiza with film stars to people watching with The Queen from a balcony at Windsor Castle. He offers an intimate portrait of aristocratic privilege and a lifetime filled with rock stars, royalty, eccentrics and jaw-droppingly unbelievable stories. But Harry also offers a sensitive and perceptive insight into the worlds he has inhabited and the friendships and laughter that he has experienced along the way. This is the story of an ordinary man facing up to his extraordinary inheritance-the story of The Unlikely Duke.Emperor of Japan: Meiji and His World, 1852–1912
Par Donald Keene. 2005
The renowned Japanese scholar &“brings us as close to the inner life of the Meiji emperor as we are ever…
likely to get&” (The New York Times Book Review). When Emperor Meiji began his rule in 1867, Japan was a splintered empire dominated by the shogun and the daimyos, cut off from the outside world, staunchly antiforeign, and committed to the traditions of the past. Before long, the shogun surrendered to the emperor, a new constitution was adopted, and Japan emerged as a modern, industrialized state. Despite the length of his reign, little has been written about the strangely obscured figure of Meiji himself, the first emperor ever to meet a European. But now, Donald Keene sifts the available evidence to present a rich portrait not only of Meiji but also of rapid and sometimes violent change during this pivotal period in Japan&’s history. In this vivid and engrossing biography, we move with the emperor through his early, traditional education; join in the formal processions that acquainted the young emperor with his country and its people; observe his behavior in court, his marriage, and his relationships with various consorts; and follow his maturation into a &“Confucian&” sovereign dedicated to simplicity, frugality, and hard work. Later, during Japan&’s wars with China and Russia, we witness Meiji&’s struggle to reconcile his personal commitment to peace and his nation&’s increasingly militarized experience of modernization. Emperor of Japan conveys in sparkling prose the complexity of the man and offers an unrivaled portrait of Japan in a period of unique interest. &“Utterly brilliant . . . the best history in English of the emergence of modern Japan.&”—Los Angeles TimesBehind the Crown: My Life Photographing the Royal Family
Par Arthur Edwards. 2022
A breathtaking collection of photographs capturing the modern British monarchy as never before seen, taken by the Royal photographer for…
the The Sun (UK) who has covered them for nearly half a century.“For 45 years I’ve chronicled the Royal Family for the Sun newspaper with my camera. I’ve witnessed their triumphs and disasters, their laughter and tears, when they’ve found love and when their relationships splinter. I’m there when they emerge from the maternity wing as wailing newborns and I’m there again when they marry before a joyous nation. And when they’re laid to rest on those solemn occasions that this country marks so well, I’m on hand to capture history being made.”Arthur Edwards has been TheSun’s (UK) Royal Photographer for over 45 years; the longest serving of any newspaper. Originally from the East End of London, he is the man behind the most iconic photographs of the most famous family in the world. With commensurate skill and unprecedented access, he has captured the candid moments when protocol is put aside, revealing the true personalities behind the Crown.This beautiful book is a treasure trove of glorious photography, along with Arthur’s own warm recollections of the stories behind his iconic shots. It is the perfect glimpse behind the scenes of the last 50 years of the British monarchy, from a truly unique perspective.Mistress of the Elgin Marbles: A Biography of Mary Nisbet, Countess of Elgin
Par Susan Nagel. 2004
The remarkable Mary Nisbet was the Countess of Elgin in Romantic-era Scotland and the wife of the seventh Earl of…
Elgin. When Mary accompanied her husband to diplomatic duty in Turkey, she changed history. She helped bring the smallpox vaccine to the Middle East, struck a seemingly impossible deal with Napoleon, and arranged the removal of famous marbles from the Parthenon. But all of her accomplishments would be overshadowed, however, by her scandalous divorce. Drawing from Mary's own letters, scholar Susan Nagel tells Mary's enthralling, inspiring, and suspenseful story in vibrant detail.The Creation of Anne Boleyn: A New Look at England's Most Notorious Queen
Par Susan Bordo. 2013
This illuminating history examines the life and many legends of the 16th century Queen who was executed by her husband,…
King Henry VIII. Part biography, part cultural history, The Creation of Anne Boleyn is a fascinating reconstruction of Anne&’s life and a revealing look at her afterlife in the popular imagination. Why is her story so compelling? Why has she inspired such extreme reactions? Was she the flaxen-haired martyr of Romantic paintings or the raven-haired seductress of twenty-first-century portrayals? (Answer: neither.) But the most provocative question of all concerns Anne&’s death: How could Henry order the execution of a once beloved wife? Drawing on scholarship and critical analysis, Bordo probes the complexities of one of history&’s most infamous relationships. She then demonstrates how generations of polemicists, biographers, novelists, and filmmakers have imagined and re-imagined Anne: whore, martyr, cautionary tale, proto &“mean girl,&” feminist icon, and everything in between. In The Creation of Anne Boleyn, Bordo steps off the well-trodden paths of Tudoriana to tease out the human being behind the competing mythologies, paintings, and on-screen portrayals.Kate: The Making of a Princess
Par Claudia Joseph. 2010
Kate by Claudia Joseph, is a true-life fairy tale: the biography of Kate Middleton, Princess-in-Waiting, who is quite possibly poised…
to be the next Queen of England. The extraordinary Cinderella story of the beautiful, charming, sophisticated young woman who has snagged Britain’s most eligible bachelor, Prince William, Kate is a must-read for all the many followers of the lives, loves, and remarkable turns of the royal family of Great Britain.Endgame: Inside the Royal Family and the Monarchy's Fight for Survival
Par Omid Scobie. 2021
Endgame, the explosive book from longtime royal journalist Omid Scobie and author of the international blockbuster Finding Freedom, is a penetrating investigation…
into the current state of the British monarchy—an unpopular king, a power-hungry heir to the throne, a queen willing to go to dangerous lengths to preserve her image, and a prince forced to start a new life after being betrayed by his own family.Queen Elizabeth II’s death ruptured the already-fractured foundations of the House of Windsor—and dismantled the protective shield around it. With an institution long plagued by antiquated ideas around race, class and money, the monarchy and those who prop it up are now exposed and at odds with a rapidly modernizing world. Relying on his vast experience as a royal reporter and over a decade of conversations and interviews with current and former Palace staff, trusted friends of the royals and even the family members themselves, Scobie pulls back the curtain on an institution in turmoil to show what the monarchy must change in order to survive. This is the monarchy’s endgame. Do they have what it takes to save it?Sophia: The Finest Queen Britain Never Had
Par Catherine Curzon. 2019
From the Thirty Years&’ War to the formation of Great Britain, the royal mother of the House of Hanover comes…
to life in this historical biography. Princess Sophia of Hanover was born to greatness and yet fated to obscurity. The 1701 Act of Settlement made her the heiress presumptive to the thrones of England and Ireland, and yet she died mere weeks before becoming queen. Granddaughter of James I and mother to George I, she was perhaps the finest queen that Britain never had. As the daughter of Frederick V, the deposed King of Bohemia, Sophia spent an impoverished childhood in exile. Emerging as a woman of sparkling intelligence and cutting wit, she married Ernest Augustus and became the first Electress of Hanover. Sophia: Mother of Kings, brings this remarkable woman and her tumultuous era vividly to life. In a world where battles raged across the continent and courtiers fought behind closed doors, Sophia kept the home fires burning. Through personal tragedy and public triumph, Sophia raised a royal family and survived illness, miscarriage, and accusations of conspiracy. As the mother of Great Britain&’s first Georgian king, Sophia of Hanover began one of the most glittering dynasties the world has ever known. From the House of Stuart to the House of Hanover, this is the story of her remarkable life.The Crown in Crisis: Countdown to the Abdication
Par Alexander Larman. 2020
The thrilling and definitive account of the Abdication Crisis of 1936On December 10, 1936, King Edward VIII brought a great…
international drama to a close when he abdicated, renouncing the throne of the United Kingdom for himself and his heirs. The reason he gave when addressing his subjects was that he could not fulfill his duties without the woman he loved—the notorious American divorcee Wallis Simpson—by his side. His actions scandalized the establishment, who were desperate to avoid an international embarrassment at a time when war seemed imminent. That the King was rumored to have Nazi sympathies only strengthened their determination that he should be forced off the throne, by any means necessary.Alexander Larman’s The Crown in Crisis will treat readers to a new, thrilling view of this legendary story. Informed by revelatory archival material never-before-seen, as well as by interviews with many of Edward’s and Wallis’s close friends, Larman creates an hour-by-hour, day-by-day suspenseful narrative that brings readers up to the point where the microphone is turned on and the king speaks to his subjects. As well as focusing on King Edward and Mrs. Simpson, Larman looks closely at the roles played by those that stood against him: Prime minister Stanley Baldwin, his private secretary Alec Hardinge, and the Archbishop of Canterbury Cosmo Lang. Larman also takes the full measure of those who supported him: the great politician Winston Churchill, Machiavellian newspaper owner Lord Beaverbrook, and the brilliant lawyer Walter Monckton.For the first time in a book about the abdication, readers will read an in-depth account of the assassination attempt on Edward’s life and its consequences, a first-person chronicle of Wallis Simpson’s scandalous divorce proceedings, information from the Royal Archives about the government’s worries about Edward’s relationship with Nazi high-command Ribbentrop and a boots-on-the-ground view of how the British people saw Edward as they watched the drama unfold. You won’t be able to put down The Crown in Crisis, a full panorama of the people and the times surrounding Edward and the woman he loved.James VI and I: Collected Essays
Par Jenny Wormald. 2021
The renowned historian Jenny Wormald was a ground-breaking expert on early modern Scottish history, especially Stewart kingship, noble power and…
wider society. She was most controversial in her book-length critique of Mary, Queen of Scots. Unfortunately, Jenny never got round to producing a similar monograph on a monarch she was infinitely more fond of, King James VI and I, before her untimely death in 2015. In the absence of such a book, this volume brings together all the major essays by Jenny on James. She wrote on almost every aspect and every major event of James' reign, from the famous Gunpowder Plot, the Plantation of Ulster, the Gowrie Conspiracy, to the witchcraft panics, as well as James' extensive writings. She wrote extensively on James' Scottish rule, but she was also keenly interested in James as the first king of all of Britain, and many of her essays unpick the issues surrounding the Union of the Crowns and James' rule over all three of his kingdoms. This book is an invaluable resource for any scholar on this crucial time in the history of the British Isles.Discover the life of Princess Diana—a story about helping those in need for kids ages 6 to 9 Princess Diana…
was known as the "People's Princess" because she loved to be kind and generous to others. Before she made a big impact on the world, Diana was a thoughtful little girl who loved animals and ballet. Her life changed when she became royalty, but she never gave up her passion for helping people. Explore how Diana went from being a little girl growing up in England to one of the most famous women in the world, known especially for her compassion. This Princess Diana book includes: Core curriculum—Learn the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How of Diana's life, and take a quick quiz to test your knowledge. Short chapters—Explore colorfully illustrated, easy-to-read chapters that make you want to keep reading and learning more about Her Royal Highness Princess Diana. Her lasting legacy—Discover how Diana changed the world for future generations, including you! How will Princess Diana's big heart inspire you?Louis XIV is one of history’s most notorious rulers. Ruling for three quarters of a century, the King of France…
had the longest reign in European history, and the effects of his rule would create the conditions that would lead to the French Revolution. Written by an authority on 17th century Europe, Pierre Goubert not only outlines the life the famous “Sun King." but the millions of subjects under his rule, and the effects his choices had on the them.Ready for Absolutely Nothing: A Memoir
Par Susannah Constantine. 2022
2022 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR FROM THE TELEGRAPH (UK) AND THE SUNDAY TIMES (UK) 2022 BEST AUDIOBOOKS OF THE YEAR…
FROM THE TIMES (UK) This darkly funny, confessional memoir from the star of What Not to Wear tells all: from her posh upbringing and the dishy details of her career in fashion to her journey as a recovering alcoholic. The fact that Susannah Constantine made her name as a 'style guru' as part of &“Trinny and Susannah&” from What Not to Wear is the least interesting thing about her. Susannah grew up amongst the great and good of British aristocracy and (unwittingly) trained to be a society bride. Fittingly, Barbara Cartland was her touchstone for romance: she wanted to be the underdog heroine who ended up marrying a prince. Instead she dated Princess Margaret&’s son for several years and traveled in royal circles, including on the island of Mustique, where Princess Margaret–and Hachette author Anne Glenconner–owned homes and had holidays. When that marriage proposal never showed up, she dated Imran Khan –then a gorgeous playboy/cricket player and now the Prime Minister of Pakistan, before meeting her husband. Hers is a tale full to the brim with extraordinary anecdotes. From lavatory dramas with Princess Margaret, to behind-the-scenes power struggles between Margaret Thatcher and the Queen at Balmoral and eye-opening sex-club etiquette with pop royalty–her social landscape has been nothing if not varied. Many of these stories are hilarious and snarky, some are painful, but all of them are honest, gossipy, and show that, in her words, she was &“brought up to be ready for absolutely nothing.&” In sharing a peek behind the curtain, Constantine does not hold back and many bold names appear in these pages from Elton John, Princess Diana, The Queen, Mick Jagger, Jerry Hall, Andy Warhol, and our own Anne Glenconner and her husband Colin Tenant. But appearances are deceptive and beneath the balls and glamour, life has had a darker side: her mother's bipolar disorder, her father's inability to cope and her own subsequent alcoholism. Somehow, she had to forge her own life, away from the expectations of others. Which she did and does. READY FOR ABSOLUTELY NOTHING is for fans of The Crown, royal followers, readers of LADY IN WAITING, What Not To Wear fans and anyone who likes a gossipy memoir with bold faced names and a drop dead sense of humor.Whatever Next?: Lessons from an Unexpected Life
Par Anne Glenconner. 2023
**Instant Sunday Times Bestseller** Bracing honesty, rare insight, and more revelations: the New York Times bestselling author of Lady in Waiting shares everything she's…
learned from her extraordinary and unexpected life.Lady in Waiting brought us royal magic, beguiling insight, and jaw-dropping stories from life inside Anne Glenconner&’s privileged circle, which though golden didn't always glitter. As she revealed in her memoir, it has been one of stark contrasts—from growing up in the splendor of Holkham Hall to living in a tent in the jungle of Mustique, from traveling the world with Princess Margaret to coping with her wildly unpredictable husband Lord Glenconner. She has also survived the tragic loss of two of her sons and nursed a third son back from a coma. Now in her ninth decade and at her happiest, she's keen to share everything her unexpected life has taught her—the wise, the hilarious, the poignant, and the illuminating. As a wife, she became a master in the art of keeping the peace, knowing when to pick her battles, when she needed help—and when to take a lover. As a hostess, she acquired great practical skills in throwing marvelous parties and looking after magnificent homes, and, as a lady in waiting, became well versed in diplomacy and etiquette. It was as a mother she learnt the toughest lessons of all, and through them the value of friendship, family, and laughter to get her through the worst moments in life, as well as celebrate the best of them. Whatever Next? is a treasury of hard-won wisdom, and richly entertaining proof that staying open to every new adventure sets an inspiring example for us all.Diana, William, and Harry: The Heartbreaking Story of a Princess and Mother
Par James Patterson, Chris Mooney. 2022
Instant New York Times Bestseller! &“She was the best mother in the world,&” said Princes William and Harry at Diana&’s 10-year memorial. &“Entertaining…
and persuasive,&” (Publishers Weekly) this is the first big book about the private Diana, the mother of two princes.&“Royal fans will devour this well-paced biography that gives new insight into the House of Windsor. You&’ll tear through it by sundown and walk away thinking about the Princess of Wales and her two sons with new perspective .&” –Men&’s Journal From the moments William and Harry are born into the House of Windsor, they become their young mother&’s whole world. I&’ve got two very healthy, strong boys. I realize how incredibly lucky I am, Diana reminds herself every morning. But even the Princess of Wales questions, Am I a good mother? Diana&’s faced with a seemingly impossible challenge: one son destined to be King of England and another determined to find his own way. She teaches them to honor royal tradition, even while daring to break it. &“Sometimes I&’d like a time machine…&” Diana says as William and Harry grow up, never imagining they&’d have less than a lifetime together. Even after she&’s gone, her sons follow their mother&’s lead—and her heart. As the years pass and William and Harry grow into adulthood and form families of their own, they carry on Diana&’s name, her likeness, and her incomparable spirit. &“James Patterson applies his writerly skills to real-life history with novelistic style&” (People) in this deeply personal and revealing biography of the world&’s most storied family, from the world&’s #1 bestselling author.Henry V: A History of His Most Important Places and Events
Par Deborah Fisher. 2022
There are many books about King Henry V, several of which concentrate entirely on his victory at the Battle of…
Agincourt in 1415. This one looks at his life from a different point of view, concentrating on places that were important in his life and can still be visited by those interested in getting a better feel for the man and understanding how his character was shaped by his environment. Henry spent much of his youth on military campaigns in Ireland, Wales and the Marches. As Prince of Wales, he became battle-hardened as a teenager when he received a near-fatal wound at Shrewsbury. Despite a fraught relationship with his father, he quickly reinvented himself as a model king, and set his eyes firmly on the crown of France. Thereafter, much of his nine-year reign was spent on military campaigns beyond the British Isles. The book takes its reader on a journey from the rural areas around Monmouth, where he was born, to Harlech Castle, where he put an end to Owain Glyndwr's rebellion, and from his coronation at Westminster Abbey to his private retreat at Kenilworth. We see him seize Harfleur and take the long road to Calais, culminating in the Battle of Agincourt, one of the most spectacular victories ever won by an English army. We follow his continued campaigns in France, through his marriage to Catherine of Valois at Troyes, to his eventual, tragically premature, death at Vincennes.Queen Elizabeth I: Life & Legacy of the Virgin Queen
Par Paul Kendall. 2022
The forty-four-year reign of Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII and the last Tudor monarch, was considered a golden age.…
It saw the emergence of the great playwrights such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe, while the exploits of Sir Francis Drake and other ‘sea-dogs’ helped establish England’s position among the great maritime powers. This book looks at Elizabeth’s life through some of the many artifacts, buildings, documents and institutions that survive to this day. From the execution of her mother, Ann Boleyn, when she was just two-and-a-half-years-old, to her imprisonment on suspicion of supporting Protestant rebels, Elizabeth’s early life was a turbulent one, but her accession to the throne ushered in a period of stability. During her reign, England’s wealth and prestige grew through her patronage of seafaring privateers such as Drake, John Hawkins and Walter Raleigh. She encouraged the exploration and colonialization of North America, marking the birth of the British Empire and the establishment of British trade routes. Elizabeth was responsible for expanding the English Navy, its defeat of the Spanish Armada being considered one of England’s greatest military victories. In this magnificently illustrated book we see her birthplace at Greenwich Palace, her childhood homes, her prison in the Tower of London, the palaces she lived in, ruins of stately homes she visited, such as Gorhambury House, Kenilworth House, Upnor Castle and the Elizabethan town walls at Berwick, the many fortifications built during her reign to defend her realm, through to her final resting place in Westminster Abbey. Also found in this fascinating volume are books that she presented to her father and step-mother, Katherine Parr, with the binding embroidered by Elizabeth, her clothes, letters she wrote in her own hand, her coronation chair, her coat of arms asserting her title as Governor of the Church of England and her signature signing the death warrant of her cousin, the 4th Duke of Norfolk. This book is not just a journey back in time to the reign of Elizabeth I, but also a tour across the country to visit the sites which still evoke that golden era of the Virgin Queen.Cardinal Wolsey: For King & Country
Par Phil Roberts. 2022
The Wolsey’s of Suffolk date to Anglo-Saxon times. The earliest notice of a Wolsey as inhabitant of Ipswich is Thomas…
Wolsey’s father, Robert. He was a successful small businessman and married a Joan Daundy. Thomas was probably born in 1471 in an Inn and was almost certainly baptised in St Mary at the Elms church, Ipswich. Wolsey graduated from university and then his climb to power was extremely fast. He entered the Royal Household as the chaplain to King Henry VII. When King Henry VIII ascended to the throne Wolsey became his Almoner, which gave him access to the King’s Council. Henry was very impressed with Wolsey’s work. Thomas gained many important clerical positions. In 1515 Wolsey became Lord Chancellor of England. Thomas Wolsey’s most famous peace treaty was signed between Henry VIII and Francis I of France at the glorious Field of Cloth of Gold in 1520. Henry had not produced a male heir. A woman called Anne Boleyn came on the scene. Henry began to think that she could mother him a son. The king asked Wolsey to seek a divorce from his first wife. He tried his outmost, as always, but the Pope kept delaying the matter. Wolsey failed and fell out of favour with Henry. He was charged with treason and escorted to the Tower of London. On his way, Thomas became very frail and sadly, on 29th November 1530 he died at Leicester Abbey.Robert the Bruce: Scotland's True Braveheart
Par Phil Carradice. 2022
Robert the Bruce is a detailed account of the life and times of the Scottish hero and monarch. It covers…
his life from childhood to death, looking at the political, social and military life of Scotland before, during and after the time of Robert the Bruce. The book looks at the relationship between The Bruce and people like Edward I and Edward II of England, William Wallace and the other contenders for the Scottish crown. The main thrust of the book is a chronological account of how The Bruce clawed his way to power, his struggles and battles and his eventual victory which gave Scotland independence and freedom from an acquisitive and warlike neighbour. It looks in detail at the murder of John Comyn, of which The Bruce stood accused, and the political ramifications of the killing. Robert the Bruce was no saint. He was a ruthless, cunning warrior, a man of his times, dedicated to what he saw as his mission in life. Flawed he may have been but he was also a great King, a worthy warrior and a man who deserves to emerge from the shadow of William Wallace - a position to which he has been relegated ever since the film Braveheart.Ivan the Terrible
Par Isabel De Madariaga. 2008
&“This significant biography of the 16th-century Russian czar…is likely to become the definitive work on Ivan for some time&” (Publishers…
Weekly, starred review). One of the most important figures in Russian history, Ivan IV Vasilyevich has remained among the most neglected. The country&’s first Tsar, he is notorious for pioneering a policy of unrestrained terror—and for killing his own son. In Ivan the Terrible, Russian historian Isabel de Madariaga presents the first comprehensive biography of Ivan from birth to death, shedding light on his policies, his marriages, his atrocities, and his disordered personality. Situating Ivan within the Russian political developments of the sixteenth century, de Madariaga also offers revealing comparisons with English, Spanish, and other European courts of the time. The biography includes a new account of the role of astrology and magic at Ivan&’s court and provides fresh insights into his foreign policy. Addressing the controversies that have paralyzed western scholarship as well as the challenges of authentication—since much of Ivan&’s archive was destroyed by fire in 1626—de Madariaga seeks to present Russia as viewed from within Russia rather than from abroad. The result is an enlightening work that captures the full tragedy of Ivan&’s reign.