Kategoria BISAC: Biography & Autobiography >> Royalty

Barrett Beer here presents the first scholarly edition of Sir John Hayward's Life and Raigne of King Edward VI, the earliest biography of the last Tudor king. Originally published in 1630 and again in 1636, Hayward's account was reprinted in White Kennett's Complete History of England in 1706. Beer uses the printed editions and unpublished manuscripts to produce a more complete text of Hayward's book than has ever before appeared in print. In his introduction he examines the environment in which Hayward wrote and considers the influence this pioneering work has had on attitudes...

Louis XIV, the highly-feted Sun King, was renowned for his political and cultural influence and for raising France to a new level of prominence in seventeenth-century Europe. And yet, as Antonia Fraser keenly describes, he was equally legendary in the domestic sphere. Indeed, a panoply of women his mother, Anne; mistresses such as Louise de la Valliere, Athenais de Montespan, and the puritanical Madame de Maintenon; and an array of courtesans moved in and out of the court. The highly visible presence of these women raises many questions about their position in both Louis XIV s life and in...

When Charles Stuart was a young child, it seemed unlikely that he would survive, let alone become ruler of England and Scotland. Once shy and retiring, an awkward stutterer, he grew in stature and confidence under the guidance of the Duke of Buckingham; his marriage to Henrietta of Spain, originally planned to end the conflict between the two nations, became, after rocky beginnings, a true love match. Charles I is best remembered for having started the English Civil War in 1642 which led to his execution for treason, the end of the monarchy, and the establishment of a commonwealth until...

The half-century since Elizabeth II's coronation in 1952 has witnessed many changes, some for good and some for ill. Among these, she has been one of the few constants.

Fifty Years the Queen recounts her amazing life as Canada and the Commonwealth celebrate the Golden Jubilee of her accession to the throne. Elizabeth II is a figure whose faultless devotion to duty flourishes in an age of individual self-gratification. endowed with high spirits and a great sense of humour, she at the same time carries out her duties with unfailing dignity and decorum.

The special Golden...