Aristocrats - books?

[Humera]

I was wondering if anyone here has read the book "Aristocrats" by Stella Tillyard. The book is based on the correspondence between Caroline, Emily, Louisa, and Sarah Lennox, great-grand-daughters of Charles II of Great Britain and his mistress Louise de Keroualle, and daughters of the 2nd Duke of Richmond.The four sisters wrote literally thousands of letters to each other and Stella Tillyard's book mainly draws from this rich correspondence. The book was also made into a sumptuous mini-series a couple of years ago.
There's also an illustrated companion book to the mini-series. I bought it a couple of days ago and its truly amazing.
I'd recommend it to anyone who loves history like myself. Both the book and the illustrated companion are full of details about daily life, fashion, and social customs of the eighteenth century.

[Julian]

Hi Humera, did you have a chance to see the television series that was based on this book? It was a British made series (big surprise! and came out about four or five years ago and was excellent. The saddest part of the series was the story of the doomed son of the Duchess of Leinster, he took part in the Irish rebellions and was ultimately sentenced to death. The Duchess could not save him even though she pleaded desperately for his life.

[hillary_nugent]

Sounds interesting....what is the TV series called?

[Julian]

hillary, the tv series is the same name, "Aristocrats". I can't remember who was in the cast, other than the actress who played the Duchess of Leinster in her later years, and that was Sian Phillips who used to be married to the great Peter O'Toole. I haven't searched for the details but you can probably find them if you browse on the entertainment info website imdb.com

[hillary_nugent]

thanks Julian ^____^

[Humera]

yeah I saw the TV series a couple of years ago. Im dying to get it on DVD.
It was absolutely sumptuous with all the magnificent gowns and jewels!
And the reason I especially loved it was because its all based on history, on people who actually lived during the 18th and 19th centuries, people who became famous figures of history, like the Duchess of Lienster's son Edward Fitzgerald, and her nephew Charles James Fox.
If anyone gets their hands on the Illustrated companion to the series, I'd highly recommend it. Its not full of recycled material from the book, nor is a typical "making of" guide. Its actually got tons more information about the lives of the Lennox sisters, daily life in the 18th century and gorgeous pictures of the sisters' homes etc.

[semisquare]

humera

i agree completely, i loved both the book and the tv series. its was wonderfuly done and the costumes were breathtaken. as with history- no extra drama is needed as the tv series shown.

[Humera]

Its a shame that so many of the sisters' letters were destroyed, either by their descendants or as in the case of Louisa, at her death in accordance with her will.

[rchainho]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...739000,00.html

Biography: The Princess and The Politicians by John Charmley
REVIEWED BY ADAM ZAMOYSKI
THE PRINCESS AND THE POLITICIANS: Sex, Intrigue and Diplomacy, 1812-40
by John Charmley

Viking £20 pp350

NI_MPU('middle');Princess Lieven has had more than her fair share of books written about her. And not surprisingly. This exotic Russian aristocrat intrigued and slept her way through an extraordinary array of statesmen, including Metternich, Wellington, Aberdeen, Canning, Grey and Guizot, and was the first non-royal woman in history to attain a central position in European politics and diplomacy.

[tiaraprin]

Originally Posted by rchainho

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...739000,00.html

Biography: The Princess and The Politicians by John Charmley
REVIEWED BY ADAM ZAMOYSKI
THE PRINCESS AND THE POLITICIANS: Sex, Intrigue and Diplomacy, 1812-40
by John Charmley

Viking £20 pp350



NI_MPU('middle');Princess Lieven has had more than her fair share of books written about her. And not surprisingly. This exotic Russian aristocrat intrigued and slept her way through an extraordinary array of statesmen, including Metternich, Wellington, Aberdeen, Canning, Grey and Guizot, and was the first non-royal woman in history to attain a central position in European politics and diplomacy.

Thank you for telling us about the book Rchaino!! It is much appreciated!!

[Alastair_r]

Any good books out about high society, aristocrats and nobility ? X

[GlitteringTiaras]

A book that is simply fantastic, by a historian with whom I greatly admire, David Cannadine, is The Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy. You might also want to read Ornamentalism: How the British Saw Their Empire; however, the book is more about "how class was the engine for Empire..." compared to The Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy.


The above mentioned books may be a good jump start, but if you are looking for something more specific, i.e. the aristocracy today, you might want to buy the video of the four part documentary entitled, The Aristocracy. Released by the BBC a couple of years ago the series is invaluable soruce for those who are seriously intereseted in the history British aristocracy as well as their place in today's society (which questions their relevance; as the late 11th Duke of Devonshire noted "...they are a spent force...")

Good luck in your search

[Warren]

Another recommendation:
Aristocrats by Robert Lacey (based on his BBC TV series of the same name)
First published 1983. ISBN 0 09 154290 1

The book covers six families:
• Duke of Westminster (the Grosvenors)
• Duchess of Medinaceli (the most titled woman in the world)
• Thurn und Taxis (the late Prince Johannes)
• Frescobaldi (long-term friends of the Prince of Wales)
• Marquis de Ganay
• Liechtenstein (the late Prince Franz Josef II)

[jonnydep]

i second that...... very good book, i have it myself.
me and my friend mafan was discussing the book the other day funny enough !!
its a pity that the tv series has never been released on video or dvd. i would love to watch it again......