The Queen
Elizabeth II and the Monarchy
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- £9.49
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- £9.49
Publisher Description
An updated edition of Ben Pimlott’s classic biography of the Queen: ‘There is no better biography of Elizabeth II.’ PETER HENNESSY, Independent on Sunday
The royal family have been through a tumultuous decade, but with the wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton, Prince Philip’s 90th birthday and the forthcoming Diamond Jubilee celebrations, there is renewed interest and appreciation of our monarchy. The Queen is an in-depth look at the woman at the centre of it all and is the only biography to take Elizabeth II seriously as the subject of historical biography, or to examine the influences that formed her and the ideas she represents.
Ben Pimlott (described by Andrew Marr in the Independent as ‘the best writer of political biography now writing’) treats the Head of State to the rigorous and objective scrutiny he applied to major political personalities, using a wide range of sources, including interviews, diaries and letters, and papers in the Royal Archives.
The Queen looks at the social, political and psychological aspects of his subject in detail, as well as at the changing role of Monarchy in the British Constitution. In the process, the book displays all the author’s formidable analytic and narrative skills, and provides a gripping yet sensitive account of one of the most publicised – yet least known – figures of our time. It is vital reading for all those who care about public life in Britain – past, present and to come.
Note that it has not been possible to include the same picture content that appeared in the original print version.
Reviews
‘A strikingly impressive achievement. Professor Pimlott has shown what wit, scholarship and a wide-ranging historical imagination can do with a subject that must initially have seemed unpromising. There will not be a better royal biography for many years.’ PHILIP ZIEGLER, Daily Telegraph
‘This is an important and stimulating book which even literary republicans can read with pleasure.’ ANTONIA FRASER, Guardian
‘Pimlott brings wit and gravitas to the topic.’ ANDREW ROBERTS, Sunday Telegraph
‘No serious royal watcher who values accuracy and the perspective of history can afford to be without it.’ Sunday Times
About the author
Ben Pimlott was the Professor of Politics and Contemporary History at Birkbeck College, London. He was the author of Labour and the Left in the 1930s (1977), Hugh Dalton (1985) which won the Whitbread Prize for Biography, Harold Wilson (1992) and Frustrate Their Knavish Tricks (1994). He was a political columnist for The Times, New Statesman and Sunday Times and reviewed regularly for the Independent on Sunday, Guardian and Observer.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Pimlott (Harold Wilson) speculates that the 71-year-old Elizabeth II could become the last British sovereign. He views the queen as bringing nothing to her role but continuity. Despite political and societal upheaval since she ascended the throne in 1952, she has opted, in his view, for cautious passivity, permitting the monarchy to become, at best, a bore and, at worst, a perch for celebrity royals who inspire unflattering media coverage. Pimlott sees squandered opportunities for meaningful metamorphosis of the throne in the failures of the queen to exploit her limited powers but unlimited mystique, but he concedes her dedication to duty as she perceives it in a period of imperial decline. Although his research comes up with nothing strikingly new, Pimlott colorfully describes here the fading of the fantasy that once sustained the ceremonial monarchy. He is less compelling when he lavishes pages on political minutiae meant for his British audience but likely to make Americans yawn. Illustrations.
