Becoming Queen Victoria
The Tragic Death of Princess Charlotte and the Unexpected Rise of Britain's Greatest Monarch
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4.4 • 53 Ratings
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The perfect companion to the PBS Masterpiece series Victoria • A gripping account of Queen Victoria’s rise and early years in power from CNN’s official royal historian
“Kate Williams has perfected the art of historical biography. Her pacy writing is underpinned by the most impeccable scholarship.”—Alison Weir
In 1819, a girl was born to the fourth son of King George III. No one could have expected such an unassuming, overprotected girl to be an effective ruler—yet Queen Victoria would become one of the most powerful monarchs in history.
Writing with novelistic flair and historical precision, Kate Williams reveals a vibrant woman in the prime of her life, while chronicling the byzantine machinations that continued even after the crown was placed on her head. Upon hearing that she had inherited the throne, eighteen-year-old Victoria banished her overambitious mother from the room, a simple yet resolute move that would set the tone for her reign. The queen clashed constantly not only with her mother and her mother’s adviser, the Irish adventurer John Conroy, but with her ministers and even her beloved Prince Albert—all of whom attempted to seize control from her.
Williams lays bare the passions that swirled around the throne—the court secrets, the sexual repression, and the endless intrigue. The result is a grand tale of a woman whose destiny began long before she was born and whose legacy lives on.
Praise for Becoming Queen Victoria
“An informative, entertaining, gossipy tale.”—Publishers Weekly
“A great read . . . With lively writing, Ms. Williams [makes] the story fresh and appealing.”—The Washington Times
“Sparkling, engaging.”—Open Letters Monthly
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Williams tells the story of two royal women whose lives were intricately linked and who gave hope to the British people in a turbulent period when they were ruled by the boorish, hedonistic prince regent, later George IV. The first woman was Princess Charlotte, he daughter and only child of George IV and Princess Caroline of Brunswick. Charlotte was neglected by her self-centered parents. But during the chaotic era of the Napoleonic Wars, Britain invested its hope for a stable future and a principled ruler in the pretty, and politically liberal princess, But Charlotte's 1817 death following delivery of a stillborn infant led to a royal baby-making competition, resulting in the birth of Victoria, whom the British adored from infancy. A passionate, impulsive, fun-seeking girl, Victoria was bullied by a power-crazed mother and used by Charlotte's husband, Leopold, the ambitious Belgian king, who engineered Victoria's marriage to his nephew Albert. Despite some careless writing and editing, Independent British historian Williams's (England's Mistress: The Infamous Life of Emma Hamilton) latest is an informative, entertaining, gossipy tale of two beloved Hanoverian princesses, one of whom became England's longest-reigning monarch. 16 pages of color photos.
Customer Reviews
Becoming Queen Victoria...Give Me More!
This was an absolutely fascinating account of the years leading up to the reign of Queen Victoria and the early years of her reign. The book ends with the death of her beloved Albert and a rapid overview of her later years. I would love to see a companion volume...one that picks up where this book ended. A very well written account, this book is less about the Queen and more about the person Victoria was. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the history of the royal family.