Richard II, son of the Black Prince, had a dramatic and contentious kingship. At fourteen he faced down the ringleaders of the Peasant Revolt of 1381; only to reach the nadir of his royal authority in 1388 with the Merciless Parliament. Yet in only a decade, his rule was being referred to as `the tyranny'. This collection of essays by leading historians aims to re-evaluate the frequently biased evidence and create a rounded portrait of this fascinating and much-maligned figure.

Born to Isabel and Ferdinand, the Catholic Monarchs whose marriage united the realms of Castile and Aragon, Juana "the Mad" (1479-1555) is one of the most infamous but least studied monarchs of the Renaissance. Conventional accounts of Juana portray her as a sullen woman prone to depression, a jealous wife insanely in love with her husband, and an incompetent queen who was deemed by her father, husband, and son, unable to govern herself much less her kingdoms.

But was Juana truly mad or the victim of manipulative family members who desired to rule in her stead? Drawing upon recent scholarship and years of archival research, author Bethany Aram offers a new vision of Juana's life. After the deaths of three relatives directly in line for the throne, Juana became heir to her parents' realms. As queen, Juana worked tirelessly to assure the succession of her son Charles V to the throne and thereby to establish the Habsburg dynasty in the kingdoms that others managed to govern in her name.

In this part biography, part study of royal authority, Aram rightly asserts that Juana was more complicated than her contemporaries and biographers have portrayed her. Not the frail and unstable woman usually depicted, Juana employed pious practices to defend her own interests as well as those of her children. She emerges as a woman of immense importance in Spanish and European history.

Good people, I am come hither to die, and by a law I am condemned to the same. These were the words uttered by the seventeen-year-old Lady Jane Grey as she stood on the scaffold awaiting death on a cold February morning in 1554. Forced onto the throne by the great power players at court, Queen Jane reigned for just thirteen tumultuous days before being imprisoned in the Tower, condemned for high treason and executed. In this dramatic retelling of an often misread tale, historian and researcher Nicola Tallis explores a range of evidence that has never before been used in a biography to sweep away the many myths and reveal the moving, human story of an extraordinarily intelligent, independent and courageous young woman.

The title of Duke of York is traditionally assigned to the second son of the English monarch. But what exactly does a Duke of York do? Across the centuries dukes have served in the armed services on land, at sea and in the air. They have worked as diplomats and ambassadors and been patrons of the arts and sciences. Some have also been given more unusual jobs such as investigating murders, running a national lottery and supervising building at Westminster Abbey. Several have gone on to become king, including Henry VIII, Charles I and George VI. Some have died peacefully in their beds whilst others faced a brutal end. This handsome, case-bound volume containing over 450 meticulously researched pages takes a detailed and entertaining look at how the fourteen holders of the title from 1385 to the present have each sought to redefine the role and at the contribution each has made to the history of the country and the welfare of its people. All proceeds from the sale of this volume shall be donated to the On Course Foundation, a charity of which HRH The Duke of York is patron. Margaret Bolton is a specialist in the late medieval and early modern period with particular focus on the reigns of Richard II and Henry VIII. Her other research interests include the development of medical knowledge in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and the relationship between diet and disease in the seventeenth century.

At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the British government, alarmed at the Duke and Duchess of Windsor's association with the Nazis and the possibility that they would remove themselves to the United States to preach their pacifist (and slightly pro-German) credo, decided that a job had to be found for the ex-King Edward VIII. and his wife, the American, Wallis Simpson. He was appointed Governor of The Bahamas, one of the smallest and least important possessions of the British Empire, far away from the scene of battle.

Away from their sybaritic living in the south of France, the couple struggled unhappily with the very different lifestyle of minor colonial life. This story is of their successes and their failures during their last official service to The British--and of the only Royal Governor to have served in British colonial history.

Owen Platt's recounting of their escapades in wartime Bahamas is a fascinating insight into a little known aspect of British history.

In the tradition of Jo Ann Beard's "Boys of My Youth," and Mary Karr's"The""Liar's Club," Paula McLain has written a powerful and haunting memoir about the years she and her two sisters spent as foster children. In the early 70s, after being abandoned by both parents, the girls were made wards of the Fresno County, California court and spent the next 14 years-in a series of adoptive homes. The dislocations, confusions, and odd pleasures of an unrooted life form the basis of a captivating memoir. McLain's beautiful writing and limber voice capture the intense loneliness, sadness, and determination of a young girl both on her own and responsible, with her siblings, for staying together as a family.

Originally published in 1898. Author: Thomas Carlyle Language: English Keywords: Literature/ History Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Obscure Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Summary: Frustrations of a single woman and the Napoleonic heir of France that led to their marriage in the most magnificent wedding during the most romantic era of European history
Principals: Emperor Napoleon III; Eugenie de Montijo, Countess of Teba; and her girlhood and lifetime love, the Duke of Sesto
Theme: The ultimate unrequited love story: a woman who tried to commit suicide twice, devastated that the Dukes of Alba and Sesto each preferred her sister. Eugenie reluctantly agreed to marry Napoleon's nephew and emerged as one of the most powerful women in history.
Influence: The Vanderbilts and Astors spent millions copying her in Gilded Age Newport and New York. "It was the strange fate of Eugenie Marie de Montijo...to become known...as one of the greatest beauties of her time, and later...personally influential in European events and destinies of three generations..." (New York Times)
Unique Features: Recipe of original Imperial Wedding cake of 1853; recipe of Marie-Antoinette's favorite pastry
Timeliness: Current projects to rebuild the Tuileries Palace and the Palace of Saint-Cloud, art-filled historic monuments burned in war and terror; the Louvre recently paid $10.7 for one of Eugenie's brooches; Eugenie's items at Metropolitan Museum of Art, N.Y., Louvre, Malmaison; Mexico and Cinco de Mayo; Imperial Wedding with 200,000 people at Notre-Dame Cathedral similar to Charles and Diana's in 1981 and Royal Wedding of 2011.
What other woman:
- Became Regent of France three times?
-Was the last woman to wear all the Crown Jewels of France including a 140.64 carat diamond?
- Lived in the Palaces of the Tuileries, Saint-Cloud, Fontainebleau and Compiegne?
- Used the Palace of Versailles for parties?
- Collected Marie-Antoinette's possessions?
- Used the Petit Trianon for her retreat?
- Was the first muse of French haute couture?
- Inspired Louis Vuitton, Creed, Guerlain, Christofle?
- Made Biarritz a jet-set destination?
- Had Washington Irving, Prosper Merimee and Stendhal as childhood story tellers?
- Belonged to families mentioned in Don Quixote?
- Was bridesmaid to Queen Isabel II of Spain?
- Urged occupation of Mexico and Cochin-China (Vietnam)?
- Forged a lifetime friendship with Queen Victoria?
- Made decisions leading to the Franco-Prussian War and the burning of Paris?
- Fled past 60,000 rioters and survived to age 94?

The Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller 'This second volume of memoirs is as fascinating as the first....full of wit, joy, vivid vignettes and useful insights...she has another bestseller on her hands' India Knight, Sunday Times 'It's great to have another memoir from Lady Glenconner . . . as open-minded and entertaining as she clearly is' Lynn Barber, Sunday Telegraph 'A jolly anecdote for every day of the year and excellent advice' Hilary Rose, The Times 'As glorious and highly readable as its predecessor - as well as being packed full of new stories' ipaper 'Full of eye-popping detail' Sophia Money-Coutts, Daily Telegraph 'Charm itself' Spectator 'Anne Glenconner returns to charts her fascinating life and the hard-won lessons learnt in diplomacy, marriage and motherhood' Tatler.com Bracing honesty, rare insight and hilarious revelations from internationally bestselling author of LADY IN WAITING as she shares everything she's learned from her extraordinary and unexpected life. Anne Glenconner's glittering life hasn't always been golden. As she revealed in her astonishing bestselling memoir Lady in Waiting, it has been one of stark contrasts - from growing up in the splendour of Holkham Hall to living in a tent in the jungle of Mustique, from travelling the world with Princess Margaret to coping with her wildly unpredictable husband Lord Glenconner. Tragically, she has also survived the loss of two of her sons and nursed a third son back from a coma. Now in her ninetieth year, and at her happiest, Anne brings her bracing honesty, characteristic wit and courage to reflect on and reveal more about her long and unexpected life, her extremely volatile marriage, and what it's taught her. 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 marvellous 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. Anne Glenconner's Whatever Next? is the richly entertaining proof that staying open to every new adventure and being ready for whatever happens sets an inspiring example for us all.

The author of this series has made it his special object to confine himself very strictly, even in the most minute details which he records, to historic truth. The narratives are not tales founded upon history, but history itself, without any embellishment or any deviations from the strict truth, so far as it can now be discovered by an attentive examination of the annals written at the time when the events themselves occurred. In writing the narratives, the author has endeavored to avail himself of the best sources of information which this country affords; and though, of course, there must be in these volumes, as in all historical accounts, more or less of imperfection and error, there is no intentional embellishment. Nothing is stated, not even the most minute and apparently imaginary details, without what was deemed good historical authority. The readers, therefore, may rely upon the record as the truth, and nothing but the truth, so far as an honest purpose and a careful examination have been effectual in ascertaining it.

Hoyt's biography, taking advantage of recent posthumous revelations of a Japanese foreign service diplomat, portrays Hirohito as a man of peace held captive by his role in Japanese society and government . . . "Library Journal

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A successful new book from a topnotch writer . . . "Booklist

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. . . provocative . . . "Kirkus Reviews

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Was Emperor Hirohito to blame for Japan's expansionist military policies--and its atrocities--in World War II? Was he out to make the world his empire? This most extensive biography of the emperor in English challenges portrayals of Hirohito as either an unworldly scientist or a swashbuckling conspirator who tried to conquer the globe with military might. Using sources uncovered as recently as 1991, Hoyt reveals that the emperor was fundamentally a peace-loving man caught in a turbulent period when the Japanese military gained extraordinary power. He became the virtual prisoner of an Imperial system that prevented him from leading his country into an era of peace and prosperity, his boyhood dream. Hoyt's account, backed by a decade of research, details the emperor's repeated attempts to thwart the Imperial Army's headlong drive toward war. Even when defeat was certain, Hoyt maintains, Hirohito had to outmaneuver the army in order to surrender to Allied forces. Only then, in postwar years, did the emperor see his wishes for his country come true.

To help the reader assess the emperor's life, Hoyt begins by examining the years preceding Hirohito's reign. He then focuses on the Manchurian incidents, the struggle for power in Japan, the China war, the global conflict and Japan's role in it, and the country's final capitulation. Critical passages on events preceding and during World War II, supported by the recently released diaries of men close to the emperor, detail the process by which Hirohito increasingly lost power as the army gained control. Turning his attention to the post-war years, Hoyt chronicles Japan's economic growth and the changing role of the emperor in Japanese society. Photographs from Japanese sources enhance the narrative. Hirohito: The Emperor and the Man offers new insight into the motives of a widely misunderstood leader. Hoyt's Hirohito is a quiet man with scholarly leanings; a patriot who loved his country but also admired Western qualities; a monarch who wished to act responsibly at a critical juncture but lacked the authority to do so.

At a time when trust and integrity is at an all time low, the light of Truth still prevails over the dawn of deception. The Bewitchments, enchantments, sorceries and charms may be ever so alluring and attractive until one cannot help but to be inundated by its graces. What human on earth does not desire Knowledge, Power and Prosperity? Who is not hungry for Love and Acceptance; and thirsty for the supernatural? There awaits in the spirit world angelic beings to accompany you on your journey of life into that unknown and intriguing realm; but will they be ministers of darkness ushering you to a darker doom of Bewitchment? Or will they be ministers of light ushering you into a brighter tomorrow? Read this in-depth testimony of a life that was changed from Bewitchment to Enrichment and from Gloom to Glory and make your choice Minister Regina Smith serves as the Minister of Music and is an intercessor at the Works of God's Hands International, where the honorable Elect Lady Bobbie Jones Grayer is Pastor. She was chosen to be a Daughter of God and a teacher of His Word. She has been singing, writing songs and playing for numerous churches and ministries and training choirs since she was 16 years old, and has a passion for the youth. She flows in the Holy Spirit under a prophetic anointing that ushers in the Presence of God. She loves to Worship the Lord her King, and has come to know that worship affects every area of one's life. Therefore if any man or woman will worship the Lord, he/she must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth; for the Father seeketh such to Worship Him. St John 4:23-24

This book presents the fascinating story of Queen Margrete I and her rise to power in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Her political ambitions culminated in the founding of the Nordic Union in 1397, which had vital impact on the history of Scandinavia for the next centuries. The book analyses the most central sources and gives a vivid picture of medieval society in Denmark during the late Middle Ages. At the same time the book describes the character of this dynamic woman, who is considered as one of the most important rulers in the Middle Ages.
Only a very small part of the literature concerning Scandinavian medieval history has been published in English, and this book gives for the first time foreign readers the opportunity to read about the background to the founding of the Nordic Union. The text is well illustrated.

With the flair for narrative and the meticulous research that readers have come to expect, in The Diamond Queen Andrew Marr turns his attention to the monarch - and to the monarchy, chronicling the Queen's pivotal role at the centre of the state, which is largely hidden from the public gaze, and making a strong case for the institution itself. Arranged thematically, rather than chronologically, Marr dissects the Queen's political relationships, crucially those with her Prime Ministers; he examines her role as Head of the Commonwealth, and her deep commitment to that Commonwealth of nations; he looks at the drastic changes in the media since her accession in 1952 and how the monarchy - and the monarch - have had to change and adapt as a result. Indeed he argues that under her watchful eye, the monarchy has been thoroughly modernized and made as fit for purpose in the twenty-first century as it was when she came to the throne and a 'new Elizabethan age' was ushered in.

This is the intimate and revealing autobiography of the late Margaret Rhodes, the first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II and the niece of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. Margaret was born into the Scottish aristocracy, into a now almost vanished world of privilege. Royalty often came to stay and her house was run in the style of Downton Abbey. In the Second World War years she 'lodged' at Buckingham Palace while she worked for MI5. She was a bridesmaid at the wedding of her cousin, Princess Elizabeth to Prince Philip. Three years later the King and Queen attended her own wedding; Princess Margaret was a bridesmaid. In 1990 she was appointed as a Lady-in-Waiting to the Queen Mother, acting also as her companion, which she describes in touching detail. In the early months of 2002, she spent as much time as possible with her ailing aunt, and was at her bedside when she died at Easter that year. The next morning she went to Queen Elizabeth's bedroom to pray, and in farewell dropped her a final curtsey.

As the constitutional importance of the monarchy has declined, the British royal family has forged a new and popular role for itself as patron, promoter, and fund-raiser for the underprivileged and the deserving. This book-the first to study the evolution of the "welfare monarchy"-tells the story of the royal family's charitable and social work from the eighteenth century to the present. Drawing on previously unused material from the Royal Archives, Frank Prochaska shows that the monarchy's welfare work has raised its prestige and reaffirmed its importance at the same time that it has brought vitality and success to a vast range of voluntary activities and charities. Prochaska traces the dynamic alliance that has existed between the crown and British civil society over the last 250 years, examining the royals' charitable activities and the factors that motivated them-from Prince Albert, who had a mission to give the monarchy a new kind of influence and moral authority in a period of diminished political power, to King George V and Queen Mary, who were convinced that the monarchy had to combat bolshevism and socialism, to King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, who tried to create a royal image that would unite the nation. Full of fresh perceptions and novel information (including how much money individual members of the royal family have given away), elegantly written, and handsomely illustrated, the book illuminates the royal family's changing role and the transformation of the idea of nobility.

Biography of Diana, Princess of Wales in the words of her favourite body-mind therapist, masseur Stephen Twigg. Diana: Her Transformation tells the story of who the People's Princess was in the words of the man who was a participant in her transformation from unhappy young woman, suffering from depression, bulimia and thoughts of suicide, to powerful figure on the world stage who was able to challenge governments and cause a royal dynasty to bow to the wishes of a nation. This book which makes all the others clear and explains who Diana was not just what she did.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Christopher Andersen comes a vivid and unsparing yet sympathetic portrait of one of the most complex and enigmatic figures of our time: Charles, who has taken his place on the throne after being the oldest and longest-serving heir in British history. Since the day Charles Philip Arthur George was born, he has been groomed to be King. After more than seventy years of waiting, he finally ascends the throne. The King examines the private life of this historically important and controversial figure, set against the grand, thousand-year sweep of the British monarchy. This richly detailed biography covers it all, from his military training to his marriage to Lady Diana, through their separation and her tragic death to his marriage to Camilla Parker Bowles. In the process, it provides a balanced but fully honest look into the life of the new monarch. This book will tell you what the King-a man who has remained something of an enigma, shrouded in speculation and intrigue-is really like. The King is the first biography of Charles since he has become monarch and serves as an authoritative chronicle of his life.

The extraordinary story of an obscure German princess who became one of the most powerful women in history.

Born into a minor noble family, Catherine transformed herself into empress of Russia by sheer determination. For thirty-four years, the government, foreign policy, cultural development and welfare of the Russian people were in her hands. She dealt with domestic rebellion, foreign wars and the tidal wave of political change and violence churned up by the French Revolution.

Robert K. Massie brings an eternally fascinating woman together with her family, friends, ministers, generals, lovers and enemies vividly and triumphantly to life.

History offers few stories richer than that of Catherine the Great, and HBO/Sky Atlantic will be releasing a four-part series starring Helen Mirren as Catherine in the autumn of 2019.

A gripping royal saga of charmed lives in a changing world. The Jaipurs were India's mid-century golden couple; its answer to the Kennedys, or Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. Jai and Ayesha, as they were known to friends like Frank Sinatra, Truman Capote and 'Dickie' Mountbatten, entertained lavishly at their magnificent palaces and hunting lodges in Rajasthan-and in the nightclubs of London, Paris and New York. But as the Raj gave way to the new India, Jaipur-the most glamorous and romantic of the princely states-had to find its place. The House of Jaipur charts a dynasty's determination to remain relevant in a democracy set on crushing its privileges. Against the odds, they secured their place at the height of Indian society; but Ayesha would pay for her criticism of Indira Gandhi during the Emergency. From the polo field and politics to imprisonment and personal tragedy, the Jaipurs' extraordinary journey of transformation mirrors the story of a rapidly changing country.

"Fanny Lear: Love and Scandal in Tsarist Russia>/i> tells the story of Harriet Clarissima Ely Blackford, also known as Fanny Lear. She was an American courtesan in the late nineteenth century, a strong, independent woman who refused to accept the restrictions placed on women by society at the time. In her short, adventure-filled life, her travels took her from Philadelphia to the social heights of Europe and ultimately to Tsarist Russia, where an affair with the Tsar's nephew culminated in her arrest and expulsion from Russia. Various diplomatic reports from the US State Department detail the scandalous events and the dire implications of this ill-fated love affair.

Once out of Russia, she reportedly wrote this account in English over the course of eleven days and then supervised its translation into French. Published under the title Le Roman d'une Americaine en Russie, it was an instant bestseller. It also brought on diplomatic pressure from Russia that caused her expulsion from France and Italy, although she continued to be a prominent figure in the social and celebrity sections of the European media during the 1870s and '80s.

Her account of the twenty-eight months in Russia is a love story, not only of her love for the Grand Duke, but also for Russia itself. A few copies of her book survived; it has now been translated and is presented here.