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This biography of Xenia, sister of Nicholas II gives a new angle on
the Romanov story and provides new information on relationships
within the family after the Revolution. Important new letters and
photographs are also included.
Do you know? Which MP was the first woman to take her seat in
parliament? Who was the man they could not hang? Which member of
the Beatles lost his temper at a famous Devon landmark? A
compendium of fascinating information about Devon past and present,
this book contains a plethora of entertaining facts about the
county's famous and occasionally infamous men and women, its towns
and countryside, history, natural history, literary, artistic and
sporting achievements, agriculture, transport, industry, and royal
visits. A reference book and a quirky guide, this can be dipped in
to time and time again to reveal something new about the people,
the heritage, the secrets and the enduring fascination of the
county. A remarkably engaging little book, this is essential
reading for visitors and locals alike.
A compendium of fascinating information about Cornwall past and
present, this book contains a plethora of entertaining facts about
the county's famous and occasionally infamous men and women, its
towns and countryside, history, natural history, literary, artistic
and sporting achievements, agriculture, transport, industry and
royal visits. A reference book and a quirky guide, this can be
dipped in to time and time again to reveal something new about the
people, the heritage, the secrets and the enduring fascination of
the county. A remarkably engaging little book, this is essential
reading for visitors and locals alike. Did You Know? In British law
no officer or agent of the Crown, which includes both Westminster
and the Anglican Church, can legally set foot upon Cornish soil
without the express and joint permissions of the Duke of Cornwall
and Cornwall's Stannary Parliament. Dolly Pentreath (c. 1680-1777),
is popularly regarded as the last true speaker of the Cornish
language and her last words were reputedly 'Me ne vidn cewsel
Sawznek!' ('I don't want to speak English!'). Penzance boasts the
county's only officially designated promenade, which extends for
just over a mile from the town harbour to Newlyn. Founded in 1860
Warrens Bakery, a family-owned chain based in St Just in Penwith,
supplies pasties to Fortnum & Mason. Cornwall's flag is that of
St Piran and shows a white cross which represents molten tin oozing
out of a black rock which Piran used when building his fireplace.
Queen Victoria and Albert, the Prince Consort, had nine children
who, despite their very different characters remained a close-knit
family. Inevitably, as they married into European royal families
their loyalties were divided and their lives dominated by political
controversy. This is not only the story of their lives in terms of
world impact, but also of personal achievements in their own right,
individual contributions to public life in Britain and overseas,
and as the children of Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort. John
van der Kiste weaves together the lives of each of these children
and shows how their mother was the thread that kept the family
together. It is a refreshing insight into one of history's most
popular royal families.
Princess Victoria Melita played a colourful role from her birth in
1876. The second daughter of Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, she made a
brief and unhappy marriage at the age of 17 to her cousin, Ernest,
Grand Duke of Hesse. In the face of strong opposition from her
family she divorced him seven years later and married another
cousin, Grand Duke Cyril of Russia, resulting in three years of
exile. When revolution toppled the empire in 1917, the Grand Duke
and Duchess and their children escaped to Finland, living in danger
for three long years. Following the atrocities of the Bolsheviks at
the time, including the murder of most of the Romanov family, the
Grand Duke believed he was the senior surviving member of the
imperial house, and proclaimed himself Tsar. However, they were
never able to return to their homeland, and the Grand Duchess died
in exile in 1936. Using previously unpublished correspondence from
the Royal Archives and Astor papers, this is a portrait of the
Princess, set against the imperial courst of the turn of the 20th
century and inter-war Europe.
The six children of King George V and Queen Mary all lived to
maturity except the youngest, Prince John. The eldest, who was
Prince of Wales and heir to the throne, reigned as King Edward VIII
for less than a year. His infamous romance with Mrs Simpson plunged
the country into the abdication crisis and led both of them into a
long period of exile. King George VI, who reluctantly and
unexpectedly ascended to the throne, was a shy man, handicapped by
a speech impediment and a sense of his own inadequacy. However,
together with his Consort, Queen Elizabeth, and the Prime Minister,
Winston Churchill, he gave the nation spirited guidance throughout
World War II. Both surviving younger brothers served in the armed
forces during war-time. Henry, Duke of Gloucester, was Governor
General of Australia from 1944-6 and crowned his military career
with promotion to the rank of Field-Marshal. George, Duke of Kent,
an officer in the RAF, was tragically killed on active service in
1942. The only sister, Mary, Princess Royal, worked both as a
nurse, and a royal ambassador abroad. This book tells the story of
the family.
It recounts several notable cases, from the killing of Sarah and
Edward Glass at Wadland Down in 1827 and the poisonings of Samuel
Wescombe in Exeter in 1829 and William Ashford at Honiton Clyst in
1866, both by wives whose affections had gone elsewhere, to the
horrific murder of Emma Doidge and her boyfriend William Rowe by
the former's jilted suitor at Peter Tavey in 1892, as well as the
strangling of schoolgirl Alice Gregory in 1916, and the triple
murder of Emily Maye and her daughters at West Charleton,
Kingsbridge, in 1936, which remains unsolved to this day. Above
all, there is an account of Devon's most famous case, the murder of
Emma Keyse at Babbacombe and the convicted servant John Lee - the
man they couldn't hang. John Van der Kiste's carefully researched,
well-illustrated and enthralling text will appeal to anyone
interested in the shady side of Devon's history.
Mary (1662-94), daughter of James, Duke of York, heir to the
English throne, then 15, is said to have wept for a day and a half
when she was told she was to marry her cousin, William (1650-1702),
son of William II of Orange (1626-50), Stadtholder of the Dutch
republic, and Mary, eldest daughter of Charles I of England, who
was eleven years older than her. In November 1677, on William's
27th birthday, they married in a private ceremony at St James's
Palace. William was solemn, James gloomy, Mary in tears, and only
King Charles appeared cheerful. This dual biography deals with both
the 'life and times' of the monarchs, and with England's place in
Europe. Interests of the subjects, outside the constitutional, are
dealt with, as well as their personal relationships: William's
rumoured homosexuality and Mary's hinted-at lesbianism; Mary's
troubled personal relations with her father, James II; and the
relationship between Mary and her sister and husband's successor
Anne. The book also examines the personal and political relations
between William and his uncle Charles II, and between William and
Mary and Charles' illegitimate son the Duke of Monmouth.
This chilling follow-up to Somerset Murders brings together more
murderous tales that shocked not only the county but made headline
news throughout the nation. Covering the length and breadth of
Somerset, the featured cases include two female poisoners,
Catherine Churchill, who killed her husband in Knowle-St-Giles in
1879 and Sarah Freeman, who claimed several victims in the
Bridgwater area from 1843 onwards. A wide variety of means and
motive are covered. There is murder committed in the course of
robbery, such as the brutal killing of Sarah Wilkins in Nempnett
Thrubwell in 1851; murder through jealousy, as in the case of
George Bitten, who murdered his wife at Wolverton in 1867 and even
altruistic murders, such as that committed by Albion Wadman near
Wincanton in 1883. Also included is the strange and intriguing
story of Reginald Woolmington, who faced two trials for the murder
of his wife at Milborne Port in 1934. Nicola Sly and John Van der
Kiste's well-illustrated and enthralling text will appeal to
everyone interested in true-crime history and the shadier side of
Somerset's past.
Home to all three armed services, Plymouth was greatly affected by
both major conflicts of the twentieth century. Between 1914 and
1918, Devonport Dockyard was responsible for much routine repair
and maintenance work as well as building new ships and submarines,
while the Royal Marines and army battalions were active in various
theatres of war overseas, and Mount Batten became one of the major
stations of the newly formed Royal Air Force. During the Second
World War, few cities in England suffered more devastating damage,
with the heart of the old city destroyed and a death toll of 1,172.
Richly illustrated and filled with true tales of local heroism and
the unbreakable spirit of the people of Plymouth during these
tumultuous years, this book looks at how the city fared during the
wars and played her part in victory.
This chilling follow-up to Devon Murders brings together more
murderous tales that shocked not only the county but made headline
news throughout the nation. Covering the length and breadth of
Devon, the featured cases include the stabbing of Walter Lechlade,
a close associate of the Bishop of Exeter in 1283; the murder of
Exeter lawyer Nicholas Radford in 1455, victim of a feud with the
powerful Courtenay family; the suspicious deaths of baby George
Lakeman at Buckfastleigh in 1817, and of the newly-married Laura
Shortland near Blackawaton in 1884; the killing of Bridget Walsh by
her lover at Plymouth in 1874; the case of baby farmer Annie Tooke,
convicted of infanticide at Exeter in 1879; and the affair between
Sidney Chamberlain and Doreen Messenger, a girl half his age, which
led to her being strangled on Haldon Hill in 1949. John Van der
Kiste's well-illustrated and enthralling text will appeal to
everyone interested in true-crime history and the shadier side of
Devon's past.
This chilling follow-up to Cornish Murders brings together more
murderous tales that shocked not only the county but frequently
made headline news throughout the nation. They include the brutal
slaying of Elizabeth Seaman in Penzance in 1845, the murder in the
course of a robbery of Robert Drew near Launceston in 1862, the
slaughter of the entire Mortimer family in Saltash in 1901, and the
suspicious death of a farmer near Liskeard in 1952, which was
initially believed to be a tragic suicide until the results of the
post-mortem examination were received. Nicola Sly and John Van der
Kiste's well-illustrated and enthralling text will appeal to
everyone interested in true crime and the shadier side of
Cornwall's past.
Berkshire Murders is an examination of some of the county's most
notorious and shocking cases. They include Hannah Carey, beaten to
death by her husband at Warfield in 1851; young Hannah Gould, whose
throat was cut by her father in a frenzied attack at Windsor in
1861; Nell Woodridge, murdered by her husband in 1896 and later
immortalised in Oscar Wilde's The Ballad of Reading Gaol; Annie
Davis, killed by her lover in 1912; and Minnie Freeman Lee, whose
body was discovered in a trunk in 1940. John Van der Kiste's
carefully researched, well-illustrated and enthralling text will
appeal to all those interested in the darker side of Berkshire.
Surrey Murders is an examination of some of the county's most
notorious and shocking cases. They include the 'Wigwam Girl', Joan
Wolfe, who lived in a tent built by a Cree Indian Soldier before
being brutally slaughtered; the infamous stabbing of Frederick Gold
by 'the Serpent', Percy Lefroy Mapleton; the poisoning of the
entire Beck family with a bottle of oatmeal stout, laced with
cyanide; and the sailor butchered at the Devil's Punch Bowl, later
immortalised in Charles Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby. John Van der
Kiste's carefully researched, well-illustrated and enthralling text
will appeal to all those interested in the darker side of Surrey's
history.
A Grim Almanac of Cornwall is a day-by-day catalogue of 365 ghastly
tales from around the county. Full of dreadful deeds, macabre
deaths, strange occurrences and heinous homicides, this almanac
explores the darker side of the county's past. Read about the
leaders of the 1497 rebellion, who fought for their county only to
be hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn; the fatal gunpowder
explosion near Truro in 1864; the horrifying case of Henry
Mortimer, who killed his wife, four children and himself at Saltash
in 1901; the young lady who was attacked by a giant badger while
walking near the river Fowey in 1906; and the couple who were
drowned on their honeymoon at Falmouth in 1948. All these, plus
tales of poachers, cannibals, witches, rioters, plague victims,
highwaymen, smugglers, and accidents by land, sea and air, are
here. Generously illustrated with a range of engravings,
photographs and orginal documents, this chronicle is an
entertaining and readable alternative history of Cornwall.
Hidden behind the picturesque facade of country lanes and rugged
coastlines, quaint villages and busy market towns, the South West
counties of Cornwall, Devon and Somerset have witnessed some of the
most shocking murder cases in British history. West Country Murders
brings together over 30 cases from the authors' previous
collections here in one volume. They include stories of those who
killed for greed, jealousy and lust, as well as those who committed
murder in what a well-known judge once described as 'a gust of
passion'. Some of the killers were undoubtedly insane at the time
of their crimes; others were almost certainly innocent, yet paid
the ultimate price for a murder they did not commit. Some remain
unsolved to this day, despite the best efforts of the local
constabularies. This book is sure to appeal to all those interested
in the shady side of the West Country's history.
The history of Devon is full of dark deeds and horrible happenings.
Among the county's more macabre claims to fame are England's first
documented serial killer, Robert de Middlecote, the murderous monk,
believed to have been executed in 1329; the hanging of three women
in Bideford in 1682, thought to be the last women put to death for
witchcraft in the land; and conversely the saga of John 'Babbacombe
Lee', the convicted killer who in 1885 became the 'man they could
not hang'. There are also the disasters of Exeter's Theatre Royal,
burnt to the ground in 1887 with the loss of around 186 lives; the
Lynmouth floods of 1952 which claimed 34 victims; the mysterious
death of journalist Bertram Fletcher Robinson, whose death may not
have been the result of typhoid contracted after drinking
contaminated tap water, but ruthless elimination by a famous rival;
and the sad case of the boy of 9 who died after choking on a
balloon attached to a string of liquorice. All these, plus tales of
murder, suicide, accidents by land, sea and air, are here.
Cornish Murders brings together numerous murderous tales that
shocked not only the county but also made national news. They
include the cases of Charlotte Dymond, whose throat was cut on
Bodmin Moor in 1844, and Emily Tredrea, strangled at St Erth in
1909, both by their jilted suitors; Mary Ann Dunhill, murdered in a
Bude hotel in 1931; shopkeeper Albert Bateman, battered to death on
his premises in Falmouth on Christmas Eve 1942; Charlie and
Elizabeth Giffard, savagely beaten and thrown over the cliffs near
St Austell by their son in 1952; and William Rowe, brutally killed
at his farm near Constantine for the sum of £4 in 1963.
Eighth-century martyr St Boniface, tennis player and TV presenter
Sue Barker, painter Sir Joshua Reynolds, scholar Sir Thomas Bodley,
actor Sir Donald Sinden, Boer War commander Sir Redvers Buller,
radio and TV presenter Ed Stewart and round-the-world yachtsman Sir
Francis Chichester are among personalities through the ages who
have been born in Devon. The county can claim many more who were
either born or lived here for a major part of their lives,
including Scott of the Antarctica, Agatha Christie, Parson Jack
Russell (of terrier fame) and Wayne Sleep. The Elizabethan
explorers Sir Francis Drake, Sir Humphrey Gilbert and Sir Walter
Raleigh were all Devonians, as were party leaders Michael Foot and
David Owen. This book, by renowned local author John Van der Kiste,
features mini-biographies of all these and many more.
A Grim Almanac of Hampshire is a day-by-day catalogue of 366
ghastly tales from the county's past, full of dreadful deeds,
macabre deaths, grisly accidents and strange occurrences. Among the
gruesome tales included here are the sinking in 1545 of the Mary
Rose, King Henry VIII's flagship, in the Solent, with the loss of
almost 700 men; the delivery of a foul-smelling basket to a servant
in Winchester in 1825, which on investigation was found to contain
the body of a stillborn baby; the story of Dame Alice Lisle,
allegedly the victim of a miscarriage of justice when executed in
1685, and whose ghost is said to haunt the lanes around her home at
Ringwood; Percy Brading, who killed himself on the day of his
father's funeral at Newport in 1935; and of the double murder of
Lydia and Norma Leakey in the New Forest in 1956. All these, plus
tales of executions, disasters, suicides, explosions, and accidents
by land, sea and air, and much more, are here - and if you have the
stomach for it, then read on . . .
Somerset Murders brings together numerous murderous tales that
shocked not only the county but also made headlines throughout the
country. They include the cases of Elizabeth and Betty Branch, a
mother and daughter who beat a young servant girl to death in
Hemington in 1740; 13-year-old Betty Trump, whose throat was cut
while walking home at Buckland St Mary in 1823; factory worker Joan
Turner, battered to death in Chard in 1829; George Watkins, killed
in a bare knuckle fight outside the Running Horse pub in Yeovil in
1843; Constance Kent, who confessed in 1865 to killing her
half-brother at Rode in 1860, nearly five years earlier; and
elderly landlay, Mrs Emily Bowers, strangled in her bed in
Middlezoy in 1947. Nicola Sly and John van der Kiste, co-authors of
Cornish Murders in this series, have an encyclopedic knowledge of
their subject. Their carefully researched, well-illustrated and
enthralling text will appeal to anyone interested in the shady side
of Somerset's history.
This biography of the last king to lead British troops into battle
and his able wife provides intriguing insight into 18th century war
and politics. Often derided as the buffoon who "hated all poets and
painters", George II was fortunate to be served by Prime Ministers
Sir Robert Walpole and William Pitt, and was wise enough to leave
the business of government to them. His wife, generally regarded as
the ablest of British queens between Elizabeth I and Queen
Victoria, used her influence in politics and patronage so that she
and Walpole effectively ruled the kingdom between them. Her death
in 1737 was seen as a national calamity. Illustrated throughout,
this new biography provides a much-needed reevaluation of these
monarchs and the times in which they ruled.
How was Queen Victoria influenced by her closest male ministers,
relatives, advisers and servants? John Van der Kiste is the first
to explore this aspect of Victoria's life; focusing on four roles -
mentors, family, ministers and servants. A soldier's daughter,
Victoria lost her father at the age of eight months. Although her
uncle Leopold did his best to be a substitute father, the absence
of her real father probably influenced her throughout her life, not
least in choosing her husband. Her close and faithful relationship
with Albert is one of the great royal love stories but her
relationships with her sons were much more stormy. However, with
most of her heads of government she enjoyed relatively cordial
relations - in widowhood she shoed a decided partiality for
Disraeli, who acquired for her the title Empress of India, but
disliked Gladstone, complaining that he "speaks to me as if I were
a public meeting". Queen Victoria's relationships with her servants
are also explored, from the liberal influence exerted over the
increasingly conservative queen by her private secretary, Ponsonby,
to the outspoken John Brown and the Indian Munshi, who both
antagonised those around her.
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Loot
Nadine Gordimer
Paperback
(2)
R398
R330
Discovery Miles 3 300
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