Queen Victoria and Her Prime Ministers - by Anne Somerset (Hardcover)

About the Book

"This is a Borzoi book published by Alfred A. Knopf"--Copyright page.

Book Synopsis

A riveting portrait of Queen Victoria and the ten prime ministers who headed British government during her sixty-three-year reign

It is generally accepted that Queen Victoria reigned but did not rule. This couldn't be more wrong. A passionate and opinionated leader, Victoria was born to govern with no room for doubt about her historic destiny or the might of the empire that was built in her name. When it came to her involvement in state affairs, Victoria herself acknowledged that she had held strong "likes and dislikes" for the various prime ministers who served throughout her political evolution from headstrong teenager to seasoned leader.

Anne Somerset's Queen Victoria and Her Prime Ministers charts the feuds and affectionate interactions Victoria had with her ten premiers in often hilarious detail, from her adoration of Benjamin Disraeli, her favorite prime minister who filled her life with "poetry, romance, and chivalry," to her detestation for William Gladstone, a man she deemed a "dangerous old fanatic." Drawing extensively on unpublished sources such as material from the Royal Archives and never-before-seen prime ministerial papers, Somerset casts a fresh and highly illuminating perspective not just on Victoria, but on the exceptional politicians who served her in a time of massive global change.

Review Quotes

"Truly fascinating... Anne Somerset has had the excellent idea of looking at Victoria's relations with her prime ministers... All politics and personalities."--The New York Times Book Review

"Somerset has a sharp eye for character and a strong narrative gift for making parliamentary politics exciting, while never losing sight of the 'stout little widow in a black bonnet' who ruled over a quarter of mankind."--Air Mail

"A striking royal portrait. . . Little surprise that an era is named for her."--The Wall Street Journal

"Delicious British political history with an unsettlingly assertive Victoria."--Kirkus, starred

"Somerset, previous biographer of Elizabeth I and William IV, admirably details just how Victoria manipulated and was manipulated by these politicians... Those who know Victoria more from the perspectives of her marriage to Albert and relations with family will find here an astute and sophisticated queen." --Booklist

"Highly recommended to readers of British history and particularly those interested in the political life of Britain during Victoria's reign."--Library Journal

"Fascinating . . . an exhilaratingly impressive account."--Daily Telegraph (UK)

"Magnificent, disturbing, and innovative . . . This wonderful book is the result of immense research in ministers' private papers as well as in the royal and national archives." --Spectator (UK)

"[Anne Somerset] skillfully unpicks the human dynamic that colored many political decisions, a tale not without resonance today." --Country Life (UK)

"Impressively well-researched . . . Anne Somerset has found a great deal of new material, which reveals a different Victoria--imperious, emotional, sometimes impossible." --The Times (UK)

"A moving, meticulous and original explosion of the constitutional myths we've inherited." --Literary Review (UK)

"This book is more than a study of the monarch and her ten Prime Ministers. It offers an overview of international relations in the Victorian Age." --Church Times (UK)

About the Author

ANNE SOMERSET was born in London and graduated from King's College, London. She is the author of The Life and Times of King William IV, Ladies in Waiting, Elizabeth I, and Queen Anne. She has worked as a research assistant for several historians, among them Antonia Fraser. Somerset is the daughter of the 11th Duke of Beaufort. She lives in London.