NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW AND THE BOSTON GLOBEThis richly entertaining biography chronicles the eventful life of Queen Victoria’s firstborn son, the quintessential black sheep of Buckingham Palace, who matured into as wise and effective a monarch as Britain has ever seen. Granted unprecedented access to the royal archives, noted scholar Jane Ridley … royal archives, noted scholar Jane Ridley draws on numerous primary sources to paint a vivid portrait of the man and the age to which he gave his name.
Born Prince Albert Edward, and known to familiars as “Bertie,” the future King Edward VII had a well-earned reputation for debauchery. A notorious gambler, glutton, and womanizer, he preferred the company of wastrels and courtesans to the dreary life of the Victorian court. His own mother considered him a lazy halfwit, temperamentally unfit to succeed her. When he ascended to the throne in 1901, at age fifty-nine, expectations were low. Yet by the time he died nine years later, he had proven himself a deft diplomat, hardworking head of state, and the architect of Britain’s modern constitutional monarchy.
Jane Ridley’s colorful biography rescues the man once derided as “Edward the Caresser” from the clutches of his historical detractors. Excerpts from letters and diaries shed new light on Bertie’s long power struggle with Queen Victoria, illuminating one of the most emotionally fraught mother-son relationships in history. Considerable attention is paid to King Edward’s campaign of personal diplomacy abroad and his valiant efforts to reform the political system at home. Separating truth from legend, Ridley also explores Bertie’s relationships with the women in his life. Their ranks comprised his wife, the stunning Danish princess Alexandra, along with some of the great beauties of the era: the actress Lillie Langtry, longtime “royal mistress” Alice Keppel (the great-grandmother of Camilla Parker Bowles), and Lady Randolph Churchill, mother of Winston.
Edward VII waited nearly six decades for his chance to rule, then did so with considerable panache and aplomb. A magnificent life of an unexpectedly impressive king, The Heir Apparent documents the remarkable transformation of a man—and a monarchy—at the dawn of a new century.
Praise for The Heir Apparent
“If [The Heir Apparent] isn’t the definitive life story of this fascinating figure of British history, then nothing ever will be.”—The Christian Science Monitor
“The Heir Apparent is smart, it’s fascinating, it’s sometimes funny, it’s well-documented and it reads like a novel, with Bertie so vivid he nearly leaps from the page, cigars and all.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune
“I closed The Heir Apparent with admiration and a kind of wry exhilaration.”—The Wall Street Journal
“Ridley is a serious scholar and historian, who keeps Bertie’s flaws and virtues in a fine balance.”—The Boston Globe
“Brilliantly entertaining . . . a landmark royal biography.”—The Sunday Telegraph
“Superb.”—The New York Times Book Review
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Jane Ridley does a wonderful job writing an unbiased personal side to this elusive man. Given total access to all of the archives in Windsor Castle by Queen Elizabeth she has a special talent in inserting little known facts and gossip that make the book all the more enjoyable…A great deal of “Bertie’s” life is a sad one, starting with his childhood where his parents didn’t have much affection for him. His education was private and isolated, when he attended Oxford he was kept separate from others…Even after he married, his life was an open book as Queen Victoria monitored his private life by putting spies in “Bertie’s”. She never allowed him to share in her duties, not even to see foreign or military dispatches…Edward’s private life is well known and wasn’t discreet when it came other women, which were many. Ms. Ridley recognizes that the intimacy in these affairs, showing how Edward could enjoy a woman’s company–having someone to talk and relate to…Ms. Ridley presents Edward VII, warts and all without making it sound like a tabloid… After reading this book I walked away wondering what would’ve happened if Edward’s VII’s life would’ve been different. If, for instance he had been the first born and not his sister Vicky. Would his parents have loved him more? Would they have given him more attention and nurtured him? I guess we’ll never know. But what I will say is he was far from being an uninteresting man!
I was surprised that this biography managed to change my perception of Edward VII. Although I don’t approve of his lifestyle of mistresses and adultery, I was taken aback to hear how ready he was for his role despite his famous mother’s hesitancy to allow him to assist her while she was alive. The letters from her make it sound like he was utterly useless as a son but the evidence shows how he did what he could to modernize the monarchy and not abuse power or overuse his government allowance. He also appeared to be very cultured and a great speaker who kept (mostly) strong relationships with his cousins and family members who were monarchs in other countries. Even though the monarchy wasn’t supposed to have a voice in politics, Bertie apparently was useful to the British government with his family connections and desire to keep good will and attempt to prevent war. It is frustrating to know how much the government downplayed his role of trying to play peacekeeper between certain countries and it makes you wonder if war would have come sooner if he wasn’t around. I was also shocked to learn how widely mourned he was after his death which ultimately means he wasn’t the failure his parents felt he would be as a king. Great read overall and would recommend to others.
Very informative on the reign of Victoria and Edward’s long wait to ascend to the throne and his effect on European diplomacy and WW1. Most people don’t realize that most of the royal houses who battled during WW1 were blood relatives.
Good read. Had no idea how Queen Victoria had influenced the world by the wide ranging marriages of her children. A fascinating history.
An interesting history, with lots of information about a time I thought I knew, but didn’t really. It could have used stricter editing; the gossipy speculation was fun, but it was repeated too many times. Characterizations were inconsistent.
But the direct quotes, the historical figures telling us what they were thinking, the outlines of the social structures, and the clear timetable of a lifetime were invaluable. Taken with Prince Harry’s recent comments, it’s a startling picture of British royalty and the difference a century can make.
This is a well written and informative book about this monarch. It was easy to read and interesting.
Very detailed, easy to read, fascinating look into the life of Queen Victoria’s playboy Prince.
A detailed but interesting look at an underrated monarch. And a different take on his mother.
Extremely long…….
This is a great cultural history of England and Europe at the time of Edward and there is quite a lot of surprising information.
Great insight to that era. He had a difficult life.
If you’re a true history buff, this might be interesting to you. It was informative but almost unbearably dry.
I thought it was a horrible to the monarchy of England.
This was definitely informative. Like many history addicts I never really thought about Queen Victoria’s son. I don’t think being a royal was all that great. It is amazing to me what their wives, mistresses, girlfriends, whatever were willing to put up with in their relationships.
Wonderful biography of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s oldest child, King to be and nicknamed Bertie from earliest childhood. Plaidy’s research is very well done. Her quotes from letters between Queen Victoria and her adult children give incredible insight into her thoughts about her children and about her son, Bertie, in particular. Without judging, she shows us a Victoria who was an emotionally abusive mother and her Consort, Albert, as a father whose childrearing methods – at least as applied to his firstborn son, were excessively cruel. I valued the insight into the family and into the politics of the time as experienced by the royal family.
Great way to learn about The Guilded Age customs.
Horible person, did not enjoy my time with him.
New insight into the British Royal life of Queen Victoria and her heir. The treatment of her son and his brothers and sisters show what a selfish person Victoria was. Excellent writing and research. A long book, but worth the time.
An excellent history lesson on Queen Victoria and her successor. Well written reads like a novel.
Very interesting book, lags a bit here & there but still enjoyed it