Scandals Of The Royal Palaces

George Orwell once said that the British love a really good murder. He might have added that the only thing the British love more than a good murder is a really good scandal, and best of all are the sexual and political scandals that take place behind the gilded doors of Britain's royal palaces. From Edward II's intimate relationship with Piers Gaveston to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's dramatic exit from the royal family, the royal residences have seen it all. This glorious romp of a book contains new information on well-known and not-so-well-known scandals, including those that have only recently been revealed through the release of previously secret official papers. Exploring surviving palaces such as Kensington as well as long‐vanished residences including Whitehall, Scandals of the Royal Palaces is the first in-depth look at the bad behaviour of not just the royals themselves but also palace officials, courtiers, household servants and hangers‐on. Delving into the bitter hatreds that generations of King Georges nursed for their eldest sons, Queen Victoria's opium‐fuelled rages and Edward VII's near-miss perjury conviction, royal expert Tom Quinn reveals that scandal and the royal family have always been bedfellows. And if the behaviour of today's royals is anything to go by, the glittering palaces will continue to house intriguing, embarrassing and outrageous scandals for centuries to come.

Royal expert and TV historian Kate Williams opens the doors to 30 palaces, castles, and houses that have been connected with the British royals over the centuries. Well known for her expert insights in the media and on countless royal documentaries, Kate takes you on a tour of the UK’s most fascinating palaces, past and present, to unveil the scandalous and little-known stories hidden between their walls. Included in the book are such famous royal residences as Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, but also lesser-known locations such as Falkland Palace and Beaumaris Castle. Covering the breadth of British history, there are tales from the Medieval era to the present. Among the palaces included are: Hatfield House, where young Elizabeth I held court before finding out she would become queen Whitehall Palace and Banqueting Hall, home to Charles II's secret laboratory, where he tried to create an elixir of youth using human skulls Glamis Castle, the inspiration for Shakespeare’s Macbeth Greenwich Palace, where Elizabeth I survived an assassination attempt when poison was placed in her saddle Frogmore House, a long-time royal residence used by Queen Charlotte, King George V and Princess Alexandra Osborne House, designed by Prince Albert in the style of an Italian Renaissance palazzo Windsor Castle, the famous residence of Queen Elizabeth II before her death Revel in the glory and glamor of royal life, as well as the salacious scandals that defined these palaces. The book is vividly brought to life by numerous beautiful illustrations by James Oses, and will be irresistible to anyone interested in British royalty and the history of Great Britain.

A scandalous rundown of the life and sad death of Princess Diana, the queen of British hearts. From the fairytale wedding to the faithless Charles, through the suicide bids and bulimia, on to her own affairs, Dodi Fayed, and the final tragedy in that Parisian tunnel. This is a brief but eminently readable story of one of the great tragic royal figures of modern times.

Spanning 500 years of British history, "Behind the Palace Doors" is a revealing look at the secret lives of some great (and not-so-great) Britons, courtesy of one of the world's most engaging royal historians.

The private lives and public misbehavings of rulers and royals throughout history.

A must-buy book for everyone interested in history and skeletons in the regal cupboards. Discover fascinating facts about lust, greed, murder, envy and just plain stupidity. Read King Henry VIIIs scurrilous letters to Anne Boleyn (thought he was interested in her mind? Think again). Whilst King Charles II was known as the Merry Monarch and Queen Elizabeth Is nickname, the Virgin Queen was rumored to be a misnomer, there was a darker side to the royal family, including murder and regicide was Queen Victorias son really Jack the Ripper or did her surgeon do it? History will come alive with this fact-filled book.

For more than 300 years, Kensington Palace has played host to a colourful cast of kings, queens and assorted aristocratic hangers-on. A stone's throw from the bustling streets of central London, this grand building has served as the stage for some of the most dramatic and bizarre events in the history of the royal family. It was here that the young Queen Victoria was held a virtual prisoner for eighteen years; and it was here that George II installed both his wife and his mistress, giving the latter rooms so damp that there were said to be mushrooms growing on the walls. More recently, the palace has witnessed an extraordinary series of scandals, from Princess Diana's bombshell TV interview with a journalist smuggled into the palace disguised as a salesman, to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's shock departure – first for Frogmore Cottage, and then for America – amid rumours of a rift with William and Kate. With exclusive interviews with palace staff past and present, fascinating historical details and a fully updated postscript considering what life after Kensington holds for Harry and Meghan, Kensington Palace: An Intimate Memoir from Queen Mary to Meghan Markle offers a rare behind-the-scenes insight into one of Britain's most iconic residences.

The riveting inside story of the British royal family since the death of Princess Diana, from the Queen’s tightening grip to the defection of Harry and Meghan—by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Diana Chronicles "Never again," became Queen Elizabeth II's mantra shortly after Diana's death. More specifically, there could never be "another Diana"—a member of the family whose global popularity upstaged, outshone, and posed an existential threat to the British monarchy. Picking up where The Diana Chronicles left off, The Palace Papers reveals how the royal family reinvented itself after the traumatic years when Diana's blazing celebrity ripped through the House of Windsor like a comet. Tina Brown takes readers on a tour de force journey that shows the Queen's stoic resolve as she coped with the passing of Princess Margaret, the Queen Mother, and her partner for seven decades, Prince Philip, and triumphed in her Jubilee years even as the family dramas raged around her. She explores Prince Charles's determination to make Camilla his queen, the tension between two princes on "different paths," the ascendance of the resolute Kate Middleton, the disturbing allegations surrounding Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein, and Harry and Meghan's stunning decision to "step back" as senior royals. Despite the fragile monarchy's best efforts, "never again" seems fast approaching. Full of powerful revelations, nuanced details, and searing insight, The Palace Papers will irrevocably change how the world perceives and understands the royal family.