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Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire

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Description
The winner of Britain's prestigious Whitbread Prize and a bestseller there for months, this wonderfully readable biography offers a rich, rollicking picture of late-eighteenth-century British aristocracy and the intimate story of a woman who for a time was its undisputed leader.
Lady Georgiana Spencer was the great-great-great-great-aunt of Diana, Princess of Wales, and was nearly as famous in her day. In 1774, at the age of seventeen, Georgiana achieved immediate celebrity by marrying one of England's richest and most influential aristocrats, the Duke of Devonshire. Launched into a world of wealth and power, she quickly became the queen of fashionable society, adored by the Prince of Wales, a dear friend of Marie-Antoinette, and leader of the most important salon of her time. Not content with the role of society hostess, she used her connections to enter politics, eventually becoming more influential than most of the men who held office.
Her good works and social exploits made her loved by the multitudes, but Georgiana's public success, like Diana's, concealed a personal life that was fraught with suffering. The Duke of Devonshire was unimpressed by his wife's legendary charms, preferring instead those of her closest friend, a woman with whom Georgiana herself was rumored to be on intimate terms. For over twenty years, the three lived together in a jealous and uneasy ménage à trois, during which time both women bore the Duke's children—as well as those of other men.
Foreman's descriptions of Georgiana's uncontrollable gambling, all- night drinking, drug taking, and love affairs with the leading politicians of the day give us fascinating insight into the lives of the British aristocracy in the era of the madness of King George III, the American and French revolutions, and the defeat of Napoleon.
A gifted young historian whom critics are already likening to Antonia Fraser, Amanda Foreman draws on a wealth of fresh research and writes colorfully and penetratingly about the fascinating Georgiana, whose struggle against her own weaknesses, whose great beauty and flamboyance, and whose determination to play a part in the affairs of the world make her a vibrant, astonishingly contemporary figure.
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ISBN:
9780375753831
9780812993912
9780375502941
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Grouping Information

Grouped Work ID5b962a09-cd5b-6109-95c1-9e3df73179f6
Grouping Titlegeorgiana duchess of devonshire
Grouping Authoramanda foreman
Grouping Categorybook
Grouping LanguageEnglish (eng)
Last Grouping Update2024-03-28 02:11:39AM
Last Indexed2024-03-28 02:24:37AM

Solr Fields

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0
accelerated_reader_reading_level
0
author
Foreman, Amanda, 1968-
author_display
Foreman, Amanda
available_at_catalog
North Natomas
collection_catalog
On Order
detailed_location_catalog
North Natomas
Sacramento Public Library On Order
display_description
The winner of Britain's prestigious Whitbread Prize and a bestseller there for months, this wonderfully readable biography offers a rich, rollicking picture of late-eighteenth-century British aristocracy and the intimate story of a woman who for a time was its undisputed leader.
Lady Georgiana Spencer was the great-great-great-great-aunt of Diana, Princess of Wales, and was nearly as famous in her day. In 1774, at the age of seventeen, Georgiana achieved immediate celebrity by marrying one of England's richest and most influential aristocrats, the Duke of Devonshire. Launched into a world of wealth and power, she quickly became the queen of fashionable society, adored by the Prince of Wales, a dear friend of Marie-Antoinette, and leader of the most important salon of her time. Not content with the role of society hostess, she used her connections to enter politics, eventually becoming more influential than most of the men who held office.
Her good works and social exploits made her loved by the multitudes, but Georgiana's public success, like Diana's, concealed a personal life that was fraught with suffering. The Duke of Devonshire was unimpressed by his wife's legendary charms, preferring instead those of her closest friend, a woman with whom Georgiana herself was rumored to be on intimate terms. For over twenty years, the three lived together in a jealous and uneasy ménage à trois, during which time both women bore the Duke's children—as well as those of other men.
Foreman's descriptions of Georgiana's uncontrollable gambling, all- night drinking, drug taking, and love affairs with the leading politicians of the day give us fascinating insight into the lives of the British aristocracy in the era of the madness of King George III, the American and French revolutions, and the defeat of Napoleon.
A gifted young historian whom critics are already likening to Antonia Fraser, Amanda Foreman draws on a wealth of fresh research and writes colorfully and penetratingly about the fascinating Georgiana, whose struggle against her own weaknesses, whose great beauty and flamboyance, and whose determination to play a part in the affairs of the world make her a vibrant, astonishingly contemporary figure.
format_catalog
Book
eBook
format_category_catalog
Books
eBook
id
5b962a09-cd5b-6109-95c1-9e3df73179f6
isbn
9780375502941
9780375753831
9780812993912
itype_catalog
Adult Book Non-Fiction
last_indexed
2024-03-28T09:24:37.294Z
lexile_score
-1
literary_form
Non Fiction
literary_form_full
Non Fiction
local_callnumber_catalog
BIOGRAPHY Cavendish, G. 1999
ON ORDER
owning_library_catalog
Sacramento Public Library
owning_location_catalog
Central
North Natomas
primary_isbn
9780375753831
publishDate
1999
2012
publisher
Random House
Random House Publishing Group
recordtype
grouped_work
subject_facet
Cavendish, Georgiana Spencer, -- Duchess of Devonshire, -- 1757-1806
Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 1789-1820
Great Britain -- Social life and customs -- 18th century
Nobility -- Great Britain -- Biography
Women politicians -- Great Britain -- Biography
title_display
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire
title_full
Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire / Amanda Foreman
title_short
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire
topic_facet
Biography & Autobiography
Cavendish, Georgiana Spencer
History
Nobility
Nonfiction
Politics and government
Social life and customs
Women politicians

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record_details

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ils:.b14848181BookBooks1st U.S. edEnglishRandom House[c1999]xx, 454 p., [24] p. of plates : ill. (some col.) ; 25 cm.
overdrive:59a10e6e-5a1d-4803-9511-1cf3d8f9b9c8eBookeBookEnglishRandom House Publishing Group2012

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