On Royalty: A Very Polite Inquiry into Some Strangely Related FamiliesThe notable characteristic of the royal families of Europe is that they have so very little of anything remotely resembling true power. Increasingly, they tend towards the condition of pipsqueak principalities like Liechtenstein and Monaco -- fancy-dress fodder for magazines that survive by telling us things we did not need to know about people we have hardly heard of. How then have kings and queens come to exercise the mesmeric hold they have upon our imaginations? In On Royalty renowned BBC journalist Jeremy Paxman examines the role of the British monarchy in an age when divine right no longer prevails and governing powers fall to the country's elected leaders. With intelligence and humor, he scrutinizes every aspect of the monarchy and how it has related to politics, religion, the military and the law. He takes us inside Buckingham Palace and illuminates the lives of the monarchs, at once mundane, absurd and magical. What Desmond Morris did for apes, Paxman has done for these primus inter primates: the royal families. Gilded history, weird anthropology and surreal reportage of the royals up close combine in On Royalty, a brilliant investigation into how an ancient institution struggles for meaning in a modern country. |
Contents
1 | |
25 | |
2 Next Produce an Heir 45 | 45 |
3 Learning to be Regal 57 | 57 |
4 Now Find a Consort 81 | 81 |
5 Marshals and Mannequins 104 | 104 |
6 Being Gods Anointed 120 | 120 |
7 Killing a King 142 | 142 |
9 We are You 183 | 183 |
10 The Happiness Business 215 | 215 |
11 Gilded but Gelded 233 | 233 |
12 The End of the Line? 263 | 263 |
Acknowledgements 289 | 289 |
Notes 295 | 295 |
Bibliography 326 | 326 |
Index 353 | 353 |
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On Royalty: A Very Polite Inquiry into Some Strangely Related Families Jeremy Paxman Limited preview - 2008 |
On Royalty: A Very Polite Inquiry into Some Strangely Related Families Jeremy Paxman Limited preview - 2008 |
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Abdication Albania army asked became believe Bishop Books Britain British monarchy British royal family Buckingham Palace Charles's Church Churchill claimed constitutional coronation court Crown death Diana dress Duchess Duke duty dynasty edition Edward VII Emperor empire England English Europe example father Freda Dudley Ward future George head heir Henry House of Windsor Ibid James John king or queen king's kings and queens kingship later lives London look Lord marriage married merely military mistress modern mother nation never newspapers Oxford parliament perhaps person political politicians Prime Minister Prince Charles Prince of Wales Prince Philip Princess Princess of Wales private secretary Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth II Queen Victoria Quoted reign republican role royalty Sandringham seemed someone sort story talk television things throne told Tsar University Press VIII wedding Weidenfeld & Nicolson wife William woman young