The tumult and opulence of England’s Regency era burst from the pages in this work of literary nonfiction by acclaimed author Carolly Erickson. When dementia forces King George III to vacate his throne, the kingdom slips into a decade marked with excess, scandal, and riots. King George has suffered bouts of mental instability before, but in 1810 he shows no signs of recovering. Public and government business halts as word of his condition leaks out. Hoping to control the crisis, Parliament appoints the king’s unpopular son Prince George IV as Regent or caretaker. But for the next nine years, this substitute ruler shocks the nation with his drunkenness, his mistresses, and his wanton spending. From seething mobs in the streets to Lucullan feasts in drawing rooms, historian Carolly Erickson vividly captures the nation in a troubled transition. With narrator Simon Prebble’s dramatic performance, the splendor and intrigue of Regency England are as enthralling as the most entertaining novel.
©1986 Carolly Erickson (P)1998 Recorded Books, LLC
"fabric artist and quilter"
"Hanging by a thread for a decade"
Poor George III wasn't mad but suffered from Porphyria which gave him delusions and many other problems and clearly was unfit to rule so in stepped his hated son Prinie, Prince George Prince of Wales as regent for 10 years. Corpulent, libertine, spendthrift, his wife was banned from court, he was deluded part of the time and the rest of the time confused, unwell and on a shopping spree that knew no end. It was not a balanced or easy time in England's history - we were at war with Napoleon, and with the United States and at war with the peasantry and mill workers at home.
It was no wonder those that had money spent it like water they didn't know if they had a tomorrow. Listening to the outrageous spending had me open mouthed gasping for air like a cod fish on the deck of a ship.
It was most interesting to listen to as a back ground to the Jane Austen's I've recently read but it didn't provide much back ground to them but it was very revealing listening. Sit there, gasp, and clutch your pearls in surprise as you listen to the excesses that went on - its most interesting.