Behind the Throne

A Domestic History of the British Royal Household

De: Adrian Tinniswood

Narrado por: Steven Crossley

An "enchanting" upstairs/downstairs history of the British royal court, from the Middle Ages to the reign of Queen Elizabeth II (Wall Street Journal).

Monarchs: they're just like us. They entertain their friends and eat and worry about money. Henry VIII tripped over his dogs. George II threw his son out of the house. James I had to cut back on the alcohol bills.

In Behind the Throne, historian Adrian Tinniswood uncovers the reality of five centuries of life at the English court, taking the reader on a remarkable journey from one Queen Elizabeth to another and exploring life as it was lived by clerks and courtiers and clowns and crowned heads: the power struggles and petty rivalries, the tension between duty and desire, the practicalities of cooking dinner for thousands and of ensuring the king always won when he played a game of tennis.

A masterful and witty social history of five centuries of royal life, Behind the Throne offers a grand tour of England's grandest households.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"A glimpse into a world where everything is possible for the rulers, because the ruled do all the work: This sounds enchanting, and so Behind the Throne proves to be...The author has a wry humor and a way with a phrase."—Wall Street Journal

"Charmingly erudite...Like a seasoned tour guide, Tinniswood keeps us moving through chambers of wonders, from the Elizabethan to the modern era...Tinniswood is both a careful scholar and a nimble writer."—Washington Post

"Shrewdly observed and engagingly written...A cracking read, packed full of stories which Tinniswood relates with verve and wit."—Spectator (UK)

"Tinniswood (The Long Weekend) explores the inner workings of the well-oiled machine that is the household, servants, and monarchy of Britain...A masterpiece of history that reads like a novel; a true delight."—Library Journal (starred review)

"[Tinniswood] amply, entertainingly, compellingly succeeds in making the case that when it comes to British royalty, it takes a village to make a monarch."—New York Journal of Books

"[Tinniswood] displays a knack for uncovering the absurd and delightful. A wit borne of a deep intimacy with his subject shows through. It all has the effect of bringing the monarchy down to earth."—New York Times Book Review

"[A] juicy new domestic history of the royal household...Tinniswood's magpie narrative is...about boundaries: the walls, literal and metaphorical, that separate monarchs from their people."—Guardian

"Fascinating...Never overly deferential, but humorous and distantly respectful. Our royals are human beings after all...Behind the Throne is a wonderfully entertaining account of life through five centuries of royal households."—Sunday Times

"Behind the Throne, erudite and amusing, bulges with colourful scenes of barely managed chaos at court."—Times

"[A] juicy new domestic history of the royal household...Delicious."—Observer

"This is the most interesting and informative book on the British royalty for many years."—Literary Review

"An intimate and entertaining look at the private lives of monarchs from Elizabeth I to the current occupants of Buckingham Palace...Deft, zesty social history." -Kirkus—Kirkus

"Tinniswood is a wry storyteller."—Baton Rouge Advocate

"Think of Behind the Throne as Downton Abbey meets The Tudors, with a dash of Victoria and a smidgen of The Crown thrown in."—Winnipeg Free Press

"Well-researched and often entertaining...Devoted watchers of The Crown will especially enjoy the nimble analysis of both the narcissistic Edward VIII's brief reign and Princess Margaret's doomed romance...Utilizing a Downton Abbey approach, this enlightening narrative allows the royal family mystique to disappear just a little."—Publishers Weekly

ENJOYABLE

Very enjoyable listening...relatable..familiar and warming in history recommended for a lazy day listening session enjoy

More about the private lives of the Royals than about their household.

I thought the description “A domestic history of the British royal household” meant hearing about the the hundreds of staff members and their lifestyles. This book is 90% about the Royals themselves and their private lives and relationships with their relatives and those staff members closest to them. Quite a bit on some and almost nothing on others but touching on every Monarch since Elizabeth I. I always love listening to Steven Crossley and he kept the content as entertaining and interesting as it was possible to do.

Fascinating

A great read for those who have great curiosity about the Royal family. Well produced.

Fascinating Trivia for History Lovers

I will refer back to this for future tidbits when I am writing about each period of time.

not so great

relatively few of the tales one would expect and more of a selective history of the royal family

Fun behind the scenes

Fun information from behind the scenes of several of history's royal courts. I enjoyed it very much.

Well Rounded Book!

All around well written and full of knowledge for any reader interested in the topic!

Entertaining and informative!

Loved it, loved it, loved it! This book taught me so much. I was capable of seeing the monarchs as people with all their foibles and the tomfoolery of their supportive staff. People are such excitable imbeciles, especially when there is money and power in the taking.

Informative but lacks some desired detail

Overall this was a good book. I had hoped it would have more details on mechanics & planning of schedules & events. This had a lot of people interaction, which is important but how moving from one home to another & who handled what aspects of setting up a household would have been good. This sources a lot of quotes & written material. I appreciated the perspective of long time employees that attempted to correct the sovereign or political appointees. Good listening.

A bit drawn out but fabulous narration

This is a good book for scholars. A bit draggy in content and not all juicy in revelations but then it isn’t meant to be. The narrator is so musical in voice I couldn’t turn it off.