Seven Sisters

Captives and Rebels in Revolutionary Europe's First Family

De: Veronica Buckley

Narrado por: Ell Potter

A spirited, poignant history of the seven daughters of the great Empress Maria Theresia—among them, Queen Marie Antoinette of France—tracing their lives as they balanced dynastic duty with personal ambition in a time of revolutionary cataclysm

“Others make war; you, happy Austria, marry.”

For three centuries, the astute positioning of their many princesses and princes had kept the Habsburgs at the peak of European power. By 1764, after a generation of costly war, confronted by shaken alliances, immense debts, and restive subjects, the Empress Maria Theresia was seeking once again to assert the dynasty’s power through strategic marriages. Her arsenal was full: her seven daughters were to serve as her pawns in the ruthless game of eighteenth-century dynastic politicking.

Delivered to the grandest or dingiest courts in Europe, they made their difficult and even dangerous ways: Marianna the seeker; the grande dame Marie Christine; Elisabeth, the malicious, disfigured beauty; fractious and wayward Amalie of Parma; the tragic bride Josepha; Carolina of Naples, Napoleon’s relentless enemy; and Antonia, youngest of the seven, sacrificial offering to the gods of revolution, better known to history as Marie Antoinette.

Meticulously researched and animated by the sisters’ own diaries and the almost daily letters traversing the continent, Seven Sisters reveals the drama, tragedy and comedy of these exceptional yet all too human lives. It is a vivid portrait of a brilliant world collapsing in a fearful time.

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Buckley weaves a lively narrative around court intrigue, alliances, and the many conflicts that characterized the 18th-century’s roiling politics. A richly detailed history of eventful lives.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Seven Sisters is history at its most intimate. Veronica Buckley has an instinct for detail – the small moments that reveal an entire political culture. The result is a narrative that is as illuminating as it is moving.”—Amanda Foreman, author of The Duchess

“This fascinating book provides a novel and insightful view of European history at one of its most turbulent periods through the lives of seven women who saw their worlds turned upside down by war and revolution. A great read.”—Adam Zamoyski, bestselling author of Moscow, 1812