Behind the Throne

A Domestic History of the British Royal Household

By: Adrian Tinniswood

Narrated by: Steven Crossley

Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

An 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 listener 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.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2018 Adrian Tinniswood (P)2018 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"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)

"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)

"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)

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.

Very Worthwhile

This has been a fascinating behind the scenes view of the British Monarchy. It has made the monarchs more real than historic reports detailing dates and events and, in fact, it is much more revealing about the difficulties of ruling than TV and movies indicate. I now have a much better understanding of how the monarchy has evolved in the UK.

Fun!

Good entertainment. I especially liked the performers droll upper class accent that exuded at times a certain weariness over some of the royal antics. Recommend.

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.