Monarchy

By: David Starkey

Narrated by: David Starkey

Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

The crown of England is the oldest surviving political institution in Europe. Throughout this audiobook Dr David Starkey emphasises the Crown's endless capacity to adapt to circumstances and reshape national policy, whilst he unmasks the personalities and achievements, the defeats and victories, which lie behind the kings and queens of British history. Each of these monarchs has contributed to the religion, geography, laws, language, and government which we live with today. Monarchy demonstrates exactly how these states were arrived at, how these monarchs subtly influenced each other, which battles were won and why, whose whim or failure caused religious tradition to wither or flourish, and which monarchs, through their acumen, strength and single minded determination, came to enforce the laws of England.

©2006 David Starkey (P)2007 W F Howes Ltd.

An interesting book!

An interesting book that travels through Monarchical history from the Wars of the Roses to Victoria. Enlightening and offers a new look on the Monarchy

Awesome

If you could sum up Monarchy in three words, what would they be?

You'll be hooked

Which scene was your favorite?

This is a lot of history and it would be easy to forget who is who. Starkey keeps the players sharp in the memory. I think the book is amazing.

Any additional comments?

Definitely makes me want to learn more about English History.

A fantastic overview of the British monarchy

Where does Monarchy rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
A wonderful history of the British monarchy, very comprehensive and detailed. A lot of surprising information on lesser known kings and the stories that go with them

What did you like best about this story?
David Starkey narrating is own book! Having watched the video series, which I enjoyed immensely. I was delighted to find David reading the book. It adds great touch and really ties it all together with his video series.

What does David Starkey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
His Oxford accent and his way with words bring a regal touch to the listening experience.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
I really learned a lot! I do plan on listening to it again, since there is so much to take in.

Any additional comments?
Would love to hear David narrate more of his books! Thank you for the experience.

Seminal history of the British monarchy

Not so much a history of the lives of individual monarchs, as a history of the institution of monarchy itself. Covering the period from Henry VII to Victoria, this book shows how the British monarchy has been instrumental in shaping the modern world.

Some of the individual kings and queens receive rather brief biographical sketches, but this is more a story of their most notable successes - and spectacular failures - than of the minutiae of their daily lives. An interesting theme is the way in which even the spectacular failures (eg. much of James II's reign) are extremely important - because they provided the impetus for many of the social and political changes which led to our modern forms of democracy.

I always enjoy hearing the author read his or her own work, and Starkey's characteristic narration is definitely no exception - he has an obvious passion for his field of study, and the way his tone rises with excitement and descends into an almost reverent hush is very well-suited to the weighty topics he discusses.

This book was one of my first and still one of my very favourite Audible audiobooks, and I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in history.

A "must read"!

This is a thoroughly engrossing history of the British monarchy from the 15th century Wars of the Roses to the Victorian era. Frankly, it is more of a survey than a comprehensive study as no author could be expected to adequately review and analyze more than 400 years of British history in a single work. Thus, some of the portraits of monarchs are rather hastily sketched. But it is particularly strong in Starkey's study of the Tudor era, his specialty as a historian. Nevertheless, the book is full of richly drawn descriptions of virtually every holder (and pretender) to the throne over four centuries, including a fascinating study of the Cromwellian "republic." It also traces with remarkable clarity the development of the British system into the present era as the monarchy slowly lost its ability to control events with the growth of that new political power center, Parliament--a development not lost on observers in 13 North American colonies throughout the 18th century. "Monarchy" is intelligently written and beautifully narrated by the author. It deserves a place in the library of anyone even remotely curious about the origins of the modern world.

The book that got us hooked on Audible!!

We found this book based on a TV series. The narration is great. The pacing is great. Our family learned a lot listening to this book and I wish Dr. Starkey's other Monarchy book were available on Audible. This book doesn't contain a lot of bias and it also doesn't get too deep in the weeds for someone who enjoys history but will never be a history major. Highly recommend!!

As good as the documentary

David Starkey's voice is soothing and relaxing. His telling of the story of the British monarchy is of my favorite audio books

My list favorite kind of history

This is my least favorite type of history book because there are literally no personal details there is no original documentation such as letters everything is a distant overview mainly concerned with political accounts there are not even any interesting details about any of the monarchs. for example the Georges are barely covered and what is mentioned is completely boring Caroline the wife of George II merits about 3 sentences and she was one of the more interesting Queen concerts so I don't think this type of biography is really in style anymore and I highly prefer a more personal account with a focus on details and not just a recitation of political happenings which anybody can look up on Wikipedia