Cupid and the King: Five Royal Paramours - Softcover

Princess Michael Of Kent, Her Royal Highness Royal Highness

Softcover

ISBN 10: 074327086X ISBN 13: 9780743270861

Publisher: Atria, 2006

Synopsis

The royal European courts were unsurpassed for their glamour, wealth, fame, danger, treachery, and politics. The royal mistress was at the center of that world -- admired for her beauty and sensuality; feared for the power she wielded; even vilified, envied, and resented. In times when women had very little power, the royal mistress had enormous influence, and yet she is seldom mentioned in official histories.

In Cupid and the King, Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent recounts the stories of five very different women, each of whom became a celebrated -- or notorious -- courtesan:

Nell Gwyn, the bawdy, vivacious orange seller turned actress who endeared herself to Charles Ii -- and the country -- with her wit and down-to-earth manner

Madame de Pompadour, the extravagant, elegant maitresse-en-titre of Louis Xv who became one of the great patrons of her time while enraging the people of France

Marie Walewska, who became Napoleon's mistress to save her country

Lola Montez, the flamboyant, scandalous Irish beauty who reinvented herself as a Spanish aristocrat to win the heart of Ludwig I of Bavaria

Lillie Langtry, the legendary beauty immortalized by the most famous artists of her day and the only woman to completely monopolize Edward, Prince of Wales, later Edward Vii

Written with an insider's keen understanding of court life and filled with delicious details born of impeccable research, Cupid and the King explores a little-known chapter of the history of women's roles in the royal bedrooms of Europe.

About this title

Synopsis:

From elegant Madame de Pompadour to outrageous Lola Montez, royal paramours have differed as greatly as the kings and princes they kept company. In "Cupid and the King", Princess Michael of Kent recounts the stories of five extraordinary women, each of whom became a celebrated, or notorious courtesan. Nell Gwyn was a bawdy, vivacious orange seller-turned actress when she became the favourite of Charles II and endeared herself to the public with her wit and down-to-earth manner. Flamboyant Lola Montez was an Irish beauty who reinvented herself as a Spanish aristocrat and won the heart of Ludwig I of Bavaria, scandalizing the Victorian world with her antics. Marie Waleska initially became the mistress of Napoleon in the hope of influencing him to save Poland, and their affair, which produced a son, developed into a deep, lasting friendship. Beautiful British actress Lillie Langtry became the most famous lover of Prince Edward, later Edward VII. Madame de Pompadour, the elegant chatelaine of Louis XV, became one of the great art patrons of her time, but her alleged extravagance enraged the people of France.

Frank yet sympathetic, and filled with astonishing, little-known facts, "Cupid and the King" takes readers on a fascinating journey into a controversial and neglected area of royal history.

About the Author:

Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent is the author of two previous books, Crowned in a Far Country: Portraits of Eight Royal Brides and Cupid and the King: Five Royal Paramours. For more than ten years, the Princess has pursued a successful career lecturing on historical topics. She lives with her husband, Prince Michael of Kent, in Kensington Palace in London and in their seventeenth-century manor house in Gloucestershire, England.

About this edition

• Publisher: Atria
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 074327086X
• ISBN 13: 9780743270861
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416