{"product_id":"the-heir-apparent-the-heir-apparent-a-life-of-edward-vii-the-playboy-prince","title":"The Heir Apparent: The Heir Apparent: A Life of Edward VII, the Playboy Prince","description":"\u003cdiv data-a-expander-name=\"book_description_expander\" data-a-expander-collapsed-height=\"280\" class=\"a-expander-collapsed-height a-row a-expander-container a-spacing-base a-expander-partial-collapse-container\" style=\"max-height: none; height: 280px;\"\u003e \u003cdiv data-expanded=\"false\" class=\"a-expander-content a-expander-partial-collapse-content\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px;\"\u003e \u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003eNAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eTHE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003eAND \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eTHE BOSTON GLOBE\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis richly entertaining biography chronicles the eventful life of Queen Victoria‚Äôs firstborn son, the quintessential black sheep of Buckingham Palace, who matured into as wise and effective a monarch as Britain has ever seen. Granted unprecedented access to the royal archives, noted scholar Jane Ridley draws on numerous primary sources to paint a vivid portrait of the man and the age to which he gave his name. \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Born Prince Albert Edward, and known to familiars as ‚ÄúBertie,‚Äù the future King Edward VII had a well-earned reputation for debauchery. A notorious gambler, glutton, and womanizer, he preferred the company of wastrels and courtesans to the dreary life of the Victorian court. His own mother considered him a lazy halfwit, temperamentally unfit to succeed her. When he ascended to the throne in 1901, at age fifty-nine, expectations were low. Yet by the time he died nine years later, he had proven himself a deft diplomat, hardworking head of state, and the architect of Britain‚Äôs modern constitutional monarchy.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Jane Ridley‚Äôs colorful biography rescues the man once derided as ‚ÄúEdward the Caresser‚Äù from the clutches of his historical detractors. Excerpts from letters and diaries shed new light on Bertie‚Äôs long power struggle with Queen Victoria, illuminating one of the most emotionally fraught mother-son relationships in history. Considerable attention is paid to King Edward‚Äôs campaign of personal diplomacy abroad and his valiant efforts to reform the political system at home. Separating truth from legend, Ridley also explores Bertie‚Äôs relationships with the women in his life. Their ranks comprised his wife, the stunning Danish princess Alexandra, along with some of the great beauties of the era: the actress Lillie Langtry, longtime ‚Äúroyal mistress‚Äù Alice Keppel (the great-grandmother of Camilla Parker Bowles), and Lady Randolph Churchill, mother of Winston.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Edward VII waited nearly six decades for his chance to rule, then did so with considerable panache and aplomb. A magnificent life of an unexpectedly impressive king, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Heir Apparent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e documents the remarkable transformation of a man‚Äîand a monarchy‚Äîat the dawn of a new century.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003ePraise for\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003e The Heir Apparent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e‚ÄúIf [\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Heir Apparent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e] isn‚Äôt \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003ethe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003edefinitive life story of this fascinating figure of British history, then nothing ever will be.‚Äù\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e‚Äî\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Christian Science Monitor\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e‚Äú\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Heir Apparent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is smart, it‚Äôs fascinating, it‚Äôs sometimes funny, it‚Äôs well-documented and it reads like a novel, with Bertie so vivid he nearly leaps from the page, cigars and all.‚Äù\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e‚ÄîMinneapolis \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eStar Tribune\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ‚ÄúI closed \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Heir Apparent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e with admiration and a kind of wry exhilaration.‚Äù\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e‚Äî\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e ‚ÄúRidley is a serious scholar and historian, who keeps Bertie‚Äôs flaws and virtues in a fine balance.‚Äù\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e‚Äî\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Boston Globe\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e ‚ÄúBrilliantly entertaining . . . a landmark royal biography.‚Äù\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e‚Äî\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Sunday Telegraph\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e ‚ÄúSuperb.‚Äù\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e‚Äî\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/div\u003eder-toggle=\"{\"allowLinkDefault\":true, \"expand_prompt\":\"Read more\", \"collapse_prompt\":\"Read less\"}\"\u0026gt;\u003ci class=\"a-icon a-icon-extender-expand\"\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-expander-prompt\"\u003eRead more\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e ","brand":"Random House Trade","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50278375555357,"sku":"9780812972634","price":19.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0901\/5692\/5213\/files\/9780812972634.jpg?v=1755708406","url":"https:\/\/bookdelico.com\/products\/the-heir-apparent-the-heir-apparent-a-life-of-edward-vii-the-playboy-prince","provider":"Book Delico ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}