The Duchess

Description

Sex, intrigue and adultery in the world of high politics and huge wealth in late eighteenth-century England. Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, was one of the most flamboyant and influential women of the eighteenth century. The great-great-great-great aunt of Diana, Princess of Wales, she was variously a compulsive gambler, a political savante and operator of the highest order, a drug addict, an adulteress and the darling of the common people. This authoritative, utterly absorbing book presents a mesmerizing picture of a fascinating world of political and sexual intrigues, grand houses, huge parties, glamour and great wealth - always on the edge of being squandered by the excesses and scandals of individuals. Georgiana's extraordinary life has now been made into a major film - starring Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes - which is due for release in summer 2008.

Amanda Foreman is the daughter of Carl Foreman (director of High Noon, The Bridge On the River Kwai, Born Free). She was born in 1968, grew up on film sets and is now a research fellow at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. She has written for various publications, including the New York Times.

'Mesmerizing' Antonia Fraser, Literary Review 'Well-written, extensively researched and highly readable! Gripping' Stella Tillyard, Mail on Sunday 'An outstanding debut by a young biographer fully in control of her sources, and with an easy and elegant writing style' Roy Strong, Sunday Times 'A pungent, intimate blend of biography and history ... a provocative contribution to our understanding of women of the past.' Jenny Uglow, Independent 'Packed with fascinating information and grippingly good' Lisa Jardine, BBC History magazine 'Real-life glamour, peppered with a menage a trois and a dose of depression ... Curl up and devour it.' Elle 'A gorgeous Whig romp ... a serious, as well as seriously enjoyable historical biography' Antonia Fraser, Sunday Times 'Excellent and fascinating' Sunday Telegraph 'From this very entertaining account emerges a vibrant picture of late eighteenth-century life and politics, and the portrait of a rare and highly talented woman.' Observer 'A sparkling biography' Marie Claire 'Brilliantly researched, compellingly told, this is biography of the first order' Daily Telegraph