Review
--Charles Spencer
In this intriguing study, Helen Rappaport sets out to tell the story of the royal anguish that followed Albert's death in December 1861 . . . she excels in her portrayal of a cult of mourning over which the queen presided with all the imperious intensity of a high priestess. Fair-minded, thoughtful and rich in social detail.
--Sunday Times
A brilliant new book . . . Helen Rappaport is especially good on the incompetence of the gang of medics who presided over Albert's illness. --Daily Mail
A remarkable book . . . a brilliant read
--Dovegrey Reader
An insightful, absorbing and highly readable account . . . Magnificent Obsession is that rare creature, a scholarly book that wears its learning lightly and is written with clarity and insight. It is a fascinating subject and an even better read: a model of its kind.
--Juliet Barker, Daily Express
Rappaport uses new sources to give a vivid account of Albert's death . . . a valuable and insightful book which will change our view of Queen Victoria.
--Jane Ridley, Spectator
I have never myself been an ardent monarchist. Yet I have just been reading Helen Rappaport's Magnificent Obsession; and her fluency in English, and her poignant chronicling of matters royal have made me realise once again that she could convert me to virtually any cause. This particular airing of her rare skills maintains her already established status in the front rank of British historians.
--Colin Dexter
Review
Praise for "The Last Days of the Romanovs"
"As shocking and immediate as a thriller. . . . [A] gripping read."
--"People" magazine (3 1/2 stars)
"Quite simply, stunning. . . . Chilling and poignant, this is how history books should be written."
--Alison Weir, author of "Henry VIII: The King and His Court"
Book Description
Product Description
When Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, died in December 1861 the nation was paralysed with grief. He was only forty-two and official bulletins had, until the day before he died, given no cause for alarm.
But in fact Albert had been in a progressive physical decline for years - worn out by overwork, stress and the exacting standards he set himself. His death was a catastrophe for the queen, who not only adored her husband but had, through twenty-one years of marriage, utterly relied on him: as companion, father of their children, friend, confidant, wise counsellor and unofficial private secretary. There was not a single aspect of public business on which she had not deferred to his advice and greater wisdom. She would even consult him on what bonnet to wear.
Britain had lost its king. For that is the role that Albert had performed in all but name. Politicians and the press agreed that his death was a national calamity. The public, totally unprepared, responded with a massive outpouring of grief.
This royal death had a profound impact on Britain. Cast adrift and alone, the Queen donned the widow's weeds that she would wear for 40 years, till her own death in 1901. Her grieving was relentless. Without Albert to guide and support her, with a feckless heir who had caused her nothing but anxiety, and a family of nine children to parent alone, she retreated into a state of pathological grief which nobody could penetrate and few understood. Her stubborn refusal to return to public life rapidly began to alienate even her closest family and friends and to bring a resurgence of republicanism. There was even talk of abdication.
For the 150th anniversary of Albert's death, this book examines the circumstances leading up to it, the ritual of his funeral and obsequies, and offers new theories on what killed him. It will describe the overwhelming despondency of a country plunged into mourning: bells tolling, shops shuttered up, everyone - no matter how poor - clad in black. Albert's death and the Queen's demand for the most rigorous observance of mourning, while precipitating months of anxiety about its effect on business, also fostered an explosion in the funeral trade and mourning ephemera. The Whitby jet trade went into overdrive to cope with the demand for black jewellery. Over the next ten years, the Queen's single-handed mission to memorialise and commemorate her husband in perpetuity set in train plans for a range of artistic and cultural monuments that would transform the British landscape and set their visual stamp on the second half of her reign.
From the Inside Flap
When Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, succumbed to typhoid fever in December 1861 the nation was paralysed with grief. He was only forty-two and official bulletins had, until the day before, given no cause for alarm.
Albert had in fact been in a decline for years - worn out by overwork, stress and the exacting standards he set himself. His death was a catastrophe for Victoria, who not only adored her husband but had, through twenty-one years of marriage, utterly relied on him: as companion, father of their children, friend, confidant, wise counsellor and unofficial private secretary. There was not a single aspect of public business on which she had not deferred to his advice and greater wisdom. She would even consult him on what bonnet to wear.
For the 150th anniversary of Albert's death, Helen Rappaport's fascinating history examines the profound impact his loss had on Britain. Cast adrift and alone, the Queen donned the widow's weeds that she would wear for 40 years. Without Albert to guide and support her, with a feckless heir who had caused her nothing but anxiety, and a family of nine children to parent alone, she retreated into a state of pathological grief which nobody could penetrate and few understood. Her stubborn refusal to return to public life rapidly began to alienate even her closest family and friends and to bring a resurgence of republicanism. There was even talk of abdication.
Marshalling brilliant social detail about a court, a Parliament and a nation initially as bereft as their queen, but rapidly tiring of her cult of grief, Rappaport tracks Victoria's single-handed mission to commemorate her husband in perpetuity, setting in train plans for the monuments - in stone, on canvas and on paper - that would properly memorialise him and set their visual stamp on the art and culture not just of her reign but of Britain today. Drawing widely on contemporary letters, diaries and memoirs, she brings new and compelling light to bear on the causes of Albert's death.
Most grippingly of all, Rappaport focuses on the enduring relationship between Victoria and Albert - the magnificent obsession that not even death could sever
From the Back Cover
A royal death that plunged the nation into grief . . . and nearly cost the queen her throne.
Praise for Helen Rappaport:
'That perfect but rare blend of history, sense of place, human tragedy, drama and atmosphere'
Susan Hill
'Helen Rappaport has brought her subjects back to life with a sombre intensity . . . deeply touching'
Independent on Sunday
'Brilliantly shows how history is never simple but always enthralling when written with this style'
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