Böcker av Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson

The four Hanoverian King Georges may have become fixed in history as 'faintly absurd, certainly unattractive, figures' but in this colourful account of their lives and times, families and courts, Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson restores a sprinkling of credit where it has been due. His account does not neglect the marital discords of George I, the towering paternal disdain of George II or the tragically misunderstood 'madness' of George III. But the reader is also encouraged to consider how the Hanoverian monarchs reacted to the climate of art and fashion in their times, from George II's espousal of Handel to George IV's patronage of Beau Brummell. By its own admission not a comprehensive history, Blood Royal is nevertheless an elegant and shining string of linked vignettes and short studies.

and like a grey shadow without substance, James Stuart, 'who came too late and departed too soon'. The sage of Jacobite intrigue, rebellion and failure which is unfolded here offers a vivid picture of the clash between two countries and two loyalties. 'A lively new study of three Jacobite risings preceding the '45 .

The English have always regarded the French with a passionate mixture of love and hatred. Simultaneously divided and linked by the English Channel - or la Manche - both countries continue profoundly to affect the other for good or ill. In his delightfully impressionistic appreciation of Britain's closest neighbour, first published in 1987, 'unashamed Francophile' Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson separates clich, from fallacy to reveal the essence of France and the French.'A book which will have a considerable appeal for all those who love France; for in Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson they will meet a kindred spirit...' Financial Times'Whets the reader's appetite for the next visit across the Channel.' Evening Standard'Urbane and charming.' Times