Ladies in Waiting: From the Tudors to the Present Day - Softcover

Anne Somerset's gossipy Ladies in Waiting provides a wealth of juicy anecdotal material about five centuries of court life from Henry VIII to Elizabeth II (NEW YORK TIMES)

Extraordinarily enjoyable ... Colourful and entertaining ... A Naughty Knickers version of our island story (Auberon Waugh DAILY MAIL)

A pleasing account of the upper-class ladies who slaved, suffered and starved in royal service (SUNDAY TIMES)

An extremely informative and well-documented study that ... because it is full of odd episodes and graphic portraits, will make admirable bedside reading (SUNDAY TELEGRAPH)

Lady Anne writes with perception, wit, candour and a confident authority (Hugh Montgomery Massingberd THE SPECTATOR)

From four centuries of courtly life and love, Anne Somerset has compiled a sparkling history, lucidly written and of impeccable scholarship (COUNTRY LIFE)

Far from just being servants or decorative accessories in court, ladies-in-waiting competed for real positions of power. Many achieved both great success and great notoriety. Lucy, Countess of Carlisle, for instance, succeeded in acquiring the confidence of Charles I's French wife, Henrietta Maria, only to betray the Queen to her enemies in Parliament. Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, at one time Queen Anne¿s most intimate friend, destroyed herself by her relentless attempts to dominate the Queen. Other ladies-in-waiting became royal mistresses, such as the rapacious Lady Castlemaine, who amassed a fortune and flaunted her hold over Charles II; or the downtrodden Countess of Suffolk, mistress of George II, who was constantly humiliated by both her lover and his wife. Drawing on a wide variety of primary sources, this is the first full-scale study of its kind. Combining anecdote with searching analysis, it is social history at its most colourful and entertaining.