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Kings, Queens and Fallen Monarchies (Hardback)

Royal Dynasties of Interwar Europe

P&S History > Royal History P&S History > Social History World History > Europe > France World History > UK & Ireland > England > London World History > UK & Ireland > Ireland World History > UK & Ireland > Northern Ireland World History > UK & Ireland > Scotland World History > UK & Ireland > Wales

By Robert Stove
Imprint: Pen & Sword History
Pages: 264
Illustrations: 12 mono illustrations
ISBN: 9781399035422
Published: 5th November 2024

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Among the great hidden narratives of twentieth-century history are the movements in Europe which, between the two world wars, aimed to restore the royal and imperial houses forced out of power in 1918 (or, in Portugal’s case, eight years earlier). These efforts acquired media coverage and, often, strategic importance far greater than would be now supposed from the cursory, often dismissive, treatment which they have received from most historians since.

Campaigns to reinstate such dynasties as the Hohenzollerns, the Habsburgs, the Wittelsbachs, the Braganças, and even France’s House of Orléans, were taken seriously at the highest governmental and journalistic levels in London and Paris, not to mention the Holy See. Upon the whole phenomenon, this book seeks to shed light. It discusses both the phenomenon’s ‘soft power’ manifestations (the designs of newspaper tycoon Lord Rothermere upon the Hungarian throne for his son, for instance) and the phenomenon’s ‘hard power’ manifestations, among which probably the most dramatic were the successful monarchical campaigns in Albania and Greece.

With a cast that includes not only the monarchist candidates themselves but Churchill, Lloyd George, Hitler, Mussolini, and Franco, this is a drama that embraces a continent and forces thorough reappraisals of events which we thought we knew. No one can read it without acquiring a firmer grasp of political power's very nature and the sheer narrowness of the gap between victory and defeat.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I’ve always been interested in history and over some fifty decades ir more, I’ve read and studied many different aspects. That said, this book is a total revelation! I had no idea that so much was going on in the background well into the twentieth century. I knew over the centuries that marriages were contrived as a means to power and control and various European royal houses lost their sovereignty for a number of reasons. The history behind so many of these well known dynasties is well set out in this book. I was aware of the Portuguese house of Braganza, but didn’t realise the monarchy there had lasted so long. The social, religious and political reasons behind the downfall of this, and other European families is explored in fascinating detail.

I’m not a royalist and find the contrivances established for centuries to ensure that control and power remains in the hands of a select few both odious and irrelevant. But it goes on and Robert Stoves book gives shocking insight into how far the state and senior politicians were ( and no doubt are) involved in maintaining their status quo. This title makes the complexities of the links between so many families much easier to understand and it tackles a diverse subject in an informed and structured way. At times, it reads rather like an adventure story and I was keen to find out what happened next. An authoritative and truly eye opening read. Really enjoyed it and it’s whetted my appetite for more like this.

NetGalley, Anita Wallas

Found this book very interesting dividing up the various countries where Royal houses fell post WW1 and how the countries tried to develop different systems and the aftermath of what happened to these families. Has been fully researched and would interest anyone with an interest in modern history.

NetGalley, stephen hutchison

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I have read a book on a similar topic before, which was published in 1994. As the author reminds us of the last attempt at a monarchist coup in Germany, it proves one thing – the topic is still relevant and worth exploring.
I was very impressed by the structure of the book. I learned a lot of new things, for example, about Portuguese history, which I believe is not as well-known. Each chapter was very well organized, and the events were clearly described. The text is engaging and informative, which allowed me to learn a lot.
This book is a great contribution to the literature on monarchies and their falls.

NetGalley, Magdalena Šejdová

About Robert Stove

Historian and organist Robert James Stove is the author of César Franck: His Life and Times (Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 2012), The Unsleeping Eye: Secret Police and Their Victims (New York City: Encounter Books, 2002), and Prince of Music: Palestrina and His World (Sydney: Quakers Hill Press, 1990). His articles have been frequently published in The American Conservative (of which he is a Contributing Editor), Modern AgeThe Musical TimesThe Sydney Organ JournalOrgan Australia, and elsewhere, while his organ-playing has been captured on five CDs all available on the Ars Organi label. In 2021, he was awarded his PhD in musicology from Sydney University, having devoted his doctoral thesis to Sir Charles Villiers Stanford’s organ compositions. He lives in Melbourne with his beloved cat.

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