Product Description

The Fifth Earl of Rosebery was the most glamorous Liberal politician of the late Victorian age. Charismatic, enlightened, wealthy and intellectually brilliant, he once said that he had three ambitions: to marry an heiress, win the Derby and become Prime Minister. By his mid-forties, he had achieved all three.

But his political career was clouded by his mercurial character. Self-centred, impulsive and neurotic, he shrouded himself in mystery and was caught up in many of the greatest scandals of his era. Now, using a wealth of archival material, award-winning author Leo McKinstry reveals the dramatic, compelling story behind this paradoxical figure.

(20050529)

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #376777 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03-27
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 640 pages

Review
'His strange journey is well described in this impressive book.' -- BBC History 20050601 'McKinstry...has produced a first-class biography, scholarly, analytical, judicious and always interesting.' -- Herald 20050521 '(A) fascinating account of one of Britain's most perplexing leaders.' -- Belfast Telegraph 20050521 'This is an authoritative and original biography which is also a riveting read.' -- Spectator 20050521 'A strong, compelling narrative which displays a sensitive understanding of Rosebery as well as his political times.' -- Tribune, Robert Taylor 20050521 'McKinstry guides us skilfully through the labyrinthine political controversies of the late Victorian and Edwardian Britain.' -- The Tablet, David Goodall. 20050521 'This biography takes in all the political lions of the late Victorian age and meticulously inspects their paws.' -- Country Life, Rory Knight Bruce 20050521 'McKinstry is both careful and enlightening ... As well as being meticulously researched, the book is beautifully written and has tremendous pace.' -- Literary Review 20050501 'This is a superb political biography' -- Spectator 20050521 'This is an absolutely wonderful biography' -- London Evening Standard 20050516 'This book is hard to put down. Leo McKinstry has painted a fascinating portrait of a glamorous but tortured politician' -- Irish News, Anthony Looch 20050516 'This long overdue biography brings to life a quarrelsome, arrogant and, now, largely forgotten figure. Bolstered by a wealth of new archival material, this outstanding book was worth the wait.' -- Western Daily Press (Bristol/Late City Edition) 20050516 'McKinstry's study has illuminated Rosebery's career' -- History Today 20050509 'McKinstry's study has illuminated Rosebery's career' -- History Today 20050901 'I do not expect to read a more enjoyable or more thoughtful political biography for a long time to come' -- London Review of Books 20050922 'I like biographies of obscure prime ministers and strongly commend Rosebery"' -- Ferdinand Mount, TLS 20051202 'Stunning ... As well as being meticulously researched, it is beautifully written and has tremendous pace' -- Literary Review 'Absorbing ... McKinstry has here proved himself to be a first-class historical biographer' -- Mail on Sunday 20050529 'With masterly skill and sympathy, Leo McKinstry resurrects him as the Hamlet of late Victorian England' -- Daily Mail 20050529 An authoritative and original biography which is also a riveting read' -- Spectator 20050529 'Superbly well-researched and well-written ...A truly first-class addition to the genre of Prime Ministerial biography' -- Sunday Telegraph 20050529 'An absolutely wonderful biography ... gripping and entertaining' -- Evening Standard 20050529 'A first class biography, scholarly, judicious and always interesting' -- Glasgow Herald 20050529 'Remarkable' -- Country Life 20050529 'Judicious, well-researched and engrossing' -- Sunday Times 20050529 'This is undoubtably the definitive biography of Rosebery. Written with elegance, clarity and well-judged colour' -- Jonathan Parry, Times Literary Supplement 20051007 'It does a wonderful job of conjuring up the lost world of late Victorian politics' -- Dominic Sandbrook, Daily Telegraph 20051203 'Admirable biography of a paradoxical figure whose tenure at No 10 was a disaster' -- Jeremy Lewis, Sunday Times 20051204

Review
‘Judicious, well-researched and engrossing’ (Sunday Times 20051204)

'Stunning ... As well as being meticulously researched, it is beautifully written and has tremendous pace' (Literary Review 20060429)

'Absorbing ... McKinstry has here proved himself to be a first-class historical biographer' (Mail on Sunday )

‘With masterly skill and sympathy, Leo McKinstry resurrects him as the Hamlet of late Victorian England' (Daily Mail )

An authoritative and original biography which is also a riveting read'

(Spectator )

'Superbly well-researched and well-written ... A truly first-class addition to the genre of Prime Ministerial biography’ (Sunday Telegraph )

'An absolutely wonderful biography ... gripping and entertaining'

(Evening Standard )

‘A first class biography, scholarly, judicious and always interesting’

(Glasgow Herald )

‘Remarkable’

(Country Life )

'It does a wonderful job of conjuring up the lost world of late Victorian politics'

(Dominic Sandbrook, Daily Telegraph )

'Admirable biography of a paradoxical figure whose tenure at No 10 was a disaster'

(Jeremy Lewis, Sunday Times )

'Written with such genuine and obvious enthusiasm that what would have been stodgy (let’s face it, 500 pages on Victorian politicos is no guarantee of riotous fun) becomes engaging, enlightening and entertaining'

(Marcus Keane, Irish Times )

Sunday Telegraph
"A superbly well-researched and well-written book, a truly first-class addition to the genre of Prime Ministerial biography.

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Customer Reviews

A good biography of one our most enigmatic Prime Ministers
Rosebery: Statesman in Turmoil is a good biography about one of the most intriguing Prime Ministers ever to lead Britain. It is well written and interesting although at times there are problems with the chronological order and sometimes it is a little confusing. Rosebery was an interesting individual who was marked out to be Prime Minister from a young age but never lived up to his potential due to his reclusive personality but was always a ghost from the past to the Liberal Party. All in all it is a good but not great book which not only describes the life of the enigmatic Rosebery but also delves in to some aspects of high Victorian society and the splits and threats that ultimately damaged the Liberal Party and explained how much it changed from the Gladstonian party to the Asquithian and Lloyd George government.