The King is Dead, Long Live the King!: Majesty, Mourning and Modernity in Edwardian Britain Hardcover – 13 April 2023

Years ago, I had a dream about a photograph. The image, from my paternal grandparents' enormous collection of family photos, shows my grandmother, a 16 year old girl, and her brother, a few years younger, clad in deep mourning, likely for the funeral of their mother in 1912. In the dream, the static gloom of the photo came to life: I saw my grandmother walking up to her father's house, supporting her grieving father, her brother on the other side. They lived in Los Angeles, so the sun was out that October day; all details dark or blurred in the photograph were picked out clearly - the sparkling jet buttons on my grandmother's black dress, its black silk bodice gleaming amid the soft wool like a still pool; the black moire ribbons of her hat caught the breeze and snapped in the sun, which also caught the early silver of my great-grandfather's short-cropped hair and the mirror-like polish of my granduncle's shoes. I had this same window to the Edwardian world reading Martin Williams' THE KING IS DEAD, LONG LIVE THE KING! As anyone who has read my own books knows, I have specialized in this era just before (as well as during and after) the world-shattering events of the Great War, and I know the work required to make the past and its moods and mores live again on the printed page. To say Williams' gift of highlighting the telling detail is a glorious, amusing and moving one is an understatement. This is a book which handles the complexities of broad social movements with the same eye for fashion trends, family dynamics, moving up and down the social scale without fear or favour, and most touchingly for me, including animals - his details about Caesar, Edward VII's beloved, irascible and heartbroken terrier, and the fate of the race horse Minoru, continue to haunt me long after finishing the book. Virginia Woolf claimed the world changed sometime in December 1910, a statement she, in her maddeningly wonderful way, doesn't explain in full. It is one of many of Williams' gifts as writer and historian that he provides the receipts as well as providing portraits of Woolf, suffragettes, Queen Alexandra, London street beggars, a dog missing his master, Alice Keppel, and a Shakespearean dramatis personae of people of that lost age which show his wit and his humanity and suggest that those of us who look back on past ages might do worse than emulate him. This is a book, in the words of Horace, worthy to be read more than once.

An interesting account of a world long gone

This book is simply outstanding . I read a very broad range of subjects , especially motoring and Churchill related, so this book was a little different . This period of history, early 1900's was a truly fascinating one, often eclipsed by events from 1914 onwards . A very well written history book but with a pace like a page turning novel . Commend this to all 👍

Provides a kaleidoscopic, almost cinematic, overview of the key trends and personalities of an era at once elegant and profoundly unstable. Not just beautifully written and informative but entertaining, thought-provoking and, in places, deeply moving (I actually cried!). Highly recommended.

Since book will not be released in the US until later this year, decided to order from the UK.. glad I did! Author’s first book is a winner.. very entertaining and informative covering the social and political aspects of the end of the Edwardian era. Highly recommend!!

I have just finished this book and I thoroughly enjoyed it.The author brought the colourful Edwardian period to life through his reference to famous events ,such as Black Ascot,the Coronation etc.I especially liked the way he mentioned famous people of the period and then wound up the book and the era so cleverly.Do read it,you won’t regret it!

A thoroughly enjoyable read for lovers of the period. Not perhaps a traditional structure, and not meant for those without interest in the subject. Martin William’s first book should be kept on your shelf alongside works by Beaton, Strong and Channon.

This must be the most iritating book that I have read, mainly because of the total lack of any kind of structure. The author jumped from one topic to anothe, and then continued the topic later on, For example, he included an account of Dr Crippen's crime, but left off adn then picked it up again later on in the book. Would it not have been most logical to recount the story to its conslusion in one palce?Altogether very disappointing .

I wasn't sure what to expect when I bought this book. The reviews were mostly very good, but when I read it was about the last few months of King Edward VII's reign, I hesitated. I love British history, and I've read so much about so many eras, I wasn't sure I'd have much to learn. I could not have been more wrong!The last months of Edward's reign was fascinating. From his battles with his Prime Minister, Asquith, to the clashes between the Labour party and the Tories, it was full of information I knew little about. I knew the King was a notorious playboy, but I had been led to believe (in other books) that he detested his wife, Queen Alexandra. Not true! He loved her passionately when they were first married, but he was who he was, and his love of beautiful (yet always married) women was very well known, even by the Queen. She accepted this, as she loved him so much, all of her life.It seems that behavior taken for granted during these times would certainly raise an eyebrow now! But, maybe not. Aside from Prince William and Princess Catherine, I'm now thinking all monarchs and future monarchs had dalliances.Anyway, this book will make you smile, make you sad,laugh out loud, it will frustrate you, and so much more. It's about the brief reign of Edward (what a shame he inherited the throne so late in his life), the Edwardian era, changing times, changing attitudes, changing fashions, changing politics; and about a man who surprised so many when the crown was finally his. He was a beloved King, incredibly well traveled, who was intelligent, kind, amusing, but stood firm in his beliefs. I had no idea just HOW beloved he was until he died! People TRULY mourned his passing, as it was sudden.I was very surprised to learn that Queen Alexandra allowed the King's longtime mistress, Alice Keppel, to go to the King's room as he lay dying, so she could say goodbye.Women struggling to get the vote are in this story as well, but sorry, that was the least interesting part of the book for me. It still bears a mention, as it was very much a part of the era.There is so much to recommend about this wonderful book. I laughed, when in the beginning, Edward's boat is following his late mother's boat as she is being taken from Balmoral to London. King Edward notices that the flag is being flown at half mast, and radios to the captain of her boat, " Sir, the Queen is dead. " UP goes the flag, and the captain apologies profusely." No worries " says the King. "She was the Queen longer than many people were alive. " Touching and true, with not a touch of anger, King Edward DID make it clear who was in charge.Buy this book. You won't regret it.

Martin Williams spent a decade at Sotheby’s Institute of Art where he honed his knowledge on Art, Jewellery and History. That is where we met him. The decade wait for his first book has been worth the wait! He brings together a detailed knowledge of History, and with various other disciplines, he weaves a fascinating story. His championing of Edward VII as a great king is overdue.The suffragette story is well told, although we recall he was personally abused after the famous movie.His first book is totally readable, and we await his next opus with eager anticipation.

This concise work on the brief reign of Edward VII (the second shortest in the 20th Century behind his grandson, Edward VIII) focuses on how Queen Victoria's heir impacted both government and culture during that period. From his focus on bringing France closer to Great Britain, his warm relations with Imperial Russia, the contentious relationship with his nephew, Kaiser Wilhelm II and his concern over relations between Britain's two Houses of Parliament, Edward VII was an influential actor in governing circles not only in Britain, but throughout Europe. Socially, his desire to enjoy himself and project that enjoyment as monarch into society brought a warm response from his subjects, both great and small. His death in 1910 after a nine-year reign was met with genuine grief and a sense that the future might not be as enjoyable as the past. Recommended to those interested in early 20th Century British and European history and the British Monarchy.

Great book. Very well written. Lots of interesting characters and stories.

I’m currently reading this wonderful new book. It’s thoroughly brilliant and beautifully written. Totally sums up the period in the most evocative way. I wanted more! Highly recommend to anyone interested in this period of history whether from a political or cultural aspect. It delivers on all accounts!