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287th out of 966 books
—
1,104 voters
Aristocrats: Sarah, Emily, Louisa, and Sarah Lennox, 1740-1832
The Lennox Sisters--great-granddaughters of a king, daughters of a cabinet minister, and wives of politicians and peers--lived lives of real public significance, but the private texture of their family-centered world mattered to them and they shared their experiences with each other in countless letters. From this hitherto unknown archive, Stella Tillyard has constructed a...more
Paperback, 412 pages
Published
November 30th 1995
by Farrar Straus Giroux
(first published 1994)
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There are so many ways to sell/reasons for me to push this book, it absolutely boggles the mind:
-First and foremost and easiest for both the scandalmongers among us (and really, if we're honest, which one of us isn't, at least a little? :)), all these words, adjectives and happenings are involved in this book, probably many times over: an illegitimate line of the bastard children of kings, arranged marriages... that turn out to be fairy tale romances, forbidden courtships, scandalous secret marr...more
-First and foremost and easiest for both the scandalmongers among us (and really, if we're honest, which one of us isn't, at least a little? :)), all these words, adjectives and happenings are involved in this book, probably many times over: an illegitimate line of the bastard children of kings, arranged marriages... that turn out to be fairy tale romances, forbidden courtships, scandalous secret marr...more
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view all 8 comments
Jan 16, 2009
Wealhtheow
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
liz
Recommended to Wealhtheow by:
Kelly
This is the story of four daughters of the second Duke of Richmond. Great-granddaughters of King Charles II, wealthy, titled, and intimate with the political leaders of the realm, the Lennox sisters were envied by many and watched by all. Their story lasts almost a century; it "begins in 1744, as the Jacobites were planning their last, desperate assault on the Hanoverian throne, and ends in 1832, five years before the beginning of the Victorian Age." The eldest, Caroline, eloped and became a ric...more
3 likes · like · see review
If you want to be there, read their letters. Letters had form, when letters were written, as Stella will describe. As in any art form, there is room to diverge, and write that "this is what I should say, but this is how it is". These sisters do that like any of us would. Letters were a sort of newspaper then, so when they have an addition to be read by the recipient alone, then THAT'S the good stuff. Details, details.
Another good part is how the sisters live politics through their husbands. Not...more
Another good part is how the sisters live politics through their husbands. Not...more
Aristocrats is a brilliant group biography of a family of noble sisters during the Hanoverian period in England. The Lennox sisters were great-granddaughters of Charles II (through his mistress Louise de Keroualle), daughters of the Duke of Richmond, and wives and mothers to politicians and peers, but also fascinating people in their own rights.
All their lives they wrote letters voluminously, to each other and to other family members, and it's these letters that Tillyard uses in her reconstruct...more
All their lives they wrote letters voluminously, to each other and to other family members, and it's these letters that Tillyard uses in her reconstruct...more
Wow. This is a fabulously good biography, one of the best I've ever read--erudite but juicy, and irresistibly readable from start to finish. A combination of the writing and the subjects themselves made it so amazing to me; these four Lennox sisters are just ridiculously interesting, every one of them intelligent, passionate, sympathetic and flawed in their own diverse ways. And yet, I've read biographies before of figures who are just as appealing, that still somehow failed to leap off the page...more
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So I'm obviously both a complete history nerd & a bit of an Anglophile. I still strongly feel that this book could prove fascinating to someone who is neither of those things: the letters written between the four Lennox sisters & to their other family members reveal a world that is simultaneously surprisingly similar to our own & just enough different to be almost jarring at times.
The beauty to me here is the fact that, in history, you just don't tend to hear much from women, aristo...more
The beauty to me here is the fact that, in history, you just don't tend to hear much from women, aristo...more
Aristocrats it’s a biography centered around the lives of the Lennox sisters, but it is also a succesful portrait of a certain political and aristocratic sphere from the second half of the 18th century in the UK. Grand-daughters of one of the illegitimate sons of Charles II with Louise de Kérouaille, Cecilia (1723-1774), Emily (1731-1814), Louisa (1743-1821) and Sarah (1745-1826), proved that women could have as interesting lives as any man.
What is more appealing of these sisters lives is not on...more
What is more appealing of these sisters lives is not on...more
Aristocrats is a biography of the four Lennox sisters - Caroline, Emily, Sarah and Louisa, the daughters of the second Duke of Richmond, and prominent members of the nobility in eighteenth century England and Ireland. One married a duke and later an impoverished tutor, and had twenty two children; one married one of the most famous politicians of the eighteenth century; one married the richest man in Ireland; one divorced a baronet, and ended up happily married to an impoverished Scottish soldie...more
I love this book. For it's size and story I would consider it an easy and enjoyable read. This book is the true life story of the Lennox sisters. This story is beautifully put together by Stella Tillyard who compiled the sisters' letters to piece their lives together. Although the sisters lived a life considered ordinary for aristocrats, their life was anything but ordinary. Two elope, one was the object of a King and one extended family member led the Irish revolution. This story is almost too...more
This is one of those books I feel as if I ought to have enjoyed more than I did, though I don't have any fault to find. It is quite readable, well researched, and gives a clear picture of daily life in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. And for all their privilege, the sisters weren't immune from family disagreements and sorrows. I just didn't connect.
I loved this book so very much. It feels so real like you really get to know them. Their personalities really come through and it's just like you are among friends and talking with them. The mini-series "Aristocrats" that was done did a wonderful job with the story as well. They are both well loved and do not gather dust on the shelves.
A charming and lucid biography of the Lennox sisters, as famous in their day as any Disney pop star of today. It's packed with drama of forbidden courtships, elopements, entanglements with royalty, political upheaval, ambition -- really, drama on both a grand and intimate scale, which is probably why the story is so compelling. Highly recommended.
Excellent, excellent, excellent. Ninety years in the life of 4 sisters 1740-1832. An story of family life in the aristocracy--4 sisters who kept in touch and all of their letters remain accessible. A stunner; recommended to those interested in the history of feminism. A page turner,too. Highly recommended. Entertaining.
What an amazing story about the Lennox sisters! Elopements, adultery, countless children (especially in Emily's case!), politics and wars - it's all there - and throughout all these events the sisters stick together. It's an extremely interesting historical book; Tillyard has done extremely well relating this family's history from letters and diaries into story form.
Have a slight (ok, a major) issue with the characters beginning to experience "old age" when they approach forty. It doesn't make m...more
Have a slight (ok, a major) issue with the characters beginning to experience "old age" when they approach forty. It doesn't make m...more
I read this for a class three years ago and just picked it up again. This time I wasn't skimming it - enjoyed it immensely. Tillyard does a wonderful job of telling the story of this family, with only letters to go on.
Fascinating, interesting book. So many letters survived, it was like listening in on their conversations. Personal inside look into the lives of some significant historical figures, notably Charles Fox.
This non-fiction work, though sluggish towards the middle, reads more smoothly than almost any other history book I have ever read. Perhaps it is because the subject matter is so intriguing, but Tillyard creates a strong narrative, stringing the lives of these four sisters along in a linear, straight forward matter that is easily digested.
I use this book as a reference. Except for royalty, the Lennox sisters could not sit higher on the social scale. Their separate stories are fascinating, and Tillyard manages to bring the era alive.
Must admit I often find history books hard to take in, but this fascinating, well-researched account of the lives of four aristocratic sisters reads almost like a novel, and is very hard to put down. So many letters and diaries are quoted that their individual voices come across vividly.
Tillyard also tries to give a feeling of what life was like for the servants of these women, although unfortunately we don't have any of their papers.
I'd say this is even better than 'Citizen Lord', by the same...more
Tillyard also tries to give a feeling of what life was like for the servants of these women, although unfortunately we don't have any of their papers.
I'd say this is even better than 'Citizen Lord', by the same...more
I liked this a lot, but it does bog down a bit, especially near the end. A fascinating portrait of an age, with lots of little details that just bring it alive.
This was a fascinating biography of a group of sisters. Every twist and turn their lives take is interesting, and Tillyard does an excellent job of showing the different personalities of each Lennox sister. Full of great photos too. I am anxious to see the BBC miniseries now.
We read this for our Bookgroup and I really enjoyed learning about the Lennox sisters and their famous husbands.
Highly entertaining history of the 18th century England, writ small through the vantage point of four duke's daughters. Much here about women's lives and the ability to remake oneself.
Okay I haven't actually seen this mini series, or the book...so I got this for the pretty pictures.
That said, this is still worth reading because of the very indepth discussions this book gives of the clothes, houses and lives of the character.
I have been trying for some years now to really grasp how the clothes of the tudor age and onward (and even backward) were put together. I get lost in the stomachers and waistcoats and pantaloons. This book got me a tiny tiny tiny bit closer.
Oh, and the p...more
That said, this is still worth reading because of the very indepth discussions this book gives of the clothes, houses and lives of the character.
I have been trying for some years now to really grasp how the clothes of the tudor age and onward (and even backward) were put together. I get lost in the stomachers and waistcoats and pantaloons. This book got me a tiny tiny tiny bit closer.
Oh, and the p...more
Excellent. Shows character, political bent, relationships, of each.
NOT wooden writing.
NOT wooden writing.
A wonderful family biography and a perceptive study of a historical era. Loved it!
Jan 31, 2013
Mo
marked it as to-read
There is a Masterpiece Theatre 3 DVD set available at Webster Library.
The book was rather a let down after seeing the movie. It was boring compared to the movie. I did not like how she described people or events beyond the lennox sisters. My mind was wandering as I read about Reynolds' art studio. I thought the book could have been better.
There is a wonderful Master Piece Theatre made from this book.
A fantastic biography spanning the mid to late eighteenth century Ireland and England. I was enchanted by the Lennox sisters, drawn into their lives by the welcoming writing of Stella Tillyard.
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Stella Tillyard is a British author, best known for the best-selling Aristocrats: Caroline, Emily, Louisa and Sarah Lennox, 1740-1832 which was made into a BBC Miniseries in 1999.
Stella Tillyard studied at Oxford and Harvard Universities, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She has taught at Harvard, UCLA, and the University of London. For long periods she has lived in the United St...more
More about Stella Tillyard...
Stella Tillyard studied at Oxford and Harvard Universities, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She has taught at Harvard, UCLA, and the University of London. For long periods she has lived in the United St...more
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