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Book Review By John Van der Kiste
Childhood at Court 1819-1914 by John Van der Kiste

Childhood at court 1819-1914
John Van der Kiste
Sutton (Stroud, UK), 2004
ISBN: 0750934379

This book examines the lives of princes and princesses during the Victorian and Edwardian era. The lonely formative years of Princess Victoria of Kent, later Queen Victoria, are covered in detail, and contrasted to the lively nursery days of her own nine children, and in turn of their children as well.

Among the royal children we meet in these pages are Prince Waldemar of Prussia (who sadly died of diphtheria at the age of 11), who enjoyed collecting fossils on the Isle of Wight and terrifying the Queen, his grandmother, with a pet crocodile, at Osborne House; Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein, the first prince to attend public school and who enjoyed cricket much more than his studies; Princess Alice of Albany; and Prince Louis of Battenberg, who was excited when he was allowed to record his voice on a wax cylinder.

The royal matriarchs differed greatly in their attitude to children. Queen Victoria found babies to be ugly and 'very froglike', whereas Queen Alexandra, who adored youngsters, still gave children's parties to her children when they were adults.

The lives of other children who visited court are also examined. Hugh Dalton, a future senior Labour politician, resented his father's devotion to the royal family and was once notoriously rude to the elderly Queen Victoria; while on the other hand Sonia Keppel, daughter of Edward VII's mistress Alice, was often allowed to race pieces of buttered toast down the trousered legs of 'Kingy'.


Plot & Themes
Royalty bio Yes
Period of greatest activity? - 1600-1899

Subject of Biography
Gender - Male
Profession/status:
Ethnicity - White
Nationality - British

Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings? - 6 ()
Misc setting - Fancy Mansion
Century: - 19th century

Writing Style
Book makes you feel? - thoughtful
Pictures/Illustrations? - A ton 16-20 B&W
How much dialogue in bio? - little dialog
How much of bio focuses on most famous period of life? - 51%-75% of book
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