Beaufort: The Duke and His Duchess, 1657-1715 (Yale Historical Publications Series) [Hardcover]

Ms. Molly McClain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2001 | Series: Yale Historical Publications Series

The Duke and Duchess of Beaufort survived the tumultuous and uncertain decades which followed the English civil war by creating a remarkable political partnership. Together they worked to restore their family's estates and political power base as well as their home, Badminton House in Gloucestershire. They also sought to tame political and religious passions and to bring order and stability to Restoration society, a goal which was shared by many members of the landed classes. This fascinating book uses their story to illuminate the profound cultural changes which took place after 1660. It also brings to life Henry Somerset (1629-1700) and Mary Capel Somerset (1630-1715), two complex and unique individuals. Henry, third Marquis of Worcester and first Duke of Beaufort, was a powerful regional magnate and an active member of Charles II's Privy Council. The book recounts his activities in public life in England and Wales. It also shows the Duke rebuilding his war-ravaged estates, contesting with his local rivals, and corresponding with his wife. Mary, meanwhile, distinguished herself in the newly emerging science of botany, growing and propagating an astonishing variety of exotic plants, and finding personal salvation in the natural world. Offering both an intimate portrait of a seventeenth-century marriage and an unusual view of the early days of Enlightenment science and rationalism, this book will captivate a wide audience of readers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"McClain presents the Duke and Duchess as flesh and blood individuals. One can't help but become engrossed in their lives." -- Mark A. Kishlansky, Harvard University

About the Author

Molly McClain is assistant professor in the department of history at the University of San Diego.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press; 1ST edition (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300084110
• ISBN-13: 978-0300084115
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,555,439 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Sympathetic description of Restoration Ducal couple, April 12, 2010

By 

Hugh Claffey (Co. Kildare Ireland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beaufort: The Duke and His Duchess, 1657-1715 (Yale Historical Publications Series) (Hardcover)

The Duke and Duchess of Beaufort lived at the upper end of Restoration society, amassing great wealth through astute manoeuvrings at the Commenwealth ended and the Stuarts were restored. The Duke himself, the Duchesses second husband, was something of a fortune seeker as a young man - his grandfather having opposed Cromwell, his father having been a spendthrift. The Duchess was the wealthier of the two when they married, and McClain acknowledges that one of the bonds between them was the access to money and land, which the marriage brought about. In later years, this lead to strife with the children of the Duchesses first marriage - indeed access to money and political influence seems to have been both the primary motivation of the upper classes and the mainstay of legal argument during the period
McClain traces their relationship through the uncertainties of the Restoration land settlement, and the rise of local opposition to the Dukes attempts to raise more money through enclosing commonage, and his attempts to influence political representation from his domain. Most of the material describing their relationship is gleaned from letters sent while the Duke was in London and the Duchess remained at their estate. Of necessity therefore the period when the Duke retired from active politics is less well described. Nonetheless a good picture of the effect of the changing political climate on a particular part of the country is examined. Less convincing, for me, is the attempts to explain the texture of the relationship between the Duke and Duchess - we are given to believe that she suffered bouts of depression, and that he, while participating in the debauched court of Charles II, nevertheless, made his excuses and left when things became too raucous. Hmm.... In fact I think the book errs in being too sympathetic to both characters. There are enough hints of avarice and self-aggrandisement in the documentation quoted, to give a different view of their behaviour.
There are some interesting insights in the pursuit of gardening, which became quite fashionable for the gentry at this time. Indeed the first and last chapter show the rationale behind the quite complex layout of various grand gardens, and the thinking behind them.
Overall I liked this book.