Post by janetandjohn on May 14, 2017 17:31:54 GMT
Someone from RISI gave me this book - either a gift from a fairy, or at a meet, or as a swap. Whatever, I enjoyed this chunky non-fiction read, and at the end, as I always do, I looked at the one star reviews on Amazon. Surprised! Quite a lot of only one and two stars, and it would seem that those reviewers expected another kind of book, and also a lot of them didn't really know whether this was meant to be fiction or non-fiction! Anyway, whilst skimming the 5 star reviews, I came across a review from 2012 by lovelytreez, who is a member, but doesn't contribute as regularly these days. I miss her! This is what she said, and underneath is my review:
lovelytreez
I don't usually read a lot of non-fiction but something about this story really drew me in and, to use that well-worn cliche, "you couldn't make it up". From a daunting mountain of documents, Catherine Bailey has succeeded in excavating an intriguing and involving true story of one man's life - a very sad story emerges as she fills in the gaps in the life story of John Manners, the 9th Duke of Rutland.
This is a very detailed and extremely well researched account which highlights the immense power held by the Manners family - power which is abused by Violet, John's mother, who is portrayed as a manipulative matriarch, determined to safeguard the future of the family line, at any cost. Could duty to one's family possibly override duty to one's country at a time of war? When you don't have the luxury of "an heir and a spare" does the end justify the means?
Despite John's efforts to cover up events, he hadn't reckoned on the tenacity and investigative skills of Catherine Bailey. It makes you feel quite sorry for some of the aristocracy although that is tempered a lot when you consider the immense numbers of Rutland estate workers who died in the trenches during the Great War. A very engaging and eye-opening read.
Me:
Like treez, I don't read a huge amount of non-fiction, but I was glad I gave this one a chance. A mystery discovered whilst researching for another book altogether meant that the author, with the permission of the current Duke of Rutland, set out to solve a riddle from the past.
The 9th Duke of Rutland died in 1940, in a small set of rooms on the ground floor of Belvoir Castle, Rutland. His wife, the Duchess had called the doctor as a matter of urgency but when he arrived he was not permitted the enter, the Duke's footman had been ordered by the Duke not to let him in until he had "finished something" - he died next day, and his son ordered the rooms locked and sealed. They stayed that way for over 60 years. And there the mystery starts, although it begins much earlier, in 1898 when Haddon, the first child and heir dies.
Catherine Bailey discovers three gaps in the family papers, and when she sets out to find out what those gaps covered in the history of the Manners family she finds things that as lovelytreez said "you couldn't make up"! For me, this was as exciting as a thriller, only better; it was shocking - the word Machiavellian comes to mind when thinking about John, Duke of Rutland's mother Violet! It was truly a tale of power that goes with place; it will bring you up with a shock on on sorts of subjects; and it was a real page turner!
The book she had started out to research was originally about the number of workers from Belvoir Castle and the Belvoir estate who marched off to WW1, and she has added the entire list of the war dead from Belvoir towards the end of the book.
lovelytreez
I don't usually read a lot of non-fiction but something about this story really drew me in and, to use that well-worn cliche, "you couldn't make it up". From a daunting mountain of documents, Catherine Bailey has succeeded in excavating an intriguing and involving true story of one man's life - a very sad story emerges as she fills in the gaps in the life story of John Manners, the 9th Duke of Rutland.
This is a very detailed and extremely well researched account which highlights the immense power held by the Manners family - power which is abused by Violet, John's mother, who is portrayed as a manipulative matriarch, determined to safeguard the future of the family line, at any cost. Could duty to one's family possibly override duty to one's country at a time of war? When you don't have the luxury of "an heir and a spare" does the end justify the means?
Despite John's efforts to cover up events, he hadn't reckoned on the tenacity and investigative skills of Catherine Bailey. It makes you feel quite sorry for some of the aristocracy although that is tempered a lot when you consider the immense numbers of Rutland estate workers who died in the trenches during the Great War. A very engaging and eye-opening read.
Me:
Like treez, I don't read a huge amount of non-fiction, but I was glad I gave this one a chance. A mystery discovered whilst researching for another book altogether meant that the author, with the permission of the current Duke of Rutland, set out to solve a riddle from the past.
The 9th Duke of Rutland died in 1940, in a small set of rooms on the ground floor of Belvoir Castle, Rutland. His wife, the Duchess had called the doctor as a matter of urgency but when he arrived he was not permitted the enter, the Duke's footman had been ordered by the Duke not to let him in until he had "finished something" - he died next day, and his son ordered the rooms locked and sealed. They stayed that way for over 60 years. And there the mystery starts, although it begins much earlier, in 1898 when Haddon, the first child and heir dies.
Catherine Bailey discovers three gaps in the family papers, and when she sets out to find out what those gaps covered in the history of the Manners family she finds things that as lovelytreez said "you couldn't make up"! For me, this was as exciting as a thriller, only better; it was shocking - the word Machiavellian comes to mind when thinking about John, Duke of Rutland's mother Violet! It was truly a tale of power that goes with place; it will bring you up with a shock on on sorts of subjects; and it was a real page turner!
The book she had started out to research was originally about the number of workers from Belvoir Castle and the Belvoir estate who marched off to WW1, and she has added the entire list of the war dead from Belvoir towards the end of the book.
