A Treasury of Royal Scandals: The Shocking True Stories History's Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors

A Treasury of Royal Scandals: The Shocking True Stories History's Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors

From Nero's nagging mother (whom he found especially annoying after taking her as his lover) to Catherine's stable of studs (not of the equine variety), here is a wickedly delightful look at the most scandalous royal doings you never learned about in history class. Gleeful, naughty, sometimes perverted-like so many of the crowned heads themselves- A Treasury of Royal Scandals presents the best (the worst?) of royal misbehavior through the ages. From ancient Rome to Edwardian England, from the lavish rooms of Versailles to the dankest corners of the Bastille, the great royals of Europe have excelled at savage parenting, deadly rivalry, pathological lust, and meeting death with the utmost indignity-or just very bad luck. Michael Farquhar, a former writer and editor at The Washington Post, is the bestselling author of numerous books, including the critically acclaimed Behind the Palace Doors and Secret Lives of the Tsars, as well as the popular Penguin "Treasury" series: A Treasury of Royal Scandals, A Treasury of Great American Scandals, A Treasury of Deception, A Treasury of Foolishly Forgotten Americans, and his latest title, Bad Days in History. He lives in Washington, D.C.                              Table of Contents   PENGUIN BOOKS Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Introduction   PART I - The Lust Emperors Chapter 1 - From Russia with Lots of Love Chapter 2 - French Kiss Chapter 3 - England Swings   PART II - Six Royals Sinning Chapter 1 - Envy: If Anyone Should Oppose This Union Chapter 2 - Pride: Here Comes the Sun King Chapter 3 - Wrath: Have an Ice Day Chapter 4 - Gluttony: Eat, Drink, and Be Mocked Chapter 5 - Covetousness: Hail Mary, Full of Greed Chapter 6 - Sloth: An Idle Mind Is the Duchess’s Playground   PART III - Unholy Matrimony Chapter 1 - Mad About You Chapter 2 - Until Divorce or Decapitation Do Us Part (in Six Sections) Chapter 3 - Head Over a Heel Chapter 4 - A Wedding! Let’s Celibate! Chapter 5 - Wails From the Vienna Wood Chapter 6 - A Marriage Made in Hell   PART IV - Mom Was a Monster, Pop Was a Weasel Chapter 1 - How to Make a Bloody Mary Chapter 2 - Jane Grey’s Blues Chapter 3 - Hun, I Shrunk the Kid Chapter 4 - Peter the Not -So-Hot Chapter 5 - We Are Not Abused. We Are Abusive   PART V - Royal Family Feud Chapter 1 - The Royal Raptors Chapter 2 - Crown of Thorns Chapter 3 - Trouble in the House of Tudor Chapter 4 - Shattered Sorority Chapter 5 - Dislike Father, Dislike Son Chapter 6 - In-Laws on the Outs Chapter 7 - The Battling Bonapartes   PART VI - Strange Reigns Chapter 1 - Temper, Temper Chapter 2 - Swimming in a Shallow Gene Pool Chapter 3 - The Belle of Versailles Chapter 4 - A Great Mind Is a Terrible Thing Chapter 5 - Drool Britannia Chapter 6 - The Law Is an Ass Chapter 7 - The Eyes Have It   PART VII - When in Rome Chapter 1 - The Rage of Tiberius Chapter 2 - Oh, God ! Chapter 3 - I Claudius, Aren’t I? Chapter 4 - A Son Should Love His Mother, But . . . Chapter 5 - The Year of Living Dangerously   PART VIII - Papal Vice Chapter 1 - Not So Dear Johns Chapter 2 - A Matter of Grave Consequence Chapter 3 - Her Holiness? Chapter 4 - King of Kings Chapter 5 - Innocent Proven Guilty Chapter 6 - Feel the Burn Chapter 7 - Papal Bully Chapter 8 - Will the Real Pope Please Rise? Chapter 9 - Double, Double, Toil and Trouble Chapter 10 - All the Holiness Money Can Buy Chapter 11 - Indulge Me If You Will Chapter 12 - In the Ghetto   PART IX - Death Be Not Dignified Chapter 1 - A Tight Squeeze Chapter 2 - A Royal Pain in the Ass Chapter 3 - Spinning in Her Grave Chapter 4 - Strike Three Chapter 5 - Prescription for Disaster Chapter 6 - A Look of Detachment Chapter 7 - Eat Your Heart Out Chapter 8 - Royal Flush Chapter 9 - A Lot Off the Top Chapter 10 - The Case of the Purloined Penis Chapter 11 - Extreme Overkill Chapter 12 - It ’s Not Nice to Kill the King APPENDIX I - British Monarchs (1066-Present) APPENDIX II Appendix III - Russian Monarchs (1682-1917) The Romanovs APPENDIX IV Select Bibliography Acknowledgements PENGUIN BOOKS A TREASURY OF ROYAL SCANDALS Michael Farquhar is a writer and editor at The Washington Post specializing in history. He is coauthor of The Century: History as It Happened on the Front Page of the Capital’s Newspaper , and his work has been published in The Chicago Sun-Times , Chicago Tribune , Dallas Morning News , Reader’s Digest , and Discovery Online. Henry VIII PENGUIN BOOKS Published by the Penguin Group Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A. Penguin Books Ltd, 27 Wrights Lane, London W8 5TZ, England Penguin Books Australia Ltd, Ringwood, Victoria, Australia Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcorn Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4V 3B2 Penguin Books (N.Z.) Ltd, 182-190 Wairau Road, Auckland 10, New Zealand   Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England   First published in Penguin Books 2001     Copyright © Michael Farquhar, 2001 All rights reserved