As a self-made celebrity, Emma Hamilton's rise, from prostitute to consort of the most famous man in England has a very contemporary zing.
Kate Williams fell in love with the eighteenth century whilst studying for her BA at the University of Oxford. She has an MA from Queen Mary, University of London and a DPhil from the University of Oxford. Her articles and essays have been published in a wide range of books and journals and she is a lecturer and TV consultant, appearing regularly on BBC and Channel 4 to discuss her work. She lives in London.
" England' s Mistress is a wonderful, sparkling biography by the equally wonderful and sparkling Miss Kate Williams. Emma Hamilton' s beauty has survived the ages thanks to Romney' s obsessive portraits. But now, Kate Williams has also given us Emma' s heart and soul, revealing why she captured the fascination of a generation." - Amanda Foreman, author of Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire
" England' s Mistress is a wonderful, sparkling biography by the equally wonderful and sparkling Miss Kate Williams. Emma Hamilton' s beauty has survived the ages thanks to Romney' s obsessive portraits. But now, Kate Williams has also given us Emma' s heart and soul, revealing why she captured the fascination of a generation." - Amanda Foreman, author of Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire
The first new monograph on Emma Hamilton in a generation, independent scholar Williams's biography draws on a wide range of archival and historiographical material, some of it unpublished and newly discovered by the author. With more than a whiff of a Regency novel, the book sometimes reads like a made-for-television special, and indeed a contract has been signed for a television docudrama (with the author as presenter). Nevertheless, this is a lively and engaging study of one of the famous-and infamous-beauties of the age. Emma Hamilton (born Amy Lyon) rose from obscure poverty in the north of England to fame and fortune as a celebrated model for the portraitist George Romney, mistress to at least one prominent aristocrat (Lord Charles Greville), and then wife of Sir William Hamilton, one of England's most cultivated diplomats and collectors. The zenith of her career was, of course, her relationship with Horatio Nelson, a liaison whose genesis and tragic end is ably captured here. Renewed interest in Nelson's era following last year's bicentennial of his victory at Trafalgar should generate considerable interest in this title. Recommended for larger public and undergraduate collections. (Illustrations, index, and bibliography not seen).-Matt Todd, Northern Virginia Community Coll. Lib., Alexandria Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
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