Synopses & Reviews
Born during the reign of Elizabeth I, Lucy and Dorothy Percy came to prominence at the court of Charles I. Lucy, the Countess of Carlisle, dominated the royal scene. Her beauty was immortalized in magnificent Van Dyck portraits, her political skills attracted many famous lovers, and her talent as a gossip ensured her inclusion in the queen's inner circle—until civil war and its machinations led to her imprisonment in the Tower of London.
Her sister, Dorothy, Countess of Leicester—wife of a diplomat and an ancestor of Princess Diana—managed the family estates and raised twelve surviving children. Though brilliant, with a keen eye and special purview of European politics, she had a reputation as a shrewish wife and, when her husband rebelled after thirty-five years of marriage, it caused a public scandal.
Viewing a tempestuous era through the exceptional lives of Lucy and Dorothy Percy, Lita-Rose Betcherman's Court Lady and Country Wife offers a perfect window into a remarkable world.
Review
“An intimate view of Stuart England.” New York Times Book Review
Review
“Fascinating dual biograpy of two seventeenth-century British sisters.” Booklist
Synopsis
A dual portrait of aristocratic sisters Lucy and Dorothy Percy traces their births during the reign of Elizabeth I and rise to prominence at the court of Charles I in the 1630s, describing how Lucy's beauty and political power played a key role in the queen's imprisonment and Dorothy's scandalous relationship with her diplomat husband. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.
About the Author
Lita-Rose Betcherman received a doctorate in Tudor and Stuart history from the University of Toronto and was the Women's Bureau director for the province of Ontario. She is the author of three books on Canadian history and lives in Toronto.