Charlotte and Leopold by James Chambers (NF)

boswellbaxter · Post by **boswellbaxter** » Tue October 7th, 2008, 3:34 am

Charlotte and Leopold: The True Story of the Original People's Princess tells the story of Charlotte and her marriage to Prince Leopold, which was soon tragically followed by Charlotte's death from complications of childbirth.

Charlotte was the daughter of the Prince Regent, later George IV, and Princess Caroline, as ill-assorted a royal couple as one could possibly hope for. In medieval times, one of the spouses would have probably found a way to get rid of the other; as it was, the warring spouses fought out their differences through their subordinates, the press, Parliament, and through poor Charlotte. When not being used to score points by one parent or the other (neither of whom is depicted here as having very many redeeming qualities), she was pretty much forgotten. Nonetheless, she did not grow up to be a neurotic wreck or a libertine, but a lively, spirited young woman with a warm heart and sound morals. She and her somewhat stodgy husband loved each other dearly, and her untimely death marred his personality for life, though he had the satisfaction of seeing his beloved niece Victoria come to the throne.

Chambers's short biography is eminently readable and full of interesting details. I was particularly relieved to hear of the happy fate of Charlotte's parrot, who was neglected by Leopold after her death but who found a happy future with Leopold's equally neglected mistress. Incidentally, Charlotte (like her father, who cannot be faulted for a lack of taste) was an early fan of Jane Austen's novels. Referring to Sense and Sensibility, which at the time was published anonymously, she said, "I think Maryanne & me are very like in disposition, that certainly I am not so good, the same imprudence, &c, however remain very like."

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Tue October 7th, 2008, 9:52 pm

Glad you liked this book! I may have already posted this somewhere here, but here are my thoughts on the book.

Charlotte and Leopold by James Chambers is primarily a biography of Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of (the future) King George IV, who would have succeeded her father as Queen. Charlotte has been but a footnote in everything I have read about Queen Victoria and her family. Charlotte's death in childbirth caused a scramble for a legitimate grandchild of George III and Victoria won the prize. After reading this book, Charlotte is no longer a mere footnote, but a genuine person to me. This biography is not long (232 pages), but neither was Charlotte's life (21 years). The author used a number of primary resources including letters Charlotte had written to her best friend. I'm glad the author included excerpts from these letters as they helped to understand what Charlotte was like. I very much liked Charlotte and Leopold as a couple and I think they would have made a wonderful Queen and Prince Consort. (Charlotte's husband, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, was the uncle of Victoria and Albert and went on to become the first king of Belgium.)

The book assumes the reader knows Charlotte's final fate and starts off with a description of her doctor's fate. Charlotte's botched prenatal care and delivery are truly one of the great tragedies in royal history. The doctor later committed suicide. Interestingly, even though Leopold eventually married (15 years after Charlotte's death) and had four children, before he died he requested to be buried with Charlotte (Queen Victoria agreed, but the Belgian government denied his request) and his last words were "Charlotte...Charlotte..." (48 years after her death). Queen Victoria started me off on my study of royal history, so I am glad to have some of the blanks regarding Charlotte filled in.

Telynor · Post by **Telynor** » Thu October 16th, 2008, 7:57 pm

Thank you both for writing up the reviews! I haven't finished reading it yet -- I keep getting distracted, but I've found this period of history fascinating.

michellemoran · Post by **michellemoran** » Thu October 16th, 2008, 11:18 pm

Great reviews! Charlotte has always been one of my favorite people in history. It's refreshing to see her finally have her own book.

annis · Post by **annis** » Sat October 18th, 2008, 5:00 am

I think that Louise-Marie of France, Leopold's second wife, must have been either very forbearing or else very understanding- it must have been rather like living with a ghost. Leopold and Louise-Marie even named their first daughter Charlotte! (She later became- briefly- the Empress Carlota of Mexico)