Natalie Livingstone

Narratively enthralling … chronicled with scholarship, readability, wit and a fine eye for telling detail.

Her scholarship is considerable and yet she wears it lightly, producing a book which is always lively, entertaining and immensely readable.

Natalie Livingstone has written an utterly fascinating and completely beguiling account of three centuries of high living, high politics, and high drama at one of Britain's most famous stately homes. A page turner from start to finish, The Mistresses of Cliveden perfectly illustrates why social history rules the shelves; it's history with all the good stuff left in.

Amanda Foreman, author of GEORGIANA, DUCHESS OF DEVONSHIRE

A wonderful voyage through the fascinating history of Cliveden - this is a brilliant book full of gripping personalities and beautiful detail.

Kate Williams, author of BECOMING QUEEN and JOSEPHINE

Wide-ranging and deliciously enjoyable...

A fascinating journey through English social history, with Cliveden at its heart.

Fluently written, the book interweaves [these] personal stories with historical snippets illuminating each era and glimpses of life at the pinnacle of society… The broad sweep through 300 years of social change is packed with plenty of colourful details that capture the heady essence of Cliveden and the bold, spirited women who shared its history

This lively story of 400 years of aristocratic high jinks and intrigue is told with expert relish.

Three Centuries of Scandal, Power and Intrigue in an English Stately Home

'It covers three centuries of high living, high politics and high drama [...] it is so fascinating' MEL SYKES 
_____________________________ 
A Sunday Times bestseller 
Five women. One house. One extraordinary history. 
 
Even today, Cliveden retains its royal mystique - it is where Meghan Markle and her mother spent the night before the royal wedding - but from its construction in the 1660s to its heyday in the 1960s, Cliveden has played host to a dynasty of remarkable and powerful women. 
 
Anna Maria, Elizabeth, Augusta, Harriet, and Nancy were five ladies who, over the course of three centuries, shaped British society through their beauty, personalities, and political influence. 
 
Restoration and revolution, aristocratic rise and fall, world war and cold war form the extraordinary backdrop against which their stories unfold. 
 
An addictive history of the period and an intimate exploration of the timeless relationships between people and place, The Mistresses of Cliveden is a story of sex, power and politics, and the ways in which exceptional women defy the expectations of their time.

Natalie Livingstone

Praise for The Mistresses of Cliveden

Narratively enthralling … chronicled with scholarship, readability, wit and a fine eye for telling detail.

Her scholarship is considerable and yet she wears it lightly, producing a book which is always lively, entertaining and immensely readable.