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| Plot Summary of Henry and Mary Ponsonby |
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"Henry Ponsonby, a former soldier in the Crimean war, was an assistant to the Prince Consort and married Mary Bulteel, Queen Victoria's lady-in-waiting, in 1861. Nine years later he was appointed the Queen's private secretary. They were more radical than most of the royal family and other courtiers, and their presence was a counterweight to the crown's traditional conservatism.
They could always see the funny side of court life, and never overestimated the Queen and her family as individuals. They believed that if the royal family had real determination and strong convictions, they might be a danger to the State. Mary was involved in several feminist causes of the day, especially women's education, and expanding opportunities for working women. She admired the French Communists who seized power after the Franco-Prussian war, and supported early trade unionism and industrial action.
That such a couple could spend so long at the heart of Queen Victoria's court is significant. Though the royal family did not share the Ponsonbys' views, they respected them, and they thought that the presence of two such independent thinkers was good for the monarchy. Sadly Henry wore himself out in the course of duty, and died after a stroke in 1895. Mary survived him for over twenty years and died in 1916.
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John Van der Kiste, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Henry and Mary Ponsonby |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Political/social rights fight
Yes
Plotlet:
- communists!!!!
Royalty bio
Yes
Period of greatest activity?
- 1800's
Subject of Biography
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- secretary
Age:
- long lived adults
Biography of famous person?
Yes
Ethnicity
- White
Nationality
- British
How sensitive is this person?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other people
Physique
- average physique
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 2 ()
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Misc setting
- Fancy Mansion
Century:
- 19th century
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Book makes you feel?
- thoughtful
Writer's slant towards subject:
- favorable
Story of entire life, or part?
- story of set of events during life
Is this a biography of several people?
Yes
Pictures/Illustrations?
- A lot 11-15 B&W
How much dialogue in bio?
- little dialog
How much of bio focuses on most famous period of life?
- 76%-100% of book
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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