Royalty Inc.: Britain's Best-Known Brand

by Stephen Bates

Overview

The former Guardian royal correspondent “wisely explores a host of issues surrounding the royals, from the monarchy’s role to the legacy of Diana” (Get Surrey).

It was an amazing feat in the twenty-frst century that Queen Elizabeth II, a small woman in her late-eighties, was one of the most recognisable people on the planet. The world had utterly, irreversibly, and radically evolved since she ascended the throne in 1952 and yet, in an era of instant celebrity, she remained, more popular than ever: a bastion of certainty and comfort to the British and many other people during uncertain times. But with her death on September 8, 2022, questions remain: How secure is the British Royal Family? How much depended on the person of the Queen herself, and how much on the institution?

To answer these questions, Royalty Inc. combines a history of the British Crown’s evolution through the modern age with a journalistic peek behind the curtain at the machinery that sustains the Windsors today. Written by the Guardian’s former Royal correspondent, its line is neither royalist nor republican. Instead it takes a clear-eyed look at a host of issues, including the future of the Commonwealth, the Monarchy’s role in the British constitution and class system, King Charles’ notorious “black spider memos,” the true scale of the Royal finances, the legacy of Diana, and the problems and pressures faced by any heir to the throne in the future.

“Fearless and perceptive . . . Stephen Bates tells it like it is, covering every aspect with rare humour and intelligence. I couldn’t recommend it more highly.” —Literary Review

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781781314791
Publisher:	Quarto Publishing Group USA
Publication date:	12/20/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	926,062
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Stephen Bates is a British journalist and author who has been fascinated by the American Civil War and the pioneering Victorian photographers for many years, and this story combines his two enthusiasms. He lives in England but knows the US well. This is his first novel.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 'I have to be seen to be believed' 1

Chapter 2 'It is a great inheritance - and a heavy burden - on the girl who becomes Queen' 17

Chapter 3 'Do you come here often?' 31

Chapter 4 'Our great problem is democracy' 86

Chapter 5 'An entire effacement of self' 102

Chapter 6 'A sphere beyond politics' 130

Chapter 7 'You have mosquitoes, I have the press' 158

Chapter 8 'I think we're a soap opera' 184

Chapter 9 'Speak to us, Ma'am' 208

Chapter 10 'What does she do with it?' 257

Chapter 11 'A spirit of loyal enthusiasm' 293

Chapter 12 'Safer not to be too popular, You can't fall too far' 316

Source Notes 332

Bibliography 338

Acknowledgements 345

Index 348

Editorial Reviews

'Clever book, clever title...knowledgeable, well-researched... There have been scores of books about the monarchy...but few, if any, as fearless and perceptive as this is. Stephen Bates tells it like it is, covering every aspect with rare humour and intelligence. I couldn't recommend it more highly.'

'Totally engrossing, winningly affectionate . . . What a wise and cheeky way to explore the secrets of our gracious Queen.'

'Clever book, clever title...knowledgeable, well-researched... There have been scores of books about the monarchy...but few, if any, as fearless and perceptive as this is. Stephen Bates tells it like it is, covering every aspect with rare humour and intelligence. I couldn't recommend it more highly.'

'a superb account of how "the Firm" (Windsors rather than Krays) became "Britain's best-known brand"' Books of the Year 2015

'Totally engrossing, winningly affectionate . . . What a wise and cheeky way to explore the secrets of our gracious Queen.'

'a superb account of how "the Firm" (Windsors rather than Krays) became "Britain's best-known brand"' Books of the Year 2015

From the Publisher