Captive of Kensington Palace

By Jean Plaidy

Book Overview

The young Princess Victoria strictly confined within the boundaries of Kensington Palace is being moulded for her awesome future as Queen of England. Surrounded by her dolls and closely guarded by her domineering mother and faithful governess she slowly becomes aware of the bitter conflicts that surround her.

The jealous and scheming Duke of Cumberland is a constant threat to her rightful accession . . . her mother's sinister friend Sir John Conroy makes her uneasy . . . and the bickering between her mother and the king seems neverending.

Growing up is proving difficult for the princess. She longs for her eighteenth birthday when at last she will be free to rule the nation as she pleases and to re-acquaint herself with the gallant Prince Albert.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0099513528
• ISBN13: 9780099513520
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Arrow Books
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 1.0" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

The Captive of Kensington Palace by Jean Plaidy

A novel about the sentimental and sheltered princess who blossomed into the most famous queen of all time ... Description from the book back cover: She was haunted by a crown and scepter. Young Princess Victoria was never allowed to be alone. She was always protected from political intrigue and royal scandal - a virtual prisoner of her ambitious mother and her scheming lover. It didn't take long for Victoria to become aware of the sinister conflicts surrounding her. There were those who were obsessed with usurping her future power by either violence or marriage. And there were those who were determined she would never take the throne. But no one could deny the glorious destiny that awaited her ...

The Captive Awaits her Destiny

Victoria is virtually a prisoner in Kensington Palace. Her mother and her mother's chamberlain, Sir John Conroy, are her guards. They will not allow her to associate with anyone that has not been thoroughly and critically checked to make sure Victoria is not made harmed by their very presence. Even her governesses are under scrutiny. She is not even allowed to be alone! Someone must always be with her. Her only hope is in contemplating her coming of age, whereupon she may be free and able to take her "Uncle King's" crown without her dreaded captures taking regency. Her best friends are her "dear" sister Feodora, married and living in Germany; her Uncle Leopold, her cousin-in-law and uncle as well as King of the Belgians; Lehzen, her faithful governess; the King and Queen, whom she is rarely allowed to see; and her cousins that she is also rarely allowed to see. She has scheming uncles trying to usurp her right to the throne, and family fighting over her. Every day she comes closer to her dream of adulthood, and her guards' despair at loss of power.This is the first book in the Queen Victoria Series, as well as the first one that I have read in the series (I think that is how they plan for you to read them!). I have read the Royal Diaries version, as well as the A & E mini-series "Victoria and Albert". I was very pleased to find them saying the same things about Queen Victoria's early life. I also enjoyed reading about William IV's and Queen Adelaide's life, as they are usually passed over in history.