The Perilous Crown

Book excerpt: Was it inevitable that France should become a republic? In this fascinating account of the period 1814-48, Munro Price attempts to answer this most difficult of questions. Using substantial unpublished research as he did in his celebrated The Fall of the French Monarchy, Price focuses on the amazing political machinations of Madame Adelaide, sister of King Louis Philippe. Though only mentioned rarely in other histories of the time, The French Revolutions shows how her intelligence and behind the scenes wrangling secured her brother the throne, thereby creating France's only long lasting experiment with a constitutional monarchy. Munro Price vividly brings the period alive with all its instability and political intrigue, while at the same time illuminating our understanding of a difficult and tumultuous time. The French Revolutions is an ambitious, exciting and masterful work of history that is sure to delight and inform for many years to come.