The Viceroy's Daughters: The Lives of the Curzon Sisters

Description

Based on unpublished letters and diaries, The Viceroy's Daughters is a riveting portrait of three spirited and wilful women who were born at the height of British upper-class wealth and privilege. The oldest, Irene, never married but pursued her passion for foxes, alcohol, and married men. The middle, Cimmie, was a Labour Party activist turned Fascist. And Baba, the youngest and most beautiful, possessed an appetite for adultery that was as dangerous as it was outrageous. As the sisters dance, dine, and romance their way through England's most hallowed halls, we get an intimate look at a country clinging to its history in the midst of war and rapid change. We obtain fresh perspectives on such personalities as the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Oswald Mosley, Nancy Astor and the Cliveden Set, and Lord Halifax. And we discover a world of women, impeccably bred and unabashedly wilful, whose passion and spirit were endlessly fascinating. Machine generated contents note: I Curzon and His Circle -- 2 Viceroy and Vicereine -- 3 The Schoolroom at Hackwood -- 4 Elinor Glyn -- 5 Enter Grace Duggan -- 6 Growing Up -- 7 "She Must Do As She Pleases" -- 8 Baba Comes Out -- 9 The Absentee Wife -- io Melton Mowbray: Life at the Gallop -- rl The Passing of the Viceroy -- 12 Cimmie and Tom: Early Married Life -- 13Irene: In Love with Married Men -- 4 Lady Cynthia Mosley, MP -- 15The Mosley Memorandum -- 6 The New Party -- 17High Life and Low Morals on the Riviera -- 8 Diana Guinness, Trophy Mistress -- 19 "Goodbye My Buffy" -- 20 Keeping It in the Family -- 21 The Blackshirt Phenomenon -- 22 Baba and Diana: Sharing Mosley -- 23 Mrs. Simpson Rules -- 24 Abdication -- 25 "I Should Have Kissed Her but I Just Couldn't" -- 26 The Cliveden Set -- 27 At Home with the Duke -- 28 Fruity Speaks His Mind -- 29 Britain at War -- 30 "My Idea of a Perfect Evening" -- 31 The Dorch -- 32 An Unexpected Proposal -- 33 The Halifax Letters -- 34 Sisterly Jealousy -- 35 Peace but Not Accord -- 36 Envoi -- NOTE ON SOURCES -- BIBLIOGRAPHY -- INDEX.