Ladies in Waiting: From the Tudors to the Present Day

by Anne Somerset

Far from being servants or decorative accessories in court, ladies-in-waiting competed for real positions of power--and many succeeded in their goals, sometimes betraying their queens in the process. A few even became royal mistresses, such as the rapacious Lady Castlemaine who amassed a fortune and flaunted her hold over King Charles II. Drawing on a wide variety of primary sources, including the diaries of such shrewd onlookers as Lady Cowper and Fanny Burney, bestselling author Anne Somerset provides a guide to the character, profligate or pious, of each court. This lively combination of entertaining anecdote and searching analysis is social history at its most colorful.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Historical, Royalty, Biography, British Literature, Research

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

Anne Somerset (1955-) English art historian and author.

Somerset’s biography of England’s last Stuart monarch, entitled Queen Anne: The Politics of Passion was awarded the 2013 Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography.

Until his death in 2011, Anne Somerset was married to the artist Matthew Carr. Lady Anne Somerset is the daughter of the 11th Duke of Beaufort.

Reviews

[Tamora Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice, clearly written, conversational book about the rise and fall of ladies in waiting and their English queens from the time of Henry VIII to the present. Somerset skimps a bit in modern times, and I wish she'd been clearer about when the constitution made the monarchy less important , but it was still a fun read. It's not a detailed story, but an introduction, complete like details such as which queens had their husband's mistresses foisted on them!

[Orsolya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Perhaps my dislike toward this book is due to the fact that it was first published in 1984 and thus, much of the material has been covered in ever subsequent royal history book since (and in a muich more detailed manner); or perhaps it is merely Somerset's writing style but the point is, I didn't find this book to be either interesting or very informative.

Much of the text is dry and/or information which a reader with an average amount of royal knowledge can pretty much hypothesize of suspect. Plus, Somesert dives too deep into menial facts which can seem to be fascinating on the outside (such as the fasions and desired cloth colors) but are boring even to a fashion-obsessed reader.

Overall, you can learn more of the world of maids, ladies, servants, etc from the sidenotes in other royal history books. Reading this one isn't necessary.

[Alenka of Bohemia · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I went into this book with different expectations (particularly I thought this would be more of a study of duties, privileges and lifestyle of the ladies throughout time), I enjoyed this book. It provides some very interesting stories which further enhance one´s knowledge on various English monarchs and their circle. Naturally the more famous names get more attention than others.

[Lulah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of these families have been at court for like 500 years??

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne Somerset’s scholarly work on Elizabeth I is the historical biography I respect the most. I purchased this one because it was by her and was a bit surprised to read the segment of a review on the front cover “a naughty knickers version of our island story.” I was worried about what I would find, but after reading the introduction, I was reassured. Anne was still at her scholarly best: here is an excerpt from the beginning of her introduction.

To renounce the court entailed the renunciation of all worldly ambitions, and
involved besides foregoing the company of all but social inferiors, losing touch
with developments in fasion and art, and more often than not, living in seclusion
on a remote estate. It was not a decision to be taken lightly.

David Starkey has mentioned, you need to add some juicy gossip materials to history to make it appealing to the masses—okay, I understand that but he can ‘sell out’ not Anne! Well, rest assured she didn’t. Yes, there were time periods in the English royal history where the ladies-in-waiting were there as fodder for the royal appetites which Anne does not blush to cover—never in a sensationalist manner. The only true negative was I felt, once or twice, Anne lost touch with the idea of this being about the ladies-in-waiting and focused too much on other players at Court. Overall a great book using numerous primary sources and certainly portraying the character of each Court.

[Edith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started "Ladies in Waiting" because I very much enjoyed "Unnatural Murder," also by Anne Somerset. Two things became apparent: I've read this one before, probably not long after it came out in the 80s; and, it's not nearly as good as "Unnatural Murder." (To be honest, I skimmed much of the book this time around--the terrain was familiar, and the writing not at a level to encourage lingering.)

Somerset's heart doesn't seem to be in this one: it's cursory, and lacks the insight into personality that made "Murder" so intriguing. And it's not so much about ladies in waiting per se (especially in the early sections), as a brief history of court life under the various monarchs. There are some curious omissions, and inaccuracy (which may result from having been written before scholarship demonstrated different understandings about, for example, Anne Boleyn). The modern period seems to have been treated rather scantly, and not just the book ends at about the time of the birth of the present Duke of Cambridge.

On the whole, rather disappointing.

[Betty B Goode · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was severely disappointed in this book. I picked it up thinking it would be a good source of information on the changing role and function of ladies in waiting at the English Court, but of that there was almost nothing. Instead, there was a lot of rehashing of stale, often inaccurate, gossip about certain individual ladies. If you're not at all familiar with the English court in the periods and are looking for a light read that isn't necessarily too concerned with source criticism, then you might enjoy it. But if you've already read up on the periods concerned and/or is looking for a scholarly work on ladies in waiting, don't bother.

[Ghost of the Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

it took me a bit more time than usual to finish this one, and sadly it is because at times I found myself almost falling asleep.
the topic is interesting, the research is very good but, at least for me, the style of writing can be too formal at times, making me feel like I am once more sitting in class with "my very intelligent yet totally non approachable because he is soooo much smarter than his students" English History teacher! ...shame, I really wanted to love but...nah, didnt happen!
I am however awarding it 4 stars because personal preferences aside, the topic has a ton of potential and is very well researched - even if by now a little outdated.

[The Wee Hen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a delightful history of those behind-the-scenes toilers, the ladies-in-waiting to English royals. Although disappointing in that is does not provide any information as to the women who worked behind the scenes for royals before the Tudor age, it is fairly exhaustive in what it does cover. Some courts saw ladies with very little power as in Victoria's day and some courts saw ladies wielding enormous power, as in Queen Anne and Bonnie Prince Charlie's era. Charming book and a must-read for lovers of women's history.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are the type of person who routinely falls down Wikipedia rabbit holes featurung European monarchs, chasing mistresses and children and foreign marriage alliances--and I am such a person--then you'll probably like this book. If not, this probably isn't the book for you. The writing is fairly dry, so if the subject doesn't interest you, there won't be much for you here.

Bottom line: being a lady in waiting mostly sucked. And good gracious, England has had a lot of lemons running the show.

[RKanimalkingdom]

DNF
50 pages in

It's way to dense. I don't know who 50% of these people are and there are so many Duke of... Lord of....Lady....
Also, it's supposed to tell me about the Ladies in Waiting but all I'm mostly getting is a rushed and very dense history of the important figures. Sure some of them may have started out as ladies in waiting but that's not who this book should be focusing on.

Maybe I'll come back when I have more knowledge of who half these people are.

[Mary Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Different court, different names same old shenanigans going on. This book got very repetitive even though the characters and times changed.

[Tansy Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thorough, fascinating story of the English court from Tudors onward, told via the stories of the ladies-in-waiting in service to the queens (and sometimes princesses). So interesting how this work was basically the closest many women had to having a career -- especially a political career.

Loads of details, scandal, gossip and social commentary. I read the audio version which doesn't seem to be listed on Goodreads, and it was excellent company!

[Ann McGuinness · Rating 4 out of 5]

Behind the scenes in royal households

This account covers four hundreds years of attendance and service by court ladies to various queens and sometimes to their husbands, the kings. Politics, scandal, gossip and financial gain are recounted in a very entertaining read of petticoat power through the centuries.

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book very interesting. I liked to hear how the roles of ladies in waiting changed throughout the years and some of the stories.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting stories but not the most scintillating read.

[Amanda Lavelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Hazel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Felt a little rushed towards the end. I feel some could have been culled in earlier chapters to add more flesh to the closing eras which I would have preferred to learn more about but over all informative, concise and doesn't feel like sitting through a lecture.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lightweight, amusing, anecdotes

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely an interesting read. This is an important book, because it illuminates a subject that has been otherwise neglected by historians, however the relative dearth of sources on ladies in waiting has made this into more of a gossipy history of England. Somerset's richest sources about these ladies are less concerned with their duties and more with their indiscretions and scandals. Somerset is also a little opinionated about some of these ladies, which renders the book's tone somewhat unscholarly.

[Simone The Glam Historian · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a laborious read. It chronicles the many royal houses from the tudors to the modern day. While there are a few interesting stories about the lives and schemes of ladies in waiting, it falls very short of being a page-turner. I battled my way to the end, a desire not to be defeated by it. There is very little on the ladies in waiting from the house of Windsor, so to say “to the modern day” is a little misleading. The authors research is to be commended, fitting centuries into 300ish pages is admirable, but it’s just a painstaking read.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was fantastic!! Although I did find myself on Wikipedia quite a bit looking up all the people and events. If you've ever watched the show The Tudors on Showtime and thought "ya right", guess again, because most of actually happened. The people that ruled after that were sometimes even more outrageous. If you like to read about the English monarchy, I suggest that you add this book to your list of must reads.

[Nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun read: well researched and appropriately gossipy for the subject matter. It flowed well the way well-written non-fiction can. I wish that maybe there had been a few more details about the etiquette/day-to-day lives of these women, but it was a good overview of the subject and showed why and how the station evolved overtime: how much power they wielded under different queens or how little....a good look at this facet of court life.

[Courtney Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read, chronicling the importance of Ladies in Waiting since the Tudors. Although at times it felt like a bit of a struggle, it was a very fun and informative read. Although, as mentioned in other reviews, there is not a lot written about the modern ladies in waiting (which is understandable given the time it was written) but it would be more interesting to read about the comparison from now to the past.

[Alec · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite interesting in the beginning, and got a bit boring by the end. I think Victoria did away with the lady-in-waiting as interesting person and the author hardly said anything about their role in modern life. I thought it was well written and full of lively anecdotes about what it was like to wait on royalty over the years.

[Kayla Tornello · Rating 3 out of 5]

At the beginning of this book, it seemed to be more about the monarchs than the ladies in waiting. Even though it's understandable, since there isn't much information from that time, I was still a bit disappointed. The book seemed to become more focused on the topic as it progressed. The writing seemed a bit dry, but there were some interesting moments.

[Brittany]

Very excellent book, and interesting too. Although it is more a biography of the various ladies in waiting in history. I was hoping for more information about their daily lives as ladies in waiting.

[Emma K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely an acquired taste, if you don’t like history don’t pick up this book. However, if you so happen to be a fan of history or the monarchy this was a fun read. Full of crazy stories and hilariously specific insults, I liked it.

[Karen B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This gives a fascinating insight into the lives of the women closest to the Queens of the past.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read about the role of the Queen's attendants from the 16th to the 20th century.