Born Royal

by Richard Hough

Chronicles the lives of the children of George V and Mary, and describes the events that shaped their young minds and influenced their adult decisions

Genres: History, Royalty, Nonfiction, Biography, British Royalty

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 1988

About the author

Richard Alexander Hough was a British author and historian specializing in naval history. As a child, he was obsessed with making model warships and collecting information about navies around the world. In 1941, he joined the Royal Air Force and trained at a flying school near Los Angeles. He flew Hurricanes and Typhoons and was wounded in action.

After World War II, Hough worked as a part-time delivery driver for a wine shop, while looking for employment involving books. He finally joined the publishing house Bodley Head, and then Hamish Hamilton, where he eventually headed the children’s book division.

His work as a publisher inspired him to turn to writing himself in 1950, and he went on to write more than ninety books over a long and successful career. Best-known for his works of naval history and his biographies, he also wrote war novels and books for children (under the pseudonym Bruce Carter), all of which sold in huge numbers around the world. His works include The Longest Battle: The War at Sea 1939-45, Naval Battles of the Twentieth Century and best-selling biographies of Earl Mountbatten of Burma and Captain James Cook. Captain Bligh and Mr Christian, his 1972 account of the mutiny on the Bounty, was the basis of the 1984 film The Bounty, starring Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson.

Hough was the official historian of the Mountbatten family and a longtime student of Churchill. Winston Churchill figures prominently in nine of his books, including Former Naval Person: Churchill and the Wars at Sea. He won the Daily Express Best Book of the Sea Award in 1972.

Reviews

[GoldGato · Rating 3 out of 5]

This history of the Windsors (George V and his progeny) gets a decent telling here via their actions, loves, failures, and victories. They have been an interesting family, given their unexpected succession.

When the eldest son of the future Edward VII died, the next son up was the future George V. Stolid but unremarkable, he was the antithesis of his father. While his father had to wait forever to ascend to the throne and spent much of his time as a playboy, George went about his business with an understanding that he was not particularly brilliant. Instead, the first Windsor focused on discipline and hard work, traits that would endear him to his subjects as the world was charging into revolution and catastrophic war.

His large family of five sons and one daughter would disappoint him in many ways, particularly the eldest, future King Edward VIII. History would repeat itself when his second son would unexpectedly take on the crown (thankfully), following his father's footsteps with the same doggedness and focus on family values. One simply wonders what would have happened if George VI hadn't been the king during WWII, given the "something's missing" attitude of his elder brother.

I enjoyed reading this as there isn't much sensationalism, just a straightforward telling of each Windsor and his/her biography. Little epileptic John gets some coverage here also, along with the Mounbattens. While George V and Queen Mary always looked so foreboding, I now understand why they survived while their Russian cousins did not.

Book Season = Winter (difficult times)

[Fran Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book begins with the reign of Queen Victoria and ends with the abdication of Edward VIII. While being a child in England during this time was no picnic for anyone, especially those whose family lacked money, this group of royal children had a particularly bad time. King George V (Victoria's grandson) was stiff and formal and hardly had a kind word for his eldest son, David, the Prince of Wales, (who later became King Edward VIII, and then after abdicating he became the Duke of Windsor.) Their mother, Queen Mary, was cold and lacking in maternal interest. Their nanny pinched David so he would cry whenever he was around his mother, and barely fed his brother, Bertie, who later became king as George VI.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating foray into the lives of the Windsors as children and young adults, from their births prior to their name change through the crowning of King George VI. I was thrilled to read about Bertie (to be George VI) and Elizabeth's courtship, George V's reaction to ther murder of his cousin Tsar Nicolas II and his family (and his role in that murder!), and all sorts of sordid stuff about the young Windsors. Fun read, loads of neat pictures, and it's a real shame this book is out of print - thanks, Carol, for lending it to me! I've never read a book quite like it.

[Amber the Human · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ha, I have read so many books about the royals that I do not remember them all and sometimes have to be reminded of them randomly. I can remember when I read this, because I did so on a bus on my way to my old job, and that was during a brief few months, before I moved. Anyway, the book was alright. It was sad to read about children so fenced in by tradition. Reading the reviews on Amazon, I do remember it focusing more on the first two princes than the later four children.

[Nate]

The book was a dramatic history which I personally did not like though I do understand why people like it. I also noticed a factual error when he referred to Princesss Victoria of Hesse, later Marchioness of Milford Haven, as the youngest granddaughter of Queen Victoria which is extremely far off the mark as she was one of the eldest and the eldest child of her mother. This was alarming to me because the author had written a book on her.

[Kristina Hoerner · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book covered the decades long feud between Elizabeth, the Queen Mother and Wallis Simpson who became the Duchess of Windsor. It was ok but I am not sure how accurate the facts were.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting to read after seeing 'The King's Speech' and reading Fall of Giants by Follet. Great look at that time period, and the monarchy.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really quite dreadful. Careens from pedantic to salacious. But a guilty pleasure.

[Beth Bedee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting if you're interested in British royalty in the 20th Century.