"The Quest for Queen Mary" by James Pope-Hennessy, ed. Hugo Vickers (2018)


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Gawin

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I've just begun reading The Quest for Queen Mary. Edited by Hugo Vickers, this recently published book contains James Pope-Hennessy's notes of the interviews he conducted while researching his authorized biography of the Queen: Queen Mary 1867-1953, published in 1959.

A lot of interesting information including details Pope-Hennessy could not include in the biography (he instructed that his notes not be published for 50 years). For example, Queen Mary told Margaret Wyndham, one of her Women of the Bedchamber, that before her engagement to the Duke of Clarence she had been (mutually) in love with Arthur Alexander Grosvenor, later 5th Viscount Hood, but "of course she could never have married him, nor would she have thought it right" (Margaret Wyndham's words). Quite another side to the Queen's character.

Queen Mary also admitted to Margaret Wyndham that she realized she got the "better brother" when she married the future George V after the Duke of Clarence's death:

"My dear how right you are. I even realised it at the time I got engaged. My father-in-law was always saying to me 'See that Eddie does this, May" or "Make sure Eddie does that, May" so that I got so worried I went to my mother and said "Do you really think I can take this on?" "Of course you can" she replied.

So toss Tom Bower and Andrew Morton aside - this book is definitely a must read for BRF fans.
 
Very very interesting, Gawin. I made a note to myself to buy this then forgot all about it, so I'll do it now.

I had no idea about Arthur Grosvenor. I suppose her mother, kindly in many ways though she was, would have balked at her marrying someone untitled, and Mary herself had such a strong sense of duty. She knew the Queen had her eye on her as a fiancee for the unsatisfactory Eddy, and therefore that was her destiny.

It's awful to contemplate but Eddy's premature death was such a stroke of luck for May, and of course she realised it.
 
Besides Lord Hood, Margaret Wyndham also told Pope-Hennessy Queen Mary was in love with Lord Hopetoun, later 1st Marquess of Linlithgow.

The Tecks often stayed with the Hopes when QM was a teenager (perhaps a teenage crush? - Lord Hopetoun was seven years her senior). Lord Hopetoun's sister told Pope-Hennessy that "we always thought that if one of the royalties failed, Princessy [QM] might marry my brother."

QM wasn't quite the placid character she's usually made out to be.
 
I think May was quite shy and reserved, practical and strong minded. Of course, young women in those days weren't expected to be 'forward' or flirtatious. It wasn't 'done'.

I suppose we don't think of Mary as being pretty when she was young. I think she had nice colouring and complexion. I remember reading a description by a fellow dinner guest of May when she was Duchess of York as being voluptuous, which isn't something usually attributed to her either.

Btw here in Australia (I've just done a quick Google search) The Quest for Queen Mary seems to be virtually unobtainable. Amazon Aus don't have it, nor does Booktopia. Looks like I'll have to trawl overseas, as I did before Amazon set up here. Freight fees are exorbitant though!
 
Curryong said:
I think May was quite shy and reserved, practical and strong minded. Of course, young women in those days weren't expected to be 'forward' or flirtatious. It wasn't 'done'.

I suppose we don't think of Mary as being pretty when she was young. I think she had nice colouring and complexion. I remember reading a description by a fellow dinner guest of May when she was Duchess of York as being voluptuous, which isn't something usually attributed to her either.

Btw here in Australia (I've just done a quick Google search) The Quest for Queen Mary seems to be virtually unobtainable. Amazon Aus don't have it, nor does Booktopia. Looks like I'll have to trawl overseas, as I did before Amazon set up here. Freight fees are exorbitant though!
Click to expand...

I'm abit surprised that she "let herself" fall in love with men of relatively unroyal status..
however I suppose she was more emotional than she appeared on the surface.
I think the book's avaialbe on Amazon, Curry... I'm alos going to try my library for it..
 
Curryong said:
I think May was quite shy and reserved, practical and strong minded. Of course, young women in those days weren't expected to be 'forward' or flirtatious. It wasn't 'done'.

I suppose we don't think of Mary as being pretty when she was young. I think she had nice colouring and complexion. I remember reading a description by a fellow dinner guest of May when she was Duchess of York as being voluptuous, which isn't something usually attributed to her either.

Btw here in Australia (I've just done a quick Google search) The Quest for Queen Mary seems to be virtually unobtainable. Amazon Aus don't have it, nor does Booktopia. Looks like I'll have to trawl overseas, as I did before Amazon set up here. Freight fees are exorbitant though!
Click to expand...
I definitely see the voluptuousness, even when taking into account that the women were often corseted. I think that May looked particularly va va voom in her wedding pictures.

I don't remember the source, but I recall reading that Mary Adelaide, May's mother was forward and flirtatious when she was young, but the behavior was frowned upon.

One thing that has crossed my mind a few times, was that either Mary was quite gossipy or someone close to her was gossipy. It seems like interesting tidbits where she or someone she confided in was the source have come out, like the story about George VI crying on her shoulder during the abdication crisis.
 
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Yet another romance for QM. According to Cynthia Colville, another long-time Woman of the Bedchamber:

"Thinks she [QM] was not in love with either Prince Eddie or King George...she was in love with Prince Henry of Battenberg, who reciprocated: they agreed to behave well and stop seeing each other."

Henry of Battenberg of course was married to Princess Beatrice, Queen Victoria's youngest daughter. Cynthia Colville doesn't state where her information came from - was it gossip or did she hear it from QM herself?

She did state that QM told her that "in the early days of their marriage she & the Duke of York had terrible rows, but things settled down later."
 
What with being found in the arms of the flirtatious Princess Louise and having a love affair with Princess May, as well as coping with his wife, Henry was a busy boy!

Actually, I think this one is a bit unlikely. I just can't imagine Mary tangling with a married man. For one thing, if it was ever found out bang went any chance of her making a suitable marriage.

The furious rows surprise me though. I thought she was always in thrall to George as a representative of the British Crown. Still, I'm glad things calmed down eventually
 
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Denville said:
I'm abit surprised that she "let herself" fall in love with men of relatively unroyal status..
however I suppose she was more emotional than she appeared on the surface.
I think the book's avaialbe on Amazon, Curry... I'm alos going to try my library for it..
Click to expand...

Amazon lists this as 'currently unavailable' and my local library doesn't have it either. However, I saw it listed on www.hoogstraten.nl, the famous Dutch royalty bookshop for 35 euros! But shipping costs will be added, so I shall wait until summer when I visit Europe again.
 
Curryong said:
The furious rows surprise me though. I thought she was always in thrall to George as a representative of the British Crown. Still, I'm glad things calmed down eventually
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Yes, me too! As I stated before it seems she wasn't the placid-all-for-royal-duty person I always thought she was. She was much more complicated and comes across as more human.

At this point I think I should clam up & give others a chance to read the book for themselves. ?
 
Curryong said:
The furious rows surprise me though. I thought she was always in thrall to George as a representative of the British Crown. Still, I'm glad things calmed down eventually
Click to expand...

Gawin said:
Yes, me too! As I stated before it seems she wasn't the placid-all-for-royal-duty person I always thought she was. She was much more complicated and comes across as more human.

At this point I think I should clam up & give others a chance to read the book for themselves. ?
Click to expand...
Me three. It is also interesting because Mary became pregnant and gave birth to their first child before their first anniversary.

I remember reading that she found the shooting parties dull, which whew, being the wife of an avid shooter would have meant that she must've spent many hours bored out of her mind, especially in the early years of her marriage.

A couple of non sequitur thoughts:
One of George's sister's referred to May as dreadfully dull.

After being given permission to speak freely, one of King George's associates told him that he was very boring and that is why his sons preferred to spend their time elsewhere. George's reply was, "I like my wife," which I took to mean that George would rather spend a quiet evening at home with May than gallivanting about.
 
Yes, and they moved into that ugly York Cottage which in addition to being small and as the family grew, rather cramped, George had so thoughtfully furnished for his bride with Maples furniture! :lol: Add to that Motherdear popping over from Sandringham on a regular basis and no wonder things got a bit fraught! I wonder whether this book has details on what Mary thought about York Cottage and her relationship with her mother in law.
 
I think they were forced to put up with constant interference from other family members which added to the strain - Queen Victoria, his parents, her mother. Her mother irritated him, his mother & sisters irritated and bored her, his mother selected the furniture for their house, and so on. Mary was also almost constantly pregnant which she disliked and was embarrassed about - married 1893, first child born 1894, second 1895, third 1897.
 
This book is finally back in stock in the US and I am receiving it on Saturday. I can't wait!
 
Thank you Gawin and everyone for the info on this book, ABE Books has it and I just ordered mine today......sounds like a very good read!
 
I got the book. Holy mackerel! Even the introduction is packed with interesting information. Don't worry -- no spoilers here! :)
 
I bought it a while ago and it's on my Amazon Kindle. It's thoroughly enjoyable, packed with all sorts of little highlights about not just Queen Mary but other royals, including Scandinavian ones. The author adds his impressions of those he meets as well. Thoroughly reccommended!

BTW, because of the success of the 'Quest for Queen Mary' Pope Hennessy's long out of print biography on Queen Mary is being re-issued, in February I think, with a new foreword. I remember reading the bio as a library book years ago and have forgotten most of it, so I'm keeping my eye on that one too.
 
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James Pope-Hennessy interviewed the Duke of Windsor in France and, while he made a positive remark or two, expressed a few uncomplimentary comments about the Duchess. Some interesting comments were also made about Queen Mary that I will post in her thread.

The Weird Windsors - uncensored: Explosive notebooks of an official royal biographer invited into exiled Duke's gilded cage that are confessional, controversial - and so vivid it's as if you're there


  • James Pope-Hennessy interviewed many members of the Royal Family
  • In 1957 he spent time with the Duke and Duchess of Windsor near Paris
  • He said the Duke was actually a lot less small than he had been led to believe
  • Of the Duchess he said that she was a stupid woman with a 'petty brain'
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...sive-notebooks-official-royal-biographer.html
Click to expand...
 
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I finished the book. That being said, it is the kind of book you can open to any random page and enjoy it. As it's a collection of interviews, there is no plot or thread that one has to follow.

The most surprising thing about this book is that Mr. Pope-Hennessey was given access to the current Queen's bedroom at Sandringham. Granted it was in the 1950's and it was not written about in the original book, but, in this book, it is described in detail and the description is very uncomplimentary. He described it as being more impersonal than a hotel room. It's my thinking that perhaps items of a personal nature were removed from the room by household staff before Mr. H-P toured the house.

On the whole I enjoyed this book very much. Mr. P-H had very keen powers of observation and his descriptions about the various royals and personalities he meets with are wonderful.


While the excerpt in the DM shows Pope-Hennessey to be knocking the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, the two chapters about them provide a much fuller picture in which he thoroughly enjoys their company and attentive hospitality. As with most of the people the author spoke with, Mr. H-P tends to record his first impressions of them, warts and all, and then more warts, then, as he gets to know them and draw them out, they are revealed as very entertaining, considerate and warm-hearted. This is most true of the time spent with The D and D of Windsor.


The author's weekend spent with the Gloucesters and Princess Alice Countess of Athlone is very illuminating. You get a real sense of Prince Henry and his personality. Totally unpretentious. He comes across as most engaging.
 
I'm about half way through the book & enjoying it tremendously. It's tricky keeping up with the lesser known interviewees & who is related to which great aunt etc but google is helping with that.

Pope-Hennessy's ability to recall & record the details of decor, clothing & conversation is astounding & his wit is hugely entertaining. 10/10 so far.
 
I just reread this book. I read a funny anecdote that I had forgotten about.

Apparently King George V was sitting down, reading one day. His youngest, Prince John was in the room, not really near The King. Queen Mary came in, walked over to the King and kissed the top of his head.

Prince John said aloud, "She kissed him! That ugly old man!"

QM and The King couldn't stop laughing.

I love this story!
 
I just read this book and I LOVE IT!! I absolutely love JPH's descriptions of the people he interviewed. There were several laugh out loud moments.
 
Leopoldine said:
I just reread this book. I read a funny anecdote that I had forgotten about.

Apparently King George V was sitting down, reading one day. His youngest, Prince John was in the room, not really near The King. Queen Mary came in, walked over to the King and kissed the top of his head.

Prince John said aloud, "She kissed him! That ugly old man!"

QM and The King couldn't stop laughing.

I love this story!
Click to expand...

Yes, there are a few amusing anecdotes regarding John and his parents and what is really nice is that for all George's harshness with his sons in particular and Mary's somewhat detached mothering style, both of them were surprisingly fond of and indulgent with their youngest special needs child and he was allowed to get away with a great deal.
There's a story I barely remember from someone who was one day having afternoon tea with George V. The tea arrived and John was due to join them and George said "watch when John comes in, he'll make straight for that chocolate cake". Apparently he did and was allowed to eat as much as he wanted. ?
 
Lilyflo said:
I'm about half way through the book & enjoying it tremendously. It's tricky keeping up with the lesser known interviewees & who is related to which great aunt etc but google is helping with that.

Pope-Hennessy's ability to recall & record the details of decor, clothing & conversation is astounding & his wit is hugely entertaining. 10/10 so far.
Click to expand...

His wit IS hugely entertaining I agree, there is also something of a nasty streak to it as well, but that's just my opinion. He was a marvellous biographer, I take nothing from him.
 
I definitely would be reading the "The Quest for Queen Mary" book out from my local library, after finish reading another historical non-fiction book!! I really like Hugo Vickers' spoken contributions in several documentaries, which are balanced and well-expressed.
 
After reading The Quest for Queen Mary edited by Hugo Vickers, I really enjoyed the book, especially on how James Pope-Hennessy described the setting, atmosphere, characteristics and personalities of each interviews. The way Pope-Hennessy conducted his interview, just from reading the questions he asked and how he interacted with multiple interviewees was brilliant. I particularly like The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester (& Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone) chapter, because of the anecdote and light-hearted humour. The Duke of Gloucester is quite a character, which changed my previous assumption of him.

I also like Hugo Vickers' footnotes at the bottom part of the page, especially on introducing people that were unfamiliar or I have known little of.

I would like to thank the Royal Forum for introducing this book. :flowers:
 
Denville said:
I'm abit surprised that she "let herself" fall in love with men of relatively unroyal status..
however I suppose she was more emotional than she appeared on the surface.
I think the book's avaialbe on Amazon, Curry... I'm alos going to try my library for it..
Click to expand...
Well, considering the Tecks morganatic status, I don’t think it would have been an issue.
 
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