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The First Iron Lady: A Life of Caroline of Ansbach
Often compared to Catherine the Great or Elizabeth I, Caroline of Ansbach is the great queen Britain forgot it had. A thinker, politician, schemer, patroness and matriarch, this brilliant book offers a remarkable portrait of a woman of great political astuteness and ambition, a radical icon of female power.
History has forgotten Caroline of Ansbach and yet in her lifetime she was compared frequently to Elizabeth I and considered by some as ‘the cleverest Queen consort Britain ever had’.
The intellectual superior of her buffoonish husband George II, Caroline is credited with bringing the Enlightenment to Britain through her sponsorship of red-hot debates about science, religion, philosophy and the nature of the universe. Encouraged by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, she championed inoculation; inspired by her friend Leibniz and Samuel Clarke, she mugged up on Newtonian physics; she embraced a salon culture which promoted developments in music, literature and garden design; she was a regular theatre-goer who loved the opera, gambling and dancing. Her intimates marvelled at the breadth of her interests. She was, said Lord Egmont, ’curious in everything’.
Caroline acted as Regent four times whilst her husband returned to Hanover and during those periods she possessed power over all domestic matters. No subsequent royal woman has exercised power on such a scale.
So why has history forgotten this extraordinary queen?
In this magnificent biography, the first for over seventy years, Matthew Dennison seeks to reverse this neglect. The First Iron Lady uncovers the complexities of Caroline’s multifaceted life from child of a minor German princeling who, through intelligence, determination and a dash of sex appeal, rose to occupy one of the great positions of the world and did so with distinction, élan and a degree of cynical realism. It is a remarkable portrait of an 18th-century woman of great political astuteness and ambition, a radical icon of female power.
History has forgotten Caroline of Ansbach and yet in her lifetime she was compared frequently to Elizabeth I and considered by some as ‘the cleverest Queen consort Britain ever had’.
The intellectual superior of her buffoonish husband George II, Caroline is credited with bringing the Enlightenment to Britain through her sponsorship of red-hot debates about science, religion, philosophy and the nature of the universe. Encouraged by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, she championed inoculation; inspired by her friend Leibniz and Samuel Clarke, she mugged up on Newtonian physics; she embraced a salon culture which promoted developments in music, literature and garden design; she was a regular theatre-goer who loved the opera, gambling and dancing. Her intimates marvelled at the breadth of her interests. She was, said Lord Egmont, ’curious in everything’.
Caroline acted as Regent four times whilst her husband returned to Hanover and during those periods she possessed power over all domestic matters. No subsequent royal woman has exercised power on such a scale.
So why has history forgotten this extraordinary queen?
In this magnificent biography, the first for over seventy years, Matthew Dennison seeks to reverse this neglect. The First Iron Lady uncovers the complexities of Caroline’s multifaceted life from child of a minor German princeling who, through intelligence, determination and a dash of sex appeal, rose to occupy one of the great positions of the world and did so with distinction, élan and a degree of cynical realism. It is a remarkable portrait of an 18th-century woman of great political astuteness and ambition, a radical icon of female power.
416 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2017
About the author
Matthew Dennison
31 books62 followersMatthew Dennison is the author of five critically acclaimed works of non-fiction, including Behind the Mask: The Life of Vita Sackville-West, a Book of the Year in The Times, Spectator, Independent and Observer. He is a contributor to Country Life and lives in the United Kingdom.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 12, 2019
Underwhelming
I was really looking forward to this book. I'd seen great reviews of it, and was very interested in learning more about Caroline and the world she lived in. I was expecting great things.
Instead I got... This. I learned basically nothing new from this, which is disappointing because I by no means consider myself an expert on the period. Several very key events were glossed over very quickly, and there was very little analysis of the key events that were examined. At least, I assume there wasn't. The writing was so florid and over the top that I found it hard to extract any details.
My biggest complaint, though, is that this book is... Kinda sexist. By which I mean that the author can't go 5 pages without mentioning Caroline's breasts. I'm not one to insist on the respect of historical figures, most of them are ridiculous and all of them are beyond caring, but this just skeeved me the hell out. Caroline was an incredibly smart woman who achieved a lot, and here she's often reduced to the sacks of flesh that happen to be attached to her front.
I mean, I finished this book - which is something - but I didn't enjoy doing it.
I was really looking forward to this book. I'd seen great reviews of it, and was very interested in learning more about Caroline and the world she lived in. I was expecting great things.
Instead I got... This. I learned basically nothing new from this, which is disappointing because I by no means consider myself an expert on the period. Several very key events were glossed over very quickly, and there was very little analysis of the key events that were examined. At least, I assume there wasn't. The writing was so florid and over the top that I found it hard to extract any details.
My biggest complaint, though, is that this book is... Kinda sexist. By which I mean that the author can't go 5 pages without mentioning Caroline's breasts. I'm not one to insist on the respect of historical figures, most of them are ridiculous and all of them are beyond caring, but this just skeeved me the hell out. Caroline was an incredibly smart woman who achieved a lot, and here she's often reduced to the sacks of flesh that happen to be attached to her front.
I mean, I finished this book - which is something - but I didn't enjoy doing it.
October 7, 2019
An excellent biography of a woman largely forgotten. Caroline suffered many trials and tribulations during her early years which gave her the experience to lead her husband king George 2nd to many of the decisions he made. Her adherence to her protestant religion long before she became queen made her popular with her British subjects. But like her father in law before her, her releationship with her son was fraught. If she is remembered at all it is as a woman who managed her less intelligent and often bad tempered husband. A wonderful read about a very interesting woman.
September 17, 2021
I can not recommend this book.
A better book dealing with Queen Caroline of Ansbach is King George II & Queen Caroline by John van der Kiste.
The author forms a hypothesis that Queen Caroline of Ansbach was similar to Maggie Thatcher, only the facts don't really support this thesis and so the author bends the facts to fit his hypothesis.
The author is incredibly sexist and obsessed with this deceased Queens breasts in a distracting and obnoxious manner. I don't know why those comments weren't edited out.
What a farce.
A better book dealing with Queen Caroline of Ansbach is King George II & Queen Caroline by John van der Kiste.
The author forms a hypothesis that Queen Caroline of Ansbach was similar to Maggie Thatcher, only the facts don't really support this thesis and so the author bends the facts to fit his hypothesis.
The author is incredibly sexist and obsessed with this deceased Queens breasts in a distracting and obnoxious manner. I don't know why those comments weren't edited out.
What a farce.
January 27, 2024
If I had a pound for every time a king or queen of englands body literally exploded, I’d have 3 pounds, which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it happened 3 times.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2020
In this biography the author appears to have chosen the title and then used Selective history to prove the point. Its altogether too transparent. Major events of her times and even reign are scarcely commented upon. Whereas the author revealingly and justifiably places the blame on her for the estrangement with her son the Prince of Wales, in all other respects the book reads like hagiography.
September 30, 2019
a good biography marred by the fact that the biographer views women too much through the lens of how sexually attractive they are.
June 9, 2018
Finally Caroline of Ansbach is given the spotlight and credit she truly deserves in this remarkable and thoroughly researched biography.
Without doubt, Caroline is one of the most intelligent and influential royals in history. Yet she has been shockingly overlooked over the centuries. This new biography, gives her the credit she deserves.
The book is divided into two sections; Hannover and Britain, Caroline’s fascinating life is well documented, from being one of the youngest children not expected for greatness, to being passed around relatives after the deaths of her parents, to her marriage to the future George II of Great Britain to her self-training for her future role as Queen of Britain to her sharp intellect and understanding of winning over her new subjects to managing her husbands childish tantrums, this biography rightly shows that Caroline was the real power behind the throne and the saviour of the Hanoverian dynasty.
The biography shows just how often Caroline was compared to Queen Elizabeth I, how she worked effortlessly to win over her new subjects, how she pushed for reforms, offered clemency to the Jacobites and was the subject of endless poems and a supporter of the arts and sciences.
The book also touches on the less appealing side of Caroline, her poor relationship with her eldest son Frederick, Prince of Wales, and tries to understand why their relationship was so bad. I felt the author gave a very balanced view on this area, unlike many other historians.
This biography delves deep into the fascinating world of late 17th- mid 18th century Ansbach, Hanover and Britain. Particular interests for me were Ansbach and Hanover, areas I have not previously much about.
But equally, you come away from this book with more of an understanding of the intrigues, dramas and glamorous world of the early Georgian era.
I guarantee readers will come away with a new appreciation of this unfairly underrated Queen, whose influence did much to stabilise the Hanoverian dynasty in Britain and also paved the way for a new style of Monarchy in Britain, which is one of the reasons why it survived while other Monarchies were overthrown in revolutions.
A must read for anyone interested in history, royalty and politics.
Without doubt, Caroline is one of the most intelligent and influential royals in history. Yet she has been shockingly overlooked over the centuries. This new biography, gives her the credit she deserves.
The book is divided into two sections; Hannover and Britain, Caroline’s fascinating life is well documented, from being one of the youngest children not expected for greatness, to being passed around relatives after the deaths of her parents, to her marriage to the future George II of Great Britain to her self-training for her future role as Queen of Britain to her sharp intellect and understanding of winning over her new subjects to managing her husbands childish tantrums, this biography rightly shows that Caroline was the real power behind the throne and the saviour of the Hanoverian dynasty.
The biography shows just how often Caroline was compared to Queen Elizabeth I, how she worked effortlessly to win over her new subjects, how she pushed for reforms, offered clemency to the Jacobites and was the subject of endless poems and a supporter of the arts and sciences.
The book also touches on the less appealing side of Caroline, her poor relationship with her eldest son Frederick, Prince of Wales, and tries to understand why their relationship was so bad. I felt the author gave a very balanced view on this area, unlike many other historians.
This biography delves deep into the fascinating world of late 17th- mid 18th century Ansbach, Hanover and Britain. Particular interests for me were Ansbach and Hanover, areas I have not previously much about.
But equally, you come away from this book with more of an understanding of the intrigues, dramas and glamorous world of the early Georgian era.
I guarantee readers will come away with a new appreciation of this unfairly underrated Queen, whose influence did much to stabilise the Hanoverian dynasty in Britain and also paved the way for a new style of Monarchy in Britain, which is one of the reasons why it survived while other Monarchies were overthrown in revolutions.
A must read for anyone interested in history, royalty and politics.
June 7, 2018
I enjoyed reading more about Caroline of Ansbach, a British queen who deserves to be better known. Caroline was central to the House of Hanover's public image in Britain as her husband George II and father-in-law, George I had little charisma. Caroline trained carefully for her future role while still a princess in Hanover, reading British history (during her husband's naps as he was bored by reading), requesting tea and taking English conversation lessons. Dennison incorporates the popular culture of the period, which was fascinated by Caroline's strong Protestant faith, large family and her perceived political influence. An interesting and engaging read.
February 6, 2021
Well I think it’s fair to say that Matthew Dennison is a boob man, I lost count of the amount of times he commented on Caroline’s breasts...which is reductionist at best and massively sexist at worst.
I had high hopes for this book which weren’t entirely fulfilled, managing to make a fascinating woman’s story pretty mundane, glossing over some pretty major life events but going into endless detail about how her outfits contained her breasts.
Also the ending was incredibly abrupt.
I had high hopes for this book which weren’t entirely fulfilled, managing to make a fascinating woman’s story pretty mundane, glossing over some pretty major life events but going into endless detail about how her outfits contained her breasts.
Also the ending was incredibly abrupt.
July 26, 2021
I only like the first 270 pages of the book. Took great effort to read it, attributed to the great pontification of family feud. Very little is touched on this Ansbach’s Princess contributions to British society.
September 18, 2020
A good amount of early Georgian person knowledge is required but otherwise I enjoyed learning about a forgotten woman
August 29, 2023
Very interesting biography of a woman often overlooked in British history.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews