The dead duke, his secret wife, and the missing corpse, an extraordinary Edwardian case of deception and intrigue, Piu Marie Eatwell
Type
Label
The dead duke, his secret wife, and the missing corpse, an extraordinary Edwardian case of deception and intrigue, Piu Marie Eatwell
Language
eng
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references
resource.biographical
individual biography
Illustrations
platesillustrations
Index
no index present
Literary Form
non fiction
Main title
The dead duke, his secret wife, and the missing corpse
Nature of contents
bibliography
Oclc number
919591197
Responsibility statement
Piu Marie Eatwell
Sub title
an extraordinary Edwardian case of deception and intrigue
Summary
"One of the most notorious and bizarre mysteries of the Edwardian age, for readers who loved The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher. At the close of the Victorian era, as now, privacy was power. The extraordinarily wealthy 5th Duke of Portland had a mania for it, hiding in his horsedrawn carriage and creating tunnels between buildings to avoid being seen. So when, in 1897, an elderly widow asked the court to exhume the grave of her late father-in-law, T.C. Druce, under the suspicion that he'd led a double life as the 5th Duke, no one could dismiss her claim. The eccentric duke, Anna Maria was sure, had faked his death as Druce, and, therefore, her son should inherit the Portland millions. A lurid, decade-long case was born. Uncovering new archival treasures and offering a 'lively account of ... the lies, deceit, and hypocrisy of Victorian society' (The Times), Piu Marie Eatwell evokes an era in transition, when the rise of sensationalist media blurred every fact into fiction, and when family secrets and fluid identities pushed class anxieties to new heights"--Provided by publisher
Table Of Contents
Dramatis personae -- Act One: Burial -- Scene One: Welbeck Abbey, December 1879 -- Scene Two: St. Paul's Cathedral, March 1898 -- Scene Three: Highgate Cemetery, March 1898 -- Scene Four: Baker Street and Cavendish Square, 1860s -- Scene Five: The streets of London, Summer 1898 -- Scene Six: Featherstone Buildings, December 1898 -- Scene Seven: The New London Law Courts, three years later -- Act Two: Resurrection -- Scene Eight: Bury St. Edmunds, October 1816 -- Scene Nine: On board RMS Oroya, May 1903 -- Scene Ten: An office on London Wall, March 1907 -- Scene Eleven: Marylebone Police Court, October/December 1907 -- Scene Twelve: The Druce Vault, December 1907 -- Scene Thirteen: The Police Court, one week later -- Act Three: Revelation -- Scene Fourteen: London and Welbeck, December 1907 -- Scene Fifteen: London and Worksop, January 1908 -- Scene Sixteen: Holloway Prison, January 1908 -- Scene Seventeen: A London hotel, September 1898 -- Scene Eighteen: Sledmere House, East Riding, 1870s -- Scene Nineteen: A library in Nottingham, October 2013 -- Scene Twenty: Welbeck Abbey, October 2013 -- Epilogue: An obscure grave, London, December 2013 -- Postscript