I have a strong suspicion that royal biographies are going to be more popular than ever in 2022, largely thanks to The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Periodically we get a new full length biography of Elizabeth, and they take different angles as the years progress. Unsurprisingly, Matthew Dennison’s The Queen takes a positive approach but is still certainly worth reading.
The Queen, Matthew Dennison
For millions of people, both in Britain and across the world, Elizabeth II is the embodiment of monarchy. Her long life spans nearly a century of national and global history, from a time before the Great Depression to the era of Covid-19. Her reign embraces all but seven years of Britain’s postwar history; she has been served by fifteen UK prime ministers from Churchill to Johnson, and witnessed the administrations of thirteen US presidents from Truman to Trump. The vast majority of Britons cannot remember a world without Elizabeth II as head of state and the Commonwealth.
In this brand-new biography of the longest-reigning sovereign in British history, Matthew Dennison traces her life and reign across an era of unprecedented and often seismic social change. Stylish in its writing and nuanced in its judgements, The Queen charts the joys and triumphs as well as the disappointments and vicissitudes of a remarkable royal life; it also assesses the achievement of a woman regarded as the champion of a handful of ‘British’ values endorsed – if no longer practised – by the bulk of the nation: service, duty, steadfastness, charity and stoicism.
Why You Should Read This…
Overall, this is a lengthy but solid biography of Queen Elizabeth II. Dennison gives a lot of space to her childhood and teenage years, perhaps more than he should have given that there really is nothing new to say there, but he does move along his way. If you have read a few QEII biographies, the first half of this book will feel repetitive, but it does cover all the way through to the pandemic. I particularly appreciated that he didn’t focus on either Diana or Fergie when writing on the 1980s and 1990s as so many biographers do.
I have seen some reviewers remark that this biography is essentially a tribute biography that has been published before her death. While it is a slightly macabre statement, I have to say that I agree with it. (Not that it needs to be negative, but this is not a critical biography.)
If you are looking to “brush up” on The Queen before the Jubilee celebrations start in June, or haven’t read about her before, The Queen is the perfect choice.
Is The Queen by Matthew Dennison on your Platinum Jubilee reading list?
Cheers,
The Historian
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But Dennison are Hardman if we were to choose one?
Excellent question! I would have to go with Hardman’s QEII biographies, as he does provide a solid background while narrowing in on a new focus