The Glitter and the Gold

by Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan

Paperback, 1973

Status

Available

Publication

George Mann Books (1973), Edition: 1st, 304 pages

Description

Biography & Autobiography. History. Nonfiction. Consuelo Vanderbilt was young, beautiful and the heir to a vast family fortune. She was also deeply in love with an American suitor when her mother chose instead for her to fulfill her social ambitions and marry an English Duke. Leaving her life in America, she came to England as the Duchess of Marlborough in 1895 and took up residence in her new home-Blenheim Palace.The ninth Duchess gives unique first-hand insight into life at the very pinnacle of English society in the Edwardian era. An unsnobbish, but often amused observer of the intricate hierarchy both upstairs and downstairs at Blenheim Palace, she is also a revealing witness to the glittering balls, huge weekend parties and major state occasions she attended or hosted. Here are her encounters with every important figure of the day-from Queen Victoria, Edward VII and Queen Alexandra to Tsar Nicholas, Prince Metternich and the young Winston Churchill.This intimate, richly enjoyable memoir is a wonderfully revealing portrait of a golden age.… (more)

Rating

(38 ratings; 3.1)

User reviews

LibraryThing member susanamper
More glitter than gold, Consuelo leaves out most intimate details and instead fills her book with events and dinners with the glitterati including the Czar and Czarina of Russia, Queen Victoria, King George, the Prince of Wales and many others. Although these tales of dinners and balls can be
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interesting, they end up more of a list of social events than a look into Consuelo's life. The story becomes more heartfel when she talks about her marriage to Jacques Balsan and her happy life in France. Most exciting is her tale of their escape from Nazi occupied Paris to Spain and on to Lisbon and America.
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LibraryThing member muddyboy
Mixed emotion about this reissue of book published in 1953. It is marketed as the autobiography of a woman who lived the life portrayed in the PBS series Downton Abbey. The good is that you get an inside look into the life of a 17 year old girl who through arranged marriage is the wife of the Duke
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of Marlborough and the royalty, the balls and the famous people she comes into contact with over the years. On the down side she is a big name dropper and sometimes gives very little information on the people she mentions. Also, everything she does is based on inherited wealth. (Cornelius Vanderbilt's and also the Duke's) Although she does work with orphans and sick children later in life there is not a lot of that going on. She has money without guilt and uses her advantages when she needs to (Get out of France when the Nazis take over..) I read an ARC of the book that had no visual aids. I truly hope that when it is published on October there will be some photos of some of the people she writes about. However the book is interesting and worth reading especially if you want to know what it was like in the glory days of privilege.
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LibraryThing member Whisper1
Oh, poor little Consuelo! When reading this book, I didn't know if I should throw it against the wall, or simply muddle through to see if there were any redeeming qualities about poor little rich girl. Alas, I found none!

Self absorbed, she pats herself on the back for dividing the food in the tins
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given to the poor. Others, she notes, simple through all the left over food in the container mixing it all together. This indeed, was her claim to fame.

Of course, she hated her domineering mother who locked her in her room, forbidding her to come out until she agreed to marry the title Duke of Marlborough. Finally, when she agreed, she was whisked away to England to a life in Blenheim palace.

Hobnobbing with little Winston Churchill and his mother, there are pages and pages about the families who snipped and sneered.

There were way too many pages of who (royalty), when (always) and how (in high style) gliding their way throughout the glamours balls.

I should have stopped reading at 50 pages, but after visiting New Port, RI often and touring the homes, I thought this book would be interested.

Not recommended. Save your time and money for something worthwhile. Or, if you buy it, donate it to the poor and be like Consuelo, give yourself a hearty dose of self congratulation for sharing!
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LibraryThing member briandrewz
An interesting account of the life of Consuelo Vanderbilt, one time Duchess of Marlborough. Consuelo takes us on a journey through her life, beginning with her birth into the glittering New York high society. She takes us into her forced marriage to the Duke of Marlborough, a loveless match. The
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Duke needed her money for Blenheim Palace, and her mother wanted to have a titled daughter. After her divorce, she finds love with Jacques Balsan. The book ends as she flees France to escape the Nazis.

The book is very interesting, if somewhat one sided. Recommended for anyone wanting to learn more about personages from the Gilded Age, as well as British aristocracy.
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Language

Original language

English

Physical description

284 p.; 5.35 inches

ISBN

0704100029 / 9780704100022
Page: 0.2445 seconds