ABOUT THE BOOK

The Devonshire title has now been handed down through fourteen generations of the House of Cavendish, firstly to Earls and then to Dukes.

The shrewd talents of their ancestress, Bess of Hardwick, are an equally important part of their inheritance and have often been called upon in full measure, especially in recent, literally taxing times.

For more than four centuries, Cavendishes have remained close to national events, the Devonshire dukedom being one of their early rewards. In private they have awarded themselves rather more passing pleasures: gambling, drinking, collecting, spending - and love. Their paramours, countesses and duchesses have themselves shaped the course of events on occasion, sharing in scandals and schemings, financial turbulence and, ultimately, rescue.