The Serpent and the Stag Author:John Pearson Subtitle: The Saga of England's Powerful and Glamourous Cavendish Family from the Age of Henry the Eighth to the Present — The modern Cavendish family was founded by the redoubtable Bess of Hardwick who married into wealth not once but four times and built an empire. By her second husband, Sir William Cavendish, she had five children, includi... more »ng William (who was created earl of Cavendish), Charles (whose son was created duke of Newcastle), Elizabeth (mother, by Charles Stuart, of Arabella Stuart, claimant to the throne who died in the Tower), and Mary (whose husband, a Talbot, inherited the earldom of Shrewsbury from Bess's fourth husband). This book follows the story of the younger William's descendants and Pearson does a good job of getting behind the state portraits and stately homes (including Chatsworth in Derbyshire) to the almost excessively human member of the family. The earls and dukes of Devonshire tended to marry well, including links to the Russells, Howards, Spencers, Butlers, Cecils, Fitzmaurices, Greys, and even the sister of President John F. Kennedy. The family also produced Charles Cavendish, a leading mathematician and close friend of Descartes, and, a century and a half later, Henry Cavendish, discoverer of hydrogen.« less
ISBN-13: 9780030554315 ISBN-10: 0030554314 Publication Date: 1984 Pages:318 Edition:1st American ed Rating: