Paul Thomas Murphy
During Queen Victoriaâ€™s 64-year reign, no fewer than eight attempts were made on her life. Murphy follows each would-be assassin and the repercussions of their actions, illuminating daily life in Victorian England, the development of the monarchy under Queen Victoria and the evolution of the attacks in light of evolving social issues and technology.,There was Edward Oxford, a bartender who dreamed of becoming an admiral, who was simply shocked when his attempt to shoot the pregnant Queen and Prince consort made him a madman in the worldâ€™s eyes. There was hunchbacked John Bean, who dreamed of historical notoriety in a publicized treason trial, and William Hamilton, forever scarred by the ravages of the Irish Potato Famine. Roderick MacLean enabled Victoria to successfully strike insanity pleas from Britainâ€™s legal process. Most threatening of all were the â€œdynamitardsâ€ who targeted her Majestyâ€™s Golden Jubileeâ€”who signaled the advent of modern terrorism with their publicly focused attack.,From these cloak-and-dagger plots to Victoriaâ€™s brilliant wit and steadfast courage, ,Shooting Victoria, is historical narrative at its most thrilling, complete with astute insight into how these attacks actually revitalized the British crown at a time when monarchy was quickly becoming unpopular abroad. While thrones across Europe toppled, the Queenâ€™s would-be assassins contributed greatly to the preservation of the monarchy and to the stability that it enjoys today. After all, as Victoria herself noted, â€œIt is worth being shot atâ€”to see how much one is loved.â€
History,Nonfiction,Biography,Crime,True Crime,European Literature,British Literature,Historical,Historical,Victorian,Literature,19th Century,History,European History,Mystery,Crime
Shooting Victoria: Madness, Mayhem, and the Rebirth of the British Monarchy