The Guardian Online reviews a new biography of Queen Victoria's daughter Louise, who came to Canada with her husband, Governor General the Marquis of Lorne:
Lorne, offered as an alternative, was not precisely a catch. He washed rarely, his clothes were eccentric, he was convinced he had second sight, and he refused to let his wife use his billiard table. But she accepted him as the least bad option and went with him to Canada when he was appointed its governor – even if she didn't stay long. The marriage was not happy. But it was convenient. They could live apart, together.Sounds like a dishy read, if not one that will thrill defenders of the maple monarchy. Did she have a child out of wedlock? Did one of her artistic lovers, the queen's own sculptor, die in her arms? Was her husband the G-G gay?
Hawksley has answers to all these questions. In essence: yes, yes and yes.
