Far from destroying the Royal Court, the French Revolution resulted in a stronger monarchy and a larger, more elitist series of courts. Philip Mansel's delightful study of the royal court describes how this came to be.

This attractively illustrated volume describes the succession of courts and monarchies in France 1789 1830, from the revolutionary period to the fall of Charles X. It shows decisively that the revolution resulted in a stronger monarchy and a larger and more elitist series of courts than had existed previously. The book is based on many years of research in public and private archives throughout Europe. New light is thrown on the nature of the French revolution and on the character and policies of Louis XVI, Napoleon I, Louis XVIII and Charles X, who led their courts through periods of unprecedented formality and splendour.