Born to Rule

Born to Rule tells the fascinating stories of five royal granddaughters of Queen Victoria: Alexandra, whose faith in Rasputin and tragic end have become the stuff of legend; Marie, the eccentric queen who battled her way through a life of intrigues and was also the mother of two Balkan queens and of the scandalous Carol II of Romania; Victoria Eugenie, Spain's very English queen who, like Alexandra, introduced hemophilia into her husband's family with devastating consequences for her marriage; Maud, King Edward VII's daughter, independent Norway's reluctant queen; and Sophie, Kaiser Wilhelm II's much maligned sister, daughter of an Emperor and herself the mother of no less than three kings and a queen, who ended her days in bitter exile. Rich in scope and detail, Born to Rule is a captivating collection of historical portraits.