Lord Melbourne was Prime Minister of England from 1834-1841. As mentor and father-figure to the young Queen Victoria, he exerted considerable influence over the first few years of her reign. He was a man to whom career success came rather late - he was forty-eight years old before he held any major governmental office. In a profound way, his character and thinking had already been determined by experiences outside politics - particularly by his Whig social background and his disastrous marriage to Lady Caroline Lamb. In this, the first biography for twenty years, Leslie Mitchell uses the Melbourne family papers to explore the man behind a politician at the heart of early Victorian politics. William Lamb, the second Viscount Melbourne, might have held office earlier had it not been for his marriage to Lady Caroline Ponsonby, whose scandalous public affaires (including one with Byron), preceded a descent into madness and separation from her husband. Her death in 1828 freed Melbourne to take up the career which was almost his birthright. His views and subsequent political rise and survival in high office (almost by accident rather than design), reveal much about the nature of Whig politics - operating as an extension of family relationships and the expression of the shared values of an elite. As Prime Minister, Melbourne became the closest adviser and father figure to the new queen, who was only eighteen years old at her accession in 1837. Her rejection of Melbourne on her marriage to Prince Albert was abrupt and devastating, and Melbourne never really recovered from it. He became a marginalized figure, out of step with the demands of a fast-changing, newly industrialized world. In this fascinating account, Leslie Mitchell fully explores the private and public life of a man destined for high office and greatly influenced by the women in his life.

About the Author
L. G. Mitchell is Fellow and Praelector in Modern History at University College, Oxford. The leading scholar of the Whigs, his many books include the highly praised Charles James Fox (OUP 1992).

Reviews
Mitchell's biography maintains its wonderful succinctness. * German Historical Institute Bulletin, Vol. XXIII, No.1, May 2001 *
It is a measure of the achievement of this fascinating study that it goes a long way towards explaining how such an unlikely figure as Melbourne ... found himself, by virtue of the peculiarities of the times, strangely suited to the position of premier ... in the main body of this volume, Leslie Mitchell has provided a valuable, very well-written and at times gripping account of the public and private lives of a strangely successful politician. * Stephen M. Lee, History *
"an admirable mixture of the political and the personal", as Anthony Howard put it in The Sunday Times...Amanda Foreman in The Independent..."both absolutely uncompromising and utterly compelling...Mitchell's humane biography provides a balanced portrait of a diffident man whose personality and politics were deformed by his marriage...Jane Ridley in The Spectator..."Mitchell brilliantly recreates the world of the great Whigs, that strange caste who made love to monarchs, then attacked them out-of-doors in the name of people they never went near..."Few academic historians have Leslie Mitchell's gift for entering into past worlds or for marrying rigorous political analysis with a proper feel for period"..Boyd Hilton in The Sunday Telegraph..."hardly an edifying tale, but it is a thoroughly absorbing one". * The Week *
A splendid biography by a perceptive historian... The interpretation presented here is convincing, the command of sources apparent, the writing engaging, and the treatment of political issues sure. Mitchell excels in treating Melbourne's connection with the young queen... Mitchell's life of Melbourne is an exemplary achievement in the craft of historical biography. * Abraham D. Kriegel, Albion *
Leslie Mitchell tells his story in a scholarly way...has researched his subject extensively, and has come up with much new material * Country Life *
this thorough and well-researched life will easily do for the next two decades * The Times *
excellent biography * Spectator *
Dr Mitchell's book is consistently interesting, often wise and manifestly written with a great knowledge of the period * Roy Jenkins, The Observer *
a lively, well-written biography by a man who is a master of his period. It is not the last word on Lord Melbourne, but it will do very well until the next biography comes along in 20 years or so. * Daily Telegraph *
In this biography, an admirable mixture of the personal and the political, L G Mitchell does not hesitate to let his invesitagor's torch play on some dark places... the author...is very much the master of his material...comprehensive and persuasive. * Sunday Times *
Few academic historians have Leslie Mitchell's gift for entering into past worlds or for marrying rigorous political analysis with a proper feel for period. This is hardly an edifying tale, but it is a thoroughly absorbing one. * Sunday Telegraph *
This is very much a political biography and provokes other questions * Times Literary Supplement *
a lively, highly readable book * Literary Review *
elegant, scholarly and readable study * Independent on Sunday *
the first biography of the English prime minister (1834-41) for twenty years. * History Today *
This latest biography is a revelation in two senses. It reveals a darker, much more complicated man than the urbane aristocrat of previous studies. Second, it proves that academic history in the hands of a first-rate historian is never boring. Lord Melbourne is both absolutely uncompromising and utterly compelling. It is full of the most elegant, witty remarks, recalling a bygone era when stylish historical writing was prized among academics ... an inspiration to historians. * Amanda Foreman, The Independent *
an admirable mixture of the personal and the political ... the author ... is very much the master of his material - and his chronicle of a strange period of political history when party allegiances were a good deal more fluid than they were later to become is comprehensive and persuasive * Anthony Howard, The Sunday Times *
Few academic historians have Leslie Mitchell's gift for entering into past worlds or for marrying rigorous political analysis with a prooper feel for period. This is hardly an edifying tale, but it is a thoroughly absorbing one. * Boyd Hilton, The Sunday Telegraph *
In this biogrpahy, an admirable mixture of the personal and the political, L G Mitchell does not hesitate to let his investigator's torch play on some dark places ... his chronicle of a strange period of political history when party allegiances were a good deal more fluid than they were later to become is comprehensive and persuasive. * Anthony Howard, Books *
Those of you who are looking for biographical subjects with more historical heft should consider L G Mitchell's Lord Melbourne. * Terence Blacker, The Sunday Times *
fascinating study.../ ... in the main body of this volume, Leslie Mitchell has provided a valuable, very well-written and at times gripping account of the public and private lives of a strangely successful politician./ Stephen Lee, University of Manchester, The Historical Association, 1999.
Mitchell ... flashes new light on a fascinatingly complex character * Miranda Seymour, The Sunday Times *
a fine assessment of Queen Victoria's early mentor; a politician of high birth who liked the ladies * Reg Little, Oxford Times *
Leslie Mitchell's Lord Melbourne 1779-1848 is superlative. * Matthew Parris, The Sunday Times *



Book Information
ISBN 9780198205920
Author L. G. Mitchell
Format Hardback
Page Count 372
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 1g
Dimensions(mm) 244mm * 163mm * 26mm