Queen of the World

A brilliant portrait of the most famous woman in the world and her place in it, w ritten by the renowned royal biographer and author of Queen of Our Times , Robert Hardman. ''Dazzling, poignant and full of delicious surprises; the true story of how Elizabeth II took on the world - and won. The Crown is fictional. Here is the real thing.'' - Andrew Roberts ''In Queen of the World Robert Hardman anatomizes from almost every conceivable angle the workings of soft power in creating the present Queen''s global role ... His book is a veritable reference work and cornucopia, overflowing with significant anecdotes, people, traditions and incidents.'' - Times Literary Supplement On recent world history, one leader stands apart. Queen Elizabeth II saw more of the planet and its people than any other head of state, and engaged with them like no other monarch in British history. After her coronation, she visited over 130 countries across the ever-changing globe, acting as diplomat, stateswoman, pioneer and peace-broker, while also managing the responsibilities of a mother and grandmother, and her sixty-four-year marriage to the late Prince Philip. She transformed her father''s old empire into the Commonwealth, her ''family of nations'', and came to know its leaders better than anyone. In 2018, they would gather in her own home to endorse her eldest son, the Prince of Wales, as her successor. With extensive access to the Queen''s family and staff, Hardman tells a true story full of drama, intrigue, exotic and even dangerous situations, heroes, rogues, pomp and glamour - and, at the centre of it all, the woman who genuinely won the hearts of the world for seventy glorious years. ''Superb'' - Peter Hennessy ''Hardman''s book, filled with new details, will be an essential source for any historian of modern Britain. It''s also a glorious read'' - William Shawcross, Spectator