The Grit in the Pearl: The Scandalous Life of Margaret, Duchess of Argyll

by Lyndsy Spence

Overview

The shocking true story behind A Very British Scandal, starring Claire Foy and Paul Bettany

MARGARET, DUCHESS OF ARGYLL was an international celebrity in her youth, adored and observed by millions. But in 1963 the 11th Duke of Argyll shocked the country when he alleged that his adulterous wife had slept with over eighty men behind his back. As his evidence, he produced a set of sexually explicit Polaroid photographs and explosive love letters, helping to win his divorce and affecting Margaret’s life forever. On the verge of financial destitution, she fell from grace and was abandoned by most of her friends prior to her death in a nursing home in Pimlico in 1993. In this meticulously researched biography Lyndsy Spence tells a tragic story of the life and downfall of this fascinatingly complex woman, and shows how she fell victim to a cruel husband, harsh social mores and an unforgiving class.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780750993258
Publisher:	The History Press
Publication date:	06/01/2020
Edition description:	Second Edition,New edition
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.70(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Lyndsy Spence is a celebrated historian who specialises in daring aristocratic women. She is a book reviewer for The Lady and the founder of The Mitford Society, an online community dedicated to researching the Mitford sisters. Her previous books for The History Press include The Mistress of Mayfair: Men, Money and the Marriage of Doris Delevingne (2018) and Mrs Guinness: The Rise and Fall of Diana Mitford, the Thirties Socialite (2017).

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 9

1 Careless People 11

2 An English Girlhood 27

3 The Season 43

4 Fate 70

5 Mrs Sweeny 86

6 Idols of Consumption 103

7 War 120

8 The Golden Age 151

9 Crowning Mistake 165

10 The Duchess 175

11 Cat and Mouse 191

12 Slipstream 202

13 Treachery 220

14 'Here Comes a Brand New Woman' 241

15 Old Foe 251

Notes 263

Bibliography 281

Index 284