Description

pp. 332, notes, bibliography, index, black and white illustrations throughout. “Though Mohun and Hamilton were at opposite ends of the political spectrum it was not just political rivalry that sparked off the duel, but a disputed inheritance that had been grinding through the courts for several decades. Both men were desperate to maintain their political position, and such an inheritance was vital, conferring on its owner not only money but also status and respect. In this fascinating book Victor Stater takes the duel as a focal point from which to recreate the violent, cynical world of the late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth century British aristocracy. He brings alive the London of Pope and Swift Defoe, a place of huge financial gains and catastrophic reverses, of street-crime and gambling dens and of the infamous Kit-Cat Club. The result is an unforgettable picture of a society in upheaval verging on anarchy, and of two men driven by demons of their own making as well as by social forces beyond their control.”