“[Based on] extensive research and intricate recounting of scandalous detail.”—Dana Rabin, Journal of Modern History
“[Sex, Money and Personal Character] offers a front-row seat alongside genteel participants at the theater, gaming tables, coffee houses, royal court, and houses of Parliament, while simultaneously allowing a glimpse into their most private spaces and thoughts.”—Jennine Hurl-Eamon, H-Net Reviews
'Marilyn Morris’s Sex, Money and Personal Character in Eighteenth-Century British Politics is elegant, witty and wise. Morris complicates the notion that domestic probity became a touchstone for politics by the end of the century. Drawing on fascinating diaries and letters, she reveals that close personal ties could advantage politicians – or endanger them. Her fresh insights into financial and sexual scandals illuminate our own times.' - Anna Clark, author of Scandal: The Sexual Politics of the British Constitution
'Marilyn Morris has mastered an impressive range of evidence to write an informed and lively account of a tremendously significant transformation in British politics. A growing interest in the character of members of the Royal Family developed into intense public scrutiny of the private lives of the political elite. Personal life was the measure of character, and character – as much as political argument – was how politicians were judged. With a superb eye for detail, Morris shows how statesmanship was assessed in press reports of intimate family affairs, sexual scandals and financial imprudence. The author does a huge service to the history of eighteenth-century Britain by reassessing politics and politicians through the lens of gender, sexuality, domesticity and consumption. The result is an emphatic account of how the personal and political were inextricably entwined in eighteenth-century Britain.' - Karen Harvey, author of The Little Republic: Masculinity and Domestic Authority in Eighteenth-Century Britain
