Ungrateful Daughters

By Maureen Waller

Subjects: Biography, Mary ii, queen of england, 1662-1694, Great britain, kings and rulers, Biographies, Kings and rulers, Succession, Queens, Families, Family, Great britain, history, 1689-1714, Reines, Intriges, Koningschap, New York Times reviewed, James ii, king of england, 1633-1701, History, Anne, queen of great britain, 1665-1714

Description: In 1688, the birth of a Prince of Wales ignited a family quarrel and a revolution. James II's drive toward Catholicism had alienated the nation and his two staunchly Protestant daughters by his first marriage, Mary and Anne. They are the "ungrateful daughters" who usurped their father's crown and stole their brother's birthright. Seven prominent men sent an invitation to William of Orange -- James's nephew and son-in-law -- to intervene in English affairs. But it was the women, Queen Mary Beatrice and her two stepdaughters Mary and Anne, who played a key role in this drama. - Jacket flap.