MARTYN DOWNER

The Queen's Knight

"Pity poor Sir Howard Elphinstone. In 1858, he was a Crimean war hero, looking forward to a distinguished career in the army. Then he was chosen to be governor of Victoria and Albert’s third son, Prince Arthur, and was plunged into 30 years of backbiting, scheming and rivalries at court. Gone was potential military glory and, instead, he was obliged to respond tactfully to the queen’s relentless, semi-hysterical correspondence about her son’s upbringing and to listen to the endless woes of out-of-favour courtiers. In the end, he was denied even a decently honourable death, suffering a ludicrous accident in which he was catapulted backwards into the Bay of Biscay from a ship taking him on holiday to Tenerife. Martyn Downer’s biography captures the man himself, stoically determined to do his duty to his monarch, and provides a compelling picture of Victorian court life." - Nick Rennison writing in The Sunday Times.  More...

"Martyn Downer has a fascinating and important story to tell, revealing much that is new about the intrigue that went on behind the scenes in the apparently demure and dowdy court of Queen Victoria. His account is based on research in the Royal Archives and other places, but he wears his learning lightly. Fluently written and cleverly constructed, this book is a hugely enjoyable read." - Jane Ridley writing in The Literary Review

"We've had the film with Dame Dench and the Big Yin about John Brown. I've seen a documentary on the Munshi. Now it seems there was another important man in her life following Albert's death. Here is an impressively researched volume arguing that Queen Victoria's closet companion during her long widowhood was actually Sir Howard Crawford Elphinstone CB, CMG, KCB." - Roget Lewis writing in The Daily Express

"The Queen's Knight is a thoroughly enjoyable new look at the widely-covered life of Queen Victoria. Those with knowledge of Victoria should love this new view on famous events, while the ease that Downer explains often complex politics and the human face he puts on the stiff world of 19th century royalty will mean those new to the subject will learn and enjoy the story of Sir Howard." - Daniel Barnes writing in InTheNews.co.uk.  More...

"In his spare moments in-between the intriguing business of sleuthing artworks from around the globe, Corfield Morris director Martyn Downer finds time for his other passion – writing. His latest book is the engrossing true story of suppressed passion and domestic intrigue at the very heart of Queen Victoria’s court and centres on Sir Howard Elphinstone - the forgotten figure of Victoria's realm. It reveals a unique portrait of the frail woman at the heart of a vast Empire, and the truth behind her most notorious servant, John Brown." - Art Daily.  More...

"The volume is blurbed by another historian as “a riveting page-turner”… which suggests that the standard definition of page-turning-riveting may be more on the generously inclusive side, but it is a fascinating window into the Victoria’s long reign, and the proud tower of the European political establishment during the 19th century. There are no scandalous revelations; Sir Howard was not man to whom scandal attached." - Blogger News Network.  More...