The Education of a King

Non-fiction ~ article
Published in The Spectator, 17th March 1933
1,070 words
(First read 07/07/2014)

No doubt EFB published this condensed version of the education of the long-serving Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII, to get the public warmed up for the release of his full-length book King Edward VII: An Appreciation, which was released in June of the same year.  Despite all the best efforts of Prince Albert (guided in part by his own ex-tutor Baron Stockmar), the prince's education was a signal failure ... or rather he never really learnt anything that his dad and the Baron wanted him to learn.
You can read the article online here.

The Baron

Non-fiction ~ review
Published in The Spectator, 16th April 1937
850 words
(Read 15/05/2014)

A review of Victoria's Guardian Angel: A Study of Baron Stockmar, by Pierre Crabites.  The said baron was a crony of Queen Victoria's uncle Leopold I, King of the Belgians, sent to the UK to act as adviser to the Queen and Prince Albert.  In his book Crabites argues that the baron was a massive power behind the throne; EFB believes that Crabites exaggerates his influence and importance.
The article can be read online here.