The Mountbattens: The Lives and Loves of Dickie and Edwina Mountbatten

Readers might know of Lord Mountbatten (1900–79), or “Dickie,” from the Netflix series The Crown, where he’s a well-connected member of the royal family who mentors Princes Phillip and Charles and engineers their marriages. Readers of this new biography by historian Lownie (Stalin’s Englishman) will gain additional insight into Lord Mountbatten’s tenacity and the way he and his heiress wife Edwina (1900–60) created a family dynasty of their own. Lownie shares individualizing facts about the larger-than-life Mountbattens, including Lord Mountbatten’s extensive and heralded military service, Lady Mountbatten’s laudable charity work, and the extensive extramarital affairs carried on by both. The book gives much attention to the Mountbattenses’ rocky marriage, and to their deep devotion to each other, based on accounts from members of the royal family and their staff. Fans of the The Crown will appreciate the insider details of Lord Mountbatten’s political influence during the early 20th century.