Rakes and dandies, duchesses and courtesans, pugilists and patrons, whirl through this dazzling and definitive history of Great Britain's most decadent era.

The Regency period was one of the most turbulent ages in British history, one that spanned the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, that witnessed unprecedented industrial progress, artistic accomplishment, and violent social unrest and--paradoxically-- the most sparkling social scene English high society has ever enjoyed. Under the influence of the obese, loose-moraled Prince of Wales (to whom Jane Austen dedicated Emma), the Regency was the apex of British decadence, an era of lavish parties and relentless bed-hopping that set a standard for elegance and vulgarity. With wit and lively style, Venetia Murray chronicles the scandals, courtships, and daily life of these aristocrats, and evokes the tempestuous times of the early industrial and French revolutions. Sumptuously illustrated with rare contemporary cartoons, prints, diaries, and caricatures, An Elegant Madness is a book readers of social history and historical romance alike will devour.

"Glittering and gossipy, an extravagant panorama of the 'Age of Scandal' . . . frivolously entertaining and assiduously researched."-- Kirkus Reviews

"A delightful book, well researched and highly entertaining."--Christopher Hibbert, author of George III: A Personal History

"A treat. . . . Murray's gusto is giddily infectious. . . . She writes in the amused style that would easily have befit that Regency scribe Jane Austen herself."-- Mary Elizabeth Williams, Salon Magazine