"In his celebrated classic, The English Constitution, Walter Bagehot divided British government into its efficient and dignified parts. The monarchy, he argued, exists largely to dignify politics, but not to take an active part in it. " "In this remarkable examination of our monarchy during modern times, Charles Douglas-Home and Saul Kelly show just how important the Crown has been, not only in lending grace and dignity to the workings of government, but also in making government possible, during a century of crisis that destroyed Continental Europe. " "In a series of moving portraits, Douglas-Home and Kelly describe the remarkable characters who have occupied the English throne since the death of Queen Victoria, the immense difficulty of the tasks which they confronted, and the virtues which enabled them to act, by and large, for the common good in times of unprecedented turmoil. Incisive, evocative and informed by a magisterial vision of the scope of political power, Dignified and Efficient offers a persuasive answer to the critics of monarchy, and an account of our unique form of government that will give confidence and inspiration to the English, as they enter a new century of shifting powers and uncertain prospects. "--BOOK JACKET.