CLARISSA: Muse to Power, The Untold Story of Clarissa Eden, Countess of Avon

Hugo Vickers

Rated 0

Biography: historical, political & military, Biography: royalty, Memoirs, European history

Imprint

Hodder & Stoughton
- Hardback Feb 25, 2025 | 9781399736770 | RRP $75.00 Pre-Order
- Audiobook Nov 21, 2024 | 9781399736800 | RRP $44.99 Pre-Order
- e-Book Nov 21, 2024 | 9781399736794 | RRP $16.99 Pre-Order
Imprint

Hodder & Stoughton
- Hardback Feb 25, 2025 | 9781399736770 | RRP $75.00 Pre-Order
- Audiobook Nov 21, 2024 | 9781399736800 | RRP $44.99 Pre-Order
- e-Book Nov 21, 2024 | 9781399736794 | RRP $16.99 Pre-Order
Imprint

Hodder & Stoughton
- Hardback Feb 25, 2025 | 9781399736770 | RRP $75.00 Pre-Order
- Audiobook Nov 21, 2024 | 9781399736800 | RRP $44.99 Pre-Order
- e-Book Nov 21, 2024 | 9781399736794 | RRP $16.99 Pre-Order

The fascinating life of the enigmatic and original Clarissa Eden, wife of Prime Minister Anthony Eden, niece of Winston Churchill, muse to many of the leading figures of the day, by leading biographer Hugo Vickers.

Clarissa Eden, Countess of Avon, wife of Prime Minister Anthony Eden, once famously said: 'For the past few weeks I have really felt as if the Suez Canal was flowing through my drawing-room.'

With her impressive intellect and acerbic wit, she was a highly influential muse to many leading figures over several decades.

At Oxford in the 1940s she fascinated dons and undergraduates alike. She went on to work in the film world for Alexander Korda and for George Weidenfeld at Contact Magazine. She was a close friend of Cecil Beaton, James Pope-Hennessy, Lucian Freud, Isaiah Berlin, and Lord Goodman. She fascinated Greta Garbo.

After an early Bohemian life, she became a politically active wife to Eden when he was Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister, particularly during the Suez Crisis in 1956.

Her death at 101 in 2021 has opened the way for this enthralling and revealing biography by the widely admired biographer Hugo Vickers. He knew her well for over 40 years, and consigned her revealing private papers and sharply written diaries to him.

Here also are first hand contributions from friends such as Antonia Fraser. Clarissa Eden's story sheds invaluable light on a rapidly vanishing age and an extraordinary woman.

Praise for CLARISSA: Muse to Power, The Untold Story of Clarissa Eden, Countess of Avon

Hugo Vickers brings tremendous authority to this life of one of the most significant and intriguing political wives of the last century. The integrity of his scholarship and his deep personal knowledge of his subject make this a compelling and definitive work. - Professor Simon Heffer
A vivid portrayal of a remarkable and unusual woman, her world, and her times. Hugely enjoyable. - Jung Chang

Hugo Vickers

Hugo Vickers is the literary trustee to the Cecil Beaton estate. Hugo Vickers is the biographer of Cecil Beaton, Vivien Leigh, Princess Andrew of Greece (mother of the Duke of Edinburgh), Gladys, Duchess of Marlborough. His book The Biss won the Stern Silver Pen for Non-Fiction in 1996. He edited the first volume of Cecil Beaton's Diaries, The Unexpurgated Beaton, in 2002.