The Lost King of France: Revolution, Revenge and the Search for Louis XVII. . - Reviews - book review

Contemporary Review, April, 2003

The Lost King of France: Revolution, Revenge and the Search for Louis XVII. Deborah Cadbury. Fourth Estate. [pounds sterling]18.99. 306 pages. ISBN 1-84115-588-8. The horrors of the French Revolution can sometimes be better understood through the sufferings of an individual than through the thousands of innocent priests, nuns, aristocrats and nameless people murdered in the name of liberty.

There is no more tragic story than that of the Dauphin, the heir to Louis XVI who, though a child, was kept in solitary confinement and left to die in a prison cell, aged ten. But his body was never found and after the restoration rumours began to fly about and imposters began to come forward. This biography, therefore, is as much a detective story unravelling rumours and half-truths with the help of DNA as it is a history of the Revolution. It is also the story of a small boy left to die. It was not until 1999 that scientists confirmed that the heart of the small boy found in the Temple Prison was indeed that of the boy-k ing, Louis XVII. Miss Cadbury has done an enormous amount of research and writes with sympathy and understanding to unravel a tale that has horrified and fascinated mankind for 200 years. It is a job well done. (A.McB.)