War and the Royal Houses of Europe in the twentieth century / Anthony Devere-Summers.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Starting Pistol -- Call to Arms -- The First World War -- Belgium - The Schlieffen Express -- Spain - The King, the Washerwoman and the Nurse -- Luxembourg - A Grand Duchess Meets Her Waterloo -- Monaco - War of Words -- Great Britain - Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace -- Greece - Halt, Who Goes There, Friend or Foe? -- Russia - Dynastic Rule -- Roumania - Colonel of the 4th Rosiori Cavalry -- Germany - The Beast of Berlin -- Austria-Hungary - The Emperor's Last Waltz. -- The Second World War -- Italy - Second Roman Empire -- Albania - Son of the Mountain Eagle -- Norway - 'All for Norway' -- Sweden - Scout's Honour-- Denmark and Belgium - A King's Ransom -- The Netherlands - 'I Shall Maintain' -- France - Princely Recruits to the French Foreign Legion -- Great Britain - Duty First -- Yugoslavia - Guardians of the Realm -- Liechtenstein - Sanctuary for the Cossacks -- Bulgaria - The King is Dead -- Roumania - From the Frying Pan into the Fire -- Greece - A Bitter Legacy -- Epilogue -- European Name Equivalents

The twentieth century has seen a decline in the Royal houses of Europe. Fundamental to that regression has been the wars which twice ravaged the Continent. The awesome losses of the 1914-18 conflict caused people to question many of the values which had held fast for so long - the military strand interwoven into European history was queried, and the monarchies which had sent their armies to war came to pay the price for the carnage. The dictatorships which replaced them demonstrated the same acquisitional designs as their predecessors, and added an ideology which brought more strain and division, and another war. With a half century of relative peace and continuing signs of concord, the purpose and validity of monarchy remains a topical debate. Certainly the history of European royalty cannot be adequately studied without recourse to their impact on its wars, and of warfare on those dynasties. The author has done the student a great service by his careful, deeply researched commentary on this complex subject. This volume will add to the understanding of the inextricable link between war and the royal houses of Europe.