The Winding Stair: Francis Bacon, His Rise and Fall
About this ebook
' ... a writer of fearless originality' GUARDIAN
'Unlike many authors of popular historical biographies, du Maurier resembled Antonia Fraser in being an indefatigable researcher' FRANCIS KING
'du Maurier has no equal' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
It wasn't until he was forty-five that Bacon's feet found the first step on that staircase, when King James I made him Solicitor-General, from where he rose through the ranks to become Lord Chancellor.
Many accounts of the life of Sir Francis Bacon have been written for scholars, but du Maurier's aim was to paint a vivid portrait of this remarkable man for the common reader. In The Winding Stair, she illuminates the considerable achievements of this Renaissance man as a writer, lawyer, philosopher, scientist, and politician.
To her book, she brought the same gifts of imagination and perception that made her earlier biography, Golden Lads, so immensely readable, skilfully threading into her narrative extracts from contemporary documents and from Bacon's own writings. This also sets her account of his life within a vivid contemporary framework.
This is truly history made alive.
About the author
Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989) was born in London, England. In 1931 her first novel, The Loving Spirit was published. A biography of her father and three other novels followed, but it was the novel Rebecca that launched her into the literary stratosphere and made her one of the most popular authors of her day. In 1932, du Maurier married Major Frederick Browning with whom she had three children.
Many of du Maurier's bestselling novels and short stories were adapted into award-winning films, including Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds and Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now. In 1969, du Maurier was awarded the Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (DBE). She lived most of her life in Cornwall and died there which is the setting for many of her books.
