Charles II was born into the rarefied atmosphere of the early Seventeenth Century English Court and was raised as heir to the throne. The Revolution and the execution of his father destroyed his world. Cast into exile, he had to find a way to be king without palaces, money or subjects. Keay tells the story of how he conducted his daily life, for this was the fabric of monarchy he so successfully recreated. Through official documents, we know exactly what he owned and what he spent, and can build an illuminating picture of this neglected period of his life. After his return to the throne, he re-established the rituals and ceremony of the crown in order to bring his subjects closer and later, as the politics of his reign grew more demanding and crisis loomed, to overwhelm them with his majesty. Keay's brilliant and original life of Charles II argues that the very manner in which he conducted his life helped him to achieve his great fame and power and to return the monarchy to its rightful position in Britain.