Darling Georgie

The Engima of George V

Eminent psychiatrist Dennis Friedman turns his acute gaze on our present Queen Elizabeth’s grandfather, King George V (1885–1936), to reveal the man behind the monarch. Taking as his starting point the widely held belief that the personality and behavior of parents and grandparents have a powerful influence on the children and grandchildren—and even great-grandchildren—Dr. Friedman’s insightful biography contains new evidence. It suggests an emotional inheritance partly derived from his father Edward VII’s psychologically damaging upbringing at the hands of Queen Victoria that he was to pass on to his own children. In the case of George, a suffocating relationship with his mother, compounded by the absence and neglect of his father, caused him as a child to suffer extreme separation anxiety, which was reinforced by his being sent away to boarding school at the age of 11, where he was bullied by other victims of similar parenting. His often unhappy time in the Navy and later sexual development is also scrutinized, as are his years on the throne. History depicts George V as a model husband, a near-perfect father, and a self-confident monarch. Dr. Friedman’s study of his personal life reveals a quite different man whose legacy is still evident in today’s royals.