"This is an account of twelve extraordinary German families who as a result of clever marriages came by 1914 to wear the crowns of almost every nation in Europe. The four imperial dynasties who did most to provoke the Armageddon; the Russian, British, German and Austrian royal families, were ethnically almost 100 per cent German as a consequence and seven other nations who played subsidiary roles, Belgium, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Holland, Denmark and Norway were also led by families of German extraction. The book examines the reasons for this phenomenon and the personalities, ambitions, virtues and vices of these remarkable families. It also includes an armchair guide to the large number of surviving castles, fortresses and palaces of these families all round the world and their cultural legacy. Oliver Thomson's previous books include lively accounts of three other dynastic families: The Romanovs, The Royal Stewarts and The Impossible Bourbons"--Back cover.