title: The Loves of Charles II: The Stuart Saga
author:  Jean Plaidy 
description: Plaidy excels at blending history with romance and drama. <i>New York Times</i>
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  # THE EPISODE OF THE OLD MASTER
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ### Grant Allen
  
  
  This page copyright © 2001 Munsey's.
  
  
  http://www.munseys.com
  
  
  
  
  
  LIKE most South Africans, Sir Charles Vandrift is anything
  
  
  but sedentary. He hates sitting down. He must always
  
  
  'trek.' He cannot live without moving about freely. Six
  
  
  weeks in Mayfair at a time is as much as he can stand. Then
  
  
  he must run away incontinently for rest and change to
  
  
  Scotland, Homburg, Monte Carlo, Biarritz. 'I won't be a
  
  
  limpet on the rock,' he says. Thus it came to pass that in
  
  
  the early autumn we found ourselves stopping at the
  
  
  Metropole at Brighton. We were the accustomed nice little
  
  
  family party—Sir Charles and Amelia, myself and Isabel,
  
  
  with the suite as usual.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  On the first Sunday morning after our arrival we strolled
  
  
  out, Charles and I—I regret to say during the hours
  
  
  allotted for Divine service—on to the King's Road, to get a
  
  
  whiff of fresh air, and a g