<div><div>This is the first comprehensive study of the traditional European ruling class during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Distilling the wealth of recent research for students and general readers, Wasson analyzes the role of aristocracy, focusing on the tensions that exist between modern egalitarian values and the way elites shape society. Topics include: wealth, family, conceptions of honour, relations with other classes, culture, recreation, gender, local authority and national power. Individual studies enliven the text.</div></div>