Sir William Hamilton personified the age of the Enlightenment. He was a collector and connoisseur, amateur scientist and archaeologist, vulcanologist, anthropologist and above all a gentleman of taste and intellectual curiosity. In Naples, one of the most fascinating stations on the Grand Tour, he had found his ideal setting and, as King George III's ambassador to the Kingdom of Naples from 1764-1800, Sir William was witness to some pivotal events in European history.

This is the first collection of his complete correspondence with the English court between 1797 and 1799. It sheds vivid light on the history of the Kingdom of Naples on the cusp of the Napoleonic Wars, as France and Spain jostled for control in the region, and examines the nature of power and government at the end of the eighteenth century. This collection includes Sir William's own account of Nelson's betrayal of the Neapolitan Republic when, rather than granting the royalist leaders safe passage back to France as agreed, Nelson turned his guns on them - a hugely controversial decision, both for contemporary audiences and ever since, and one in which Sir William's own role is still hotly contested.

Offering an engaging portrait of a complex and sophisticated figure and bringing a dynamic period of history to life, this is an invaluable guide to the period which will enthrall anyone interested in eighteenth century Europe.