In this work, Christopher Lee tells the stories of some of the most powerful families that have shaped the history of the British Isles over the past thousand years—many families that were older and more powerful than the monarchy itself. Influential families, including the Churchills, the Cavendishes, and the Norfolks are discussed, as well as several powerful Scottish and Irish clans. Finally, there is a consideration of those, who, in a wholly new arena, have continued the tradition of dynastic power through the 20th century and into the 21st—the so-called "media barons."