The pain and the privilege

'Men's lives are a perpetual conflict. The life that I have mapped out will be so especially – as lawyer and politician. Woman's function is to pour oil on the wounds – to heal the bruises of spirit...and to stimulate to renewed exertion.'Lloyd George was a man who loved women and the tale of his intertwined relationships contains many mysteries and a few unsolved intrigues. He was involved in a divorce case early in his career, fought two libel cases over his private life and had persuaded the prettiest girl in Criccieth to be his wife. Lloyd George's life was indeed a 'perpetual conflict'. He was a habitual womaniser and, despite his early, enduring attachment to Margaret Owen, marriage did not curb his behaviour. There were many private scandals in a life devoted to public duty. Ffion Hague illuminates his complex attitude to women. Her own interest stems from the many parallels in her own life.