Virginia Oldoini according to Bob

Bob Packett is at his best when he gets to tell the really juicy details of great history. As a matter of fact, he is also at his best when he recounts the sordid affairs in small history. Maybe, Bob is always at his best; no history so small or great, or there are sordid juicy stories to tell about.

There is a whole series in his History according to Bob podcast about famous mistresses. Bob does them with great enthusiasm, that is hard to resist. The latest is about Virginia Oldoini. She roamed the courts of France and Italy in the early nineteenth century and did so, if we can count on Bob, in a very self-conscious and effective way. She strode among the who-is-who among others Napoleon III, Bismarck and Victor Emmanuel. She made heads turn and parties fall silent when she entered and she played them all like musical instruments. But for power wielding magic like this stories have no good endings. Listen to Bob and find out what was the fate of Oldoini when she got old. (if at all)