This book contains the minutes of the Trial of Queen Caroline, the wife of George IV.

In January 1820, George III, who had reigned for 60 years, passed away and his son, George, ascended the throne. Upon his accession, the new king almost immediately sought to divorce his estranged wife and strip her of the title of Queen. Their marriage was a turbulent one, both George and Caroline disliked one another and they separated soon after the birth of a daughter, Princess Charlotte (1796-1817). During the separation, George openly flaunted his playboy lifestyle and had a string of mistresses. In 1814, Caroline went into self-imposed exile in Italy, where she remained for six years, returning to England soon after her husband's accession.

A conventional divorce would not suit the new king. Divorce would not strip his wife of her title and ran the risk that salacious details of George's own private life would become even more public than they already were (the private life of the King was popular society gossip). So the government introduced the 'Pains and Penalties Bill', which charged the Queen with having an adulterous affair with her Italian equerry, Bartolomeo Pergami during her time in Italy.

The Queen was tried in the House of Lords and a steady stream of witnesses testified observing a blatant love affair between Caroline and Pergami. The events of the trial were farcical (one of the witnesses, Theodoro Majocchi, was ridiculed for the excessive use of the phrase 'Non, mi ricordo' [I don't recall] during his examination) and were widely satirised in the press.

The trial essentially collapsed once the Defence began. The Queen's Attorney, Lord Brougham, gave a masterful speech to the Lords and threatened that he could reveal worse details about the King's relationships. The evidence given by the witnesses was found to be contradictory and it was soon discovered that many of the witnesses had been bribed to testify against the Queen (suggestions were made that this was ordered by George himself). Nevertheless, the Bill was passed by the Lords, but it was soon withdrawn when it became obvious that the Commons would never pass a law with so much evidence in the Queen's favour.