Tag: Honor Grenville Lady Lisle

Book Review: “Henry VIII’s Controversial Aunt, Honor Lisle: Her Life, Letters, and Influence on the Tudor Court” by Amy Licence

On By hmalagisiIn Book ReviewsLeave a comment

Marrying into the royal family is not all sunshine and rainbows. Of course, we tend to think about those who marry the king, the queen, the prince, or the princess. But we also need to consider the aunts and the uncles of the royals as part of the family. Take, for example, Arthur Plantagenet, the illegitimate son of Edward IV and the uncle of Henry VIII. His second wife, Honor Lisle, would help him rule Calais; however, she is best known for her letters and her devout Catholic faith during the Reformation in England. So why is Honor Lisle considered a controversial figure, and what was the cause of the fall of Honor and Arthur from the royal good graces? Amy Licence explores the life of Henry VIII’s step-aunt in the first full biography dedicated to Honor Lisle, which is entitled “Henry VIII’s Controversial Aunt, Honor Lisle: Her Life, Letters, and Influence on the Tudor Court.”

I would like to thank Pen & Sword Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. I have heard of Honor Lisle and her letters, but I did not know much about her life before this book. I did know that she was married to Arthur Plantagenet, but I had assumed that he was her first husband, so I didn’t know about her life before Arthur. When I saw that Amy Licence was writing a biography about Honor Lisle, I knew I wanted to read it.

Licence begins with the birth of Honor Grenville, Lady Basset, Lady Lisle Plantagenet. She was born in 1493 to Thomas and Isabel Grenville in the small town of Bideford, Devon. Her father served the first Tudor king, Henry VII, as Esquire of the Body, so Honor’s family did have some connection before Honor’s marriage to Arthur. Honor’s mother died a year after she was born, but her father did not die until 1513. In 1515, Honor would marry her first husband, Sir John Basset, and they would have between 7 and 8 children before his death in January 1528. 

A year later was a monumental year for England as it was the start of the divorce between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, which would be known as the Great Matter. It was also the year that Honor married Arthur Plantagenet. The couple would move to Calais, where Arthur would rule for his nephew. This is where we get to see the Lisle letters, Honor’s dictated correspondence to prominent figures in Tudor England. Honor and Arthur would go into debt, dealing with the constant threat of war, balance their faith and be loyal to the King, and handle a plot by Reginald Pole that would try to remove Henry VIII from the throne. 

I found it so interesting to see Honor’s perspective on the big issues of the Tudor court while staying in France, as well as how life in Calais was different from it was in London during this time. Honor Lisle’s life and letters give us great insight into the reign of Henry VIII from the perspective of someone who was outside of England during the major events of his reign. Licence’s research, combined with an easy-to-follow writing style, makes this a very well-written biography. If you want a biography about a lesser-known Tudor woman and her famous letters, I highly recommend you read “Henry VIII’s Controversial Aunt, Honor Lisle: Her Life, Letters and Influence on the Tudor Court” by Amy Licence.

Book Review: “Heroines of the Tudor World” by Sharon Bennett Connolly

On By hmalagisiIn Book ReviewsLeave a comment

Heroines of the Tudor WorldThe world of the 16th century was full of change and equally colorful characters. Most of the dynamic figures of this century were women, who were willing to fight in their ways for what they believed in, whether it was family, faith, or their country. They were heroines in different ways, and each had a story to tell. Each woman had to deal with her obstacles to reach their desired goal, no matter what her station was, from queens and great heiresses to nuns, and even a pirate. Sharon Bennett Connolly has decided to include a handful of these stories in her latest book, “Heroines of the Tudor World.”

I would like to thank Amberley Publishing for sending me a copy of this book. I have been a fan of Sharon Bennett Connolly’s books on medieval women, so when I heard that she was going to tackle the 16th-century and the Tudor world, I knew I wanted to read it. I wanted to see what stories she would select and how far into the Tudor world she would explore.

Connolly begins her book by explaining how the 16th century differed from the medieval times as records about women were becoming more accessible. It was also a time of transition, reformation, and the discovery of the “new world.” Each chapter focuses on a different kind of woman; from the ideal to martyrs for their faiths, scandalous heroines, those who were disinherited, pawns in the bigger game of life, warriors, captives, and survivors. Although it can be difficult to place certain tales of women in just one category, Connolly gave her readers a thrilling look into the 16th century.

It was the stories of these extraordinary women who made this book an exceptional read. There are the typical women who are featured heavily in these kinds of narratives; Elizabeth of York, Margaret Beaufort, the wives of Henry VIII, Mary I, Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots, and Catherine de Medici. However, Connolly decided to include lesser-known women. We have mistresses like Diane de Poitiers and spies like Margaret Dymoke, Lady Coffin. Some great heiresses were disinherited like Claude of France and Elizabeth Fitzgerald, as well as pawns like Marguerite de Valois and captives such as Lady Katherine Gordon and Honor Grenville, Lady Lisle. Of course, some women decided to take matters into their own hands and fight for what they believed in, such as Isabella of Castile, Jeanne d’Albret Queen of Navarre, and Grace O’Malley.

I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the heroines that Connolly included in this book, but my only complaint is that it was not a longer book. There are so many interesting women outside of the European world in the 16th century and I wish she would have highlighted them. Maybe Connolly will write a sequel book to this one to include even more Tudor heroines. If you have enjoyed Sharon Bennett Connolly’s previous books and you are a Tudor nerd, I highly suggest you read, “Heroines of the Tudor World.”