Tag: Katherine Howard

Book Review: “The Passionate Tudor: A Novel of Queen Mary I” by Alison Weir

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The Passionate TudorA king’s eldest child is usually the next in line to inherit the throne and become the next ruler. At least that is how the line of succession is supposed to work if the heir is male. Mary I knew this better than anyone. As the eldest daughter of King Henry VIII, she knew that once her mother Katherine of Aragon had a son, Mary would become a pawn in the marriage game. She was willing to accept this fate until her father fell in love with Anne Boleyn. Mary is declared a bastard and must fight for her inheritance and the crown of England while maintaining her Catholic faith. Alison Weir tells the tale of this remarkable woman, from her tumultuous childhood to her short reign that marked her legacy, in her latest novel, “The Passionate Tudor: A Novel of Queen Mary I.”

I would like to thank Ballantine Books and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. I have enjoyed the previous novels in The Tudor Rose trilogy by Alison Weir about Elizabeth of York and King Henry VIII, so when I heard she was writing a book about Mary I, I knew I wanted to read it. Mary I is one of those figures who shows how devastating it can be to be close to the throne and the hard decisions one makes when king or queen of a country.

Weir began her novel with Mary at the age of nine in 1525. She is her parent’s pride and joy as she is their only child. Her mother Katherine of Aragon is arranging an advantageous marriage for Mary that would create a strong alliance for England. Not even the birth of her half-brother Henry Fitzroy could dampen Mary Tudor’s spirits. However, that all changed when Anne Boleyn entered the picture and the Great Matter was made public. Katherine of Aragon is no longer queen, Anne Boleyn is Mary’s stepmother, and Mary is now declared a bastard in favor of her half-sister Elizabeth Tudor.

Mary’s life after the birth of Elizabeth Tudor begins to become even more tragic. Her mother Katherine of Aragon dies before she can see her daughter again and Anne Boleyn is executed for treason soon afterwards. Henry VIII marries Jane Seymour, has his desired male heir Edward VI, before Jane tragically dies quickly. As the Supreme Head of the Church of England, Henry wants his daughter Mary, a devout Catholic, to submit to his will, which she ultimately does. We also get to see how Mary interacted with her other stepmothers, Anna of Cleves, Katherine Howard, and Katherine Parr, until the death of her father Henry VIII. Before he died, Henry VIII revised his Act of Succession, making Mary Edward’s heir if he did not have children. However, Edward VI has his idea for who will succeed him after he dies and he names Lady Jane Grey as his heir, although that plan does not last long and Mary is proclaimed the first queen of England to rule on her own.

Weir shows Mary’s life and reign in a very sympathetic way. Even though she does still give her the nickname “Bloody Mary”, we can see a woman who is concerned about the faith of her kingdom and the well-being of her family, especially Edward, Prince Philip her husband, and Elizabeth, who she argues with on matters that matter to her. It is such a tragedy that Mary never had a child that she desperately wanted to have as she suffered through phantom pregnancies. At the end of the day, whether it was matters of faith or family, Mary was someone who was passionate and someone who desired to be loved.

This is a delightful novel about a woman who has often been vilified but maybe we should have sympathy for everything she had to endure starting at a young age. I enjoyed this novel very much and I look forward to the next novel by Weir. If you have enjoyed the previous books in the Tudor Rose trilogy or you just want a different take on Mary I’s story, I highly suggest you read, “The Passionate Tudor: A Novel of Queen Mary I” by Alison Weir.

Book Review: “The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget” by Alex Anglesey

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The Great SurvivorRulers cannot govern alone. They require a team of men and women behind them to operate as a cohesive unit. The same can be said for rulers during the Tudor dynasty. We know the stories of men like Cardinal Wolsey and Thomas Cromwell, two men who rose through the ranks to prominent seats of power to ultimately have disastrous falls from grace. However, there was a third Tudor politician who should be in this discussion about rags-to-riches stories. He was the son of a common merchant who went to serve most of the Tudor monarchs as an advisor. Conspiracies and rebellions kept him on his toes, but he ultimately survived the Tudor dynasty, which was a difficult thing to achieve. His name was Lord William Paget and his story is told by his descendant Alex Anglesey in his debut book, “The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget.”

I would like to thank Pen and Sword Books and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. I have heard the name William Paget in previous books that I have read about the Tudors, but he is one of those figures that felt like a footnote to me. When I heard that there was going to be a biography about Paget, I wanted to read it and learn more about this Tudor politician.

Alex Anglesey, the current Marquess of Anglesey, tells the story of how when he was a child living in the family home of Plas Newydd. Anglesey was able to use family letters to piece together the story of his ancestor, William Paget, a man of low status who rose through the ranks and served four Tudor monarchs.

The beginning of Paget’s international political career was traveling all across Europe to convince other European countries to accept the Great Matter. During this time, William married Anne Preston and they had nine children. He was the secretary for both Queen Jane Seymour and Anne of Cleves, and he witnessed the dissolution of the monasteries before making his way into the Privy Council as a clerk.

Paget’s first major role was as the English ambassador to France during the reign of King Francis I and gave news to the king about the downfall of Katherine Howard, but it did not last long as he was needed back in England to become Secretary of State. He was King Henry VIII’s private secretary towards the end of his life and helped craft Henry’s last will and testament. After siding with Edward Seymour during the reign of Edward VI, William barely survived a stay in the Tower of London, but he did. During Mary I’s reign, he helped organize the marriage between Mary I and Philip and witnessed the infamous burnings of Protestants. Paget only saw a few years of Elizabeth’s reign before he passed away.

Anglesey shows how Paget and his family were able to survive the Tudor dynasty by staying neutral on matters like religion while still promoting peace. I did find this book a bit dry in places and some of the references to the modern age felt a bit out of place. Overall, it was informative and not a bad read for a debut book. If you want to learn more about a lesser-known political figure who lived during the Tudor dynasty, I suggest you read, “The Great Survivor of the Tudor Age: The Life and Times of Lord William Paget” by Alex Anglesey.

Book Review: “The King’s Pleasure: A Novel of Henry VIII” by Alison Weir

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The King's PleasureWhen we think about the Tudor dynasty, we often focus on the women in King Henry VIII’s life and his children, at least when it comes to novels. Writing about this larger-than-life figure, this notorious king and controversial figure in English history, are usually considered ambitious. Few have attempted to write a book about the king’s entire reign, but Alison Weir has embarked on this endeavor in her latest novel, “The King’s Pleasure: A Novel of Henry VIII.”

I want to thank Ballantine Books and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this novel. I have not read many books about the reign of King Henry VIII, except for “The Autobiography of King Henry VIII” by Margaret George, so when I heard that Alison Weir was writing a novel about the titular king, I knew I had to read it.

Weir begins her novel with a moment that must have been difficult for young Prince Henry or Harry as he is referred to in this book. His brother died recently, and his beloved mother, Elizabeth of York, just died, leaving Henry as King Henry VII’s only heir. Henry does not have the best relationship with his father, but he now must fill the void as the heir apparent after Arthur died, leaving his young wife, Katherine of Aragon, a widow. When King Henry VII died, Henry became King Henry VIII and selected a woman he had fallen for to become his queen, Katherine of Aragon.

The bulk of this novel revolves around the relationships between Henry and his first two wives, Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. Weir is sympathetic toward Katherine of Aragon’s struggles, whereas her portrayal of Anne Boleyn may come across as a bit harsh. Jane Seymour is portrayed as a quiet and obedient queen, and Anna of Cleves’ focus is more on her looks and how Henry treated her more as a sister than a wife. Katherine Howard is someone Henry falls for hard and is devastated by her downfall, and Katherine Parr is the firebrand reformer who wants to heal Henry’s family at the end of his life.

Weir also touches on the complex political web that Henry was involved in, not just in England but European politics of the 16th century. We also see how Henry interacted with his children and how the emotional weight of all of his decisions weighed on him.

I think for how much of a challenge it is to write a novel about King Henry VIII, Alison Weir has done an admirable job in the king’s portrayal. I don’t necessarily agree with how some of the queens were portrayed, but I did enjoy this novel as a whole. I would suggest reading this novel before the Six Tudor Queens series to understand Henry’s perspective before his wives’ stories. If you have enjoyed the latest books about Henry VIII’s wives and his mother, Elizabeth of York, you should read “The King’s Pleasure: A Novel of Henry VIII” by Alison Weir.

Book Review: “Tudor Roses: From Margaret Beaufort to Elizabeth I” by Amy Licence

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36762189When one studies a specific dynasty, we tend to focus on the stories of those who rule their respective countries and explore the men who influenced the king’s decisions. A dynasty’s legacy tends to be viewed from the military and legal victories of the men, but just as important are the women who stood beside the king. Royal women tend to be considered side characters of the dynasty who were only crucial for their inheritance, who they married, and the children they could produce. But if we focused on the story of the royal women in a specific dynasty, what could we learn about the dynasty? Amy Licence took this concept to explore women’s voices and decided to tackle the Tudor dynasty in her latest book, “Tudor Roses: From Margaret Beaufort to Elizabeth I.”

I want to thank Amberley Publishing for sending me a copy of this book. I am always looking for a new perspective on the Tudor dynasty. Although there is nothing new about exploring the lives of Tudor women, the idea of analyzing the Tudor queens and their reigns in one book is so unique and vital.

Licence starts her book at the very beginning of the Tudor dynasty with the stories of Margaret Beaufort and Elizabeth Woodville. These women are often viewed as enemies on opposite sides of the Wars of the Roses. Still, closer examination shows how alike they were and how they came together to unite the warring factions with the marriage of their children, Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. The first Tudor queen, Elizabeth of York, was seen as the pinnacle of excellence and the ideal queen for those who would try to follow in her footsteps. We also get to see how Margaret and Mary Tudor influenced their family’s legacy, even though they never sat on the English throne like their brother, Henry VIII.

The next group of Tudor queens that we examine are the wives of Henry VIII; Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, and Catherine Parr. These queens mark a different aspect of being a royal woman and helped England move forward. Finally, Licence explores the lives of the daughters of Catherine of Aragon, Frances Brandon, and Anne Boleyn, who would become queens themselves; Lady Jane Grey, Mary I, and Elizabeth I.

Licence shows how England and Europe viewed women who wielded power throughout this book. Although the Tudor dynasty only lasted 118 years, the change was significant and impactful. The Tudors queens had to navigate not only their traumas through the most public lens, but they had to balance their own beliefs with the shifting political landscape of Europe. There are also glimpses of how other European queens navigated the tumultuous 16th century and how their lives and women’s education influenced the Tudor queens.

Guest Post: Was Katherine Howard Pregnant by Henry VIII in 1540? By Sylvia Barbara Soberton

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Today, I would like to welcome Sylvia Barbara Soberton to my blog as part of the book tour to promote her latest book, “Medical Downfall of the Tudors”, which is available now.

In July 1540, Henry VIII annulled his fourth marriage to the German Anne of Cleves on the grounds of non-consummation and married his fifth wife, the teenaged Katherine Howard. Katherine’s exact age remains unknown, but there is no doubt that she was very young when she married the fifty-year-old King. People who saw her believed Katherine was in her teens. The anonymous author of the Spanish Henry VIII’s Chronicle remarked that Katherine “was not more than fifteen” at the time of her marriage. [1] Charles de Marillac, French ambassador at the Tudor court who knew Katherine, believed she was about eighteen when she married the King. All observers unanimously agreed that Katherine was a good-looking young lady. She was “more graceful and beautiful than any lady in the court” in the words of the anonymous Spanish chronicler and “rather graceful than beautiful, of short stature” according to de Marillac. [2]

Katherine Howard came to court at some point in late 1539 to serve as Anne of Cleves’s maid of honour and quickly caught the King’s attention. Their private wedding took place almost immediately after the annulment of Henry’s marriage to Anne of Cleves in July 1540. Henry VIII’s haste in marrying Katherine may be explained by the fact that Katherine was expecting his child. Historians usually don’t put much attention to the idea that Katherine was pregnant early in her marriage to Henry, although there’s compelling evidence that she indeed was.

In September 1540, the Venetian ambassador Francesco Contarini reported that “the new Queen Katherine is said for certain to be pregnant”. [3] Three months later, on 31 December 1540, the French ambassador Charles de Marillac saw Katherine and observed that she was “grosse”, stout. [4] The word “grosse” was used in French to describe a pregnant woman. [5] In April 1541, de Marillac continued to report about Katherine’s pregnancy, writing “that this Queen is thought to be with child, which would be a very great joy to this King, who, it seems, believes it, and intends, if it be found true, to have her crowned at Whitsuntide”. [6] According to this report, Katherine was pregnant and the King made plans to have her crowned on Whitsunday, the seventh Sunday after Easter. De Marillac reported that the preparations for her coronation were in full swing, which seems to prove the court was preparing for the coronation and then the christening of Katherine Howard’s child. Another ambassador, Eustace Chapuys, reported in November 1541 that during the last Lent—during the same period that de Marillac reported about Katherine’s pregnancy—there was “some presumption that she [the Queen] was in the family way [pregnant]”. [7]

Unfortunately, nothing further was reported of this pregnancy after Lent of 1541. Was it just a rumour? It is curious that three different ambassadors reported Katherine’s pregnancy and that Charles de Marillac described her as pregnant in late December 1540. I think this is no mere coincidence—these reports are evidence that the young Queen was expecting a child from September 1540 to April 1541. If this pregnancy was a mere rumour, would it really persist for seven months? Would de Marillac describe Katherine as “grosse”, visibly pregnant? I believe that Katherine was with child, but since no baby was born, she either miscarried or had a stillbirth. If she had a son, how different Katherine’s life would have been. The young Queen was accused of immoral living prior to her marriage to Henry VIII and adultery with courtier Thomas Culpeper. She was sentenced to death and executed on 13 February 1542.

References:
[1] M.S. Hume, The Spanish Chronicle, p. 75.
[2] Ibid. See also Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Volume 16, n. 12, for de Marillac’s comment.
[3] Calendar of State Papers Relating To English Affairs in the Archives of Venice, Volume 5, n. 226.
[4] Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Henry VIII, Volume 16, n. 373. See also Josephine Wilkinson’s Katherine Howard: The Tragic Story of Henry VIII’s Fifth Queen, pp. 107-108.
[5] William Cobbett, A New French and English Dictionary: In Two Parts, p. 245.
[6] Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Henry VIII, Volume 16, n. 712.
[7] Calendar of State Papers, Spain, Volume 6 Part 1, n. 204.

If you would like to purchase a copy of Sylvia Barbara Soberton’s latest book, “Medical Downfall of the Tudors”, follow this link: https://www.amazon.com/Medical-Downfall-Tudors-Reproduction-Succession-ebook/dp/B08L713HRD/ref=sr_1_1?crid=IC8X21PUSC9W&dchild=1&keywords=medical+downfall+of+the+tudors&qid=1603200026&sprefix=Medical+Down%2Caps%2C208&sr=8-1/

Book Review: “Dark Fire” by C.J. Sansom

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28280675._SY475_The year 1540 during the reign of Henry VIII was a turbulent time. Henry’s new wife, Anne of Cleves, is not exactly the person who he imagined and his eye is starting to wander to a new woman, Katherine Howard. The reformers are starting to lose favor with the king as they and Catholics alike are being executed for treason. This is the London that Matthew Shardlake, our favorite hunchback lawyer turned detective, calls home. He thinks that he has retired from his detective work and serving Thomas Cromwell, but he is sadly mistaken. His next adventure has twice the number of cases and just as much danger that makes his trip to the monastery in “Dissolution” look easy. In the second book of the Shardlake series, “Dark Fire”, C.J. Sansom turns up the heat, the action, and the danger.

We join Matthew Shardlake during a busy season in his life as a lawyer. He is working on maintaining his legal practice, and his next case is a doozy. A young girl named Elizabeth is accused of murdering her cousin and it is up to Shardlake to defend her, even when everyone believes she is guilty of the crime. Just as he is adjusting to this new case, he gets a call from his favorite person who he thought he was done dealing with for a while, Henry’s chief minister, Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell has a new case for Shardlake, to recover the lost formula for the mysterious Greek Fire, also known as Dark Fire. Cromwell knew that Shardlake would need some help with this new case, so he sends a new partner, the daring and resourceful Jack Barak. The only clue they have is someone from the Court of Augmentations found the formula in a dissolved monastery’s library, but when the person who had it and his alchemist brother are found brutally murdered, things get extremely complicated. Two separate cases that share the same deadline and the same amount of danger if Shardlake and Barak should fail to solve them. Can they solve both cases in time?

When I read the description of this book, my first impression was that C.J. Sansom was trying to cover too much in a book. I thought that there was no way that Shardlake could solve both cases in the time frame that he was given and that Sansom would focus on one case over the other. I was proven wrong as this book was beautifully balanced between the two cases while keeping the reader’s attention throughout the entire book.

Sansom made the Tudor London world come to life in this brilliant sequel. I thought the way he showed the struggle for power between those who had it and those who wanted it was masterfully done. He included some of my favorite characters from “Dissolution” in this book, which made me extremely excited and I believe that Shardlake’s new partner Barak was a stroke of genius. Their interactions were some of my favorites in this entire book and I cannot wait to see how he develops Shardlake and Barak’s partnership throughout the rest of the series.

I enjoyed this book immensely. It kept me guessing with both cases until the bitter end. There were so many twists and turns, revelations, and intrigue. There were some places where I think the pacing was a bit slower than the first book, but it did not detract from my enjoyment of this remarkable sequel. I did not want it to end because it would mean that I would have to leave this dynamic world with intriguing characters, until the next book. It was a sheer joy to dive back into Shardlake’s Tudor world and I honestly cannot wait to jump back into another Shardlake mystery. The first book made me fall in love with Shardlake, but this one made me fall in love with his Tudor world and the people around him. If you have read “Dissolution”, “Dark Fire” by C.J. Sansom is a must-read.

Book Review: “Six Tudor Queens: Anna of Kleve, Queen of Secrets” by Alison Weir

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44034429._SY475_A foreign princess who travels to England to marry the king to establish a strong political alliance. To those who study history, this is a story that has been told numerous times, but what makes this particular story unique is the people involved. The bridegroom was the recently-widowed Henry VIII, the shadow of his former self and notorious throughout Europe for having his second wife Anne Boleyn executed. His new bride to be is the German princess Anna of Kleve. To say that they did not see eye to eye would be an understatement as the marriage did not last long. Her story is often swept under the rug. Anna is often viewed as the “lucky” wife of Henry VIII, but was she? What was Anna’s story and what was her marriage with Henry really like? Alison Weir has taken up the challenge to give her readers a taste of what Anna’s life might have been like in this novel, “Six Tudor Queens: Anna of Kleve, Queen of Secrets”.

As many of you know, I am a big fan of Alison Weir and I have enjoyed the “Six Tudor Queens” series thus far, so I knew that I wanted to read this one. Anna of Cleves is one of my favorite wives of Henry VIII, yet I have never read a historical fiction novel on her, so I found this concept of this book intriguing.

Weir begins her book with Anna’s life in her native Germany and her relationship with her family. To see her interacting with her parents and her siblings was delightful and so relatable. We even saw them arguing about Catholicism versus Protestantism, which was the hot topic of the time. Anna is informed that she was to marry King Henry VIII of England, who has been married three previous times. Weir takes the time to show Anna’s journey from Germany to England and how she transitioned into her new life in a new country. Her relationship with Henry is more of a close friendship than that of a husband and wife, which is very loving, caring, and believable. I enjoyed her relationships with Henry’s other wives, Katherine Howard and Katherine Parr since there is no animosity between them. Anna’s relationships with Henry’s children are very nurturing, especially towards Mary Tudor, who is more of a best friend relationship rather than a step-mother, step-daughter relationship.

Weir’s focus in this book is truly the relationships of those closest to Anna, but there are a few, in particular, that stands out; Anna’s relationships with her lover and their son. I will say that before I read this book, I knew about this storyline and I was upset about it. However, when I started to read this book, I enjoyed it. Of course, I know it is a fictional storyline, but I have always felt bad for Anna that she never married again after she divorced Henry. She was still in the prime of her life which makes you question if she ever loved anyone. As a work of fiction, I found this storyline compelling, even if it is not for everyone. It added a different element to Anna’s story.

Overall, I found this novel enjoyable and very well written. I truly felt sympathy for Anna with every trial she faced. Since this is a historical fiction novel, some of it should not be taken as factual, but what Weir does extremely well is she created a relatable and loving heroine in Anna. If you want an engaging Tudor historical fiction novel to read, I would recommend you read, “Six Tudor Queens: Anna of Kleve, Queen of Secrets” by Alison Weir.

Book Review: “Lady Katherine Knollys- The Unacknowledged Daughter of King Henry VIII” by Sarah-Beth Watkins

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51M3PWFQLjLThe children of Henry VIII have been the center of historical studies for centuries. Edward VI, Mary I,  and Elizabeth I were all considered Henry’s “legitimate” children and were able to obtain the crown of England. Henry Fitzroy was the illegitimate son of the king, but he was still able to gain titles and a good marriage before he died. They all had something in common; they were all recognized by their father, Henry VIII. However, there was another child who many believed to have been the daughter of the king. The name of this intriguing lady was Lady Katherine Knollys and her story comes to life in Sarah-Beth Watkins’ book, “Lady Katherine Knollys- The Unacknowledged Daughter of King Henry VIII”.

I would like to thank Sarah-Beth Watkins and Chronos Books for sending me a copy of this great book. I have never read a biography on Lady Katherine Knollys and I found this a delight to read.

Katherine’s mother was the sister of Anne Boleyn, Mary Boleyn. For a time before Anne came into the picture, Mary was Henry VIII’s mistress. Henry VIII did have a child by another mistress, which he did declare as his own, so why did he not acknowledge Katherine as his child? Watkins offers an explanation on why Katherine was not acknowledged by the king and what her life was like:

Katherine would grow up never to be acknowledged as King Henry VIII’s daughter. Henry had every reason not to acknowledge her. He has his daughters, one already born when Katherine came into the world, and he needed no more. His denial of his affair with Katherine’s mother, Mary, would be something that would always position Katherine as a bastard. Yet Katherine joined the Tudor court as maid of honour to Queen Anne of Cleves and she went on to serve Catherine Howard as well as becoming one of Elizabeth I’s closest confidantes- cousins for definite, more likely half-sisters. Katherine lived through the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and on into Elizabeth I’s. Never far from court, she lived in a world where she would never be a princess but a lady she was born to be. (Watkins, 1).

Watkins begins her book by exploring Mary Boleyn’s life and her relationship with Henry VIII and the birth of Katherine. As Mary fell out of favor with the king, we see the rise and fall of her sister, Anne Boleyn. As Katherine grows up, we see her becoming a maid of honour for Anne of Cleves and Katherine Howard, until she marries Francis Knollys at the age of 16. Katherine and Francis went on to have quite a large family. Their children included Lettice Knollys, who scandalously married Elizabeth I’s favorite, Sir Robert Dudley. Katherine spent a lot of her life serving others, never flaunting who her father might have been. The only time that Katherine’s life was in danger was when Mary I came to the throne. Katherine and Francis decided to take their family and flee abroad since they were Protestants, but they did return when Elizabeth returned. Elizabeth came to rely on Katherine as a close confidante and when Katherine did die, Elizabeth gave her an elaborate funeral.

This was my first time reading a biography about Lady Katherine Knollys and I really enjoyed it. I go back and forth whether I believe she was the daughter of Henry VIII or not, but I found it interesting to learn more about this fascinating woman. Watkins does a superb job of balancing letters, facts and an easy to understand writing style to tell the story of Lady Katherine Knollys, her family, and the life inside the Tudor court. If you want to learn more about the life of the remarkable daughter of Mary Boleyn, I highly recommend you read, “Lady Katherine Knollys- The Unacknowledged Daughter of King Henry VIII” by Sarah-Beth Watkins.  

Book Review: “Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII’s Unwanted Wife” by Sarah-Beth Watkins

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91UpsDD9PWL.jpgHenry VIII, the king who was notorious for his six marriages. His first three marriages, to Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, and Jane Seymour, gave Henry VIII his only children that were considered eligible for succession. Catherine of Aragon was his first foreign bride, but he would divorce her to marry Anne Boleyn. Anne Boleyn would later be executed and Jane Seymour would die after giving birth to Henry’s son Edward. Henry wanted to marry again, so his most trusted advisors decided to try for a foreign alliance as well as a new bride for the king. They decided that Anne of Cleves from Germany would be the perfect bride, but it did not work out and Henry decided to divorce her and claim Anne as his “sister”. She is often viewed as Henry’s “lucky wife”, but who was she and what was her life like before and after she met her husband Henry VIII? That is exactly the question that Sarah-Beth Watkins wanted to explore in her latest book, “Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII’s Unwanted Wife”.

Sarah-Beth Watkins explains who Anne of Cleves was  and how has she has been described in the past:

Contemporary reports of Anne are mixed but time has not been kind to her memory. In a book by Sarah Tytler published in 1896, I was shocked to read Anne described as ‘a woman of entirely negative characteristics’. The author really had nothing good to say about her. She was ‘dull-witted as well as a hard-favoured young woman, possessed of a stolid sluggishness of temper’. Her writing reads as if Anne had personally upset her in some way. She was ‘plain and stupid’ and even had a ‘meaningless expanse of forehead’! She hasn’t favoured much better with other authors. Hume described her as ‘large, bony and masculine’ and Burnet coined the phrase ‘Flanders mare’ which has stuck to Anne throughout the centuries. Strickland, however, wrote with more sympathy that Anne ‘ was a most unfortunate, ill-treated princess…who deserved a better fate than to become the wife of a king so devoid of the feelings of a gentleman as Henry VIII’…She was Queen of England for just over six months and after became the King’s ‘sister’- a role she adopted and thrived on. She became the richest woman in England for a time with an astounding divorce settlement. Henry may not have wanted her for a wife but he did not blame her for the failure of their marriage- that would fall upon his chief minister. Anne would outlive the king and all of his other wives. (Watkins, 2-3).

Watkins begins her book by diving into Anne of Cleves’ life in Germany before she was even considered as a bride for a king. Anne’s life in Germany was simple. She didn’t really have the education that one would expect for a future queen, but she never was expected to marry a king. She was the sister to William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. Her sister, Sybilla, was married to John Frederick, Duke of Saxony, who was one of the leaders of the Protestant Confederation of Germany and was considered one of the champions of the Reformation. Anne didn’t  follow her sister’s path to the Protestant faith as she was a devout Catholic, but the religious issue doesn’t seem to have caused a rift in the family.

Anne was supposed to marry Francis of Lorraine, but the engagement was broken since Francis was only 10 when it was arranged. After the death of Jane Seymour, Henry VIII needed a new wife. He wanted to make an alliance with the Schmalkaldic League, a league of Protestant territories that wanted to defend itself against the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Anne was not exactly Henry’s first choice of bride to help join this alliance, but she was the one he decided to marry, and so Anne left her home in 1539. The marriage did not last long, only six months, before Henry divorced her. Anne was a bit disappointed, but Henry was able to provide her with a wealthy lifestyle, one fit for a former queen.  There were talks about Anne becoming queen again after the fall of Katherine Howard, but it never happened. Anne was able to form a close relationship with Mary, Henry’s eldest daughter since they were so close in age. Even when she was not queen, Anne of Cleves kept a close eye on what was happening, not only in the English court but what was happening in her beloved Germany. As stated before, Anne did outlive Henry VIII, the rest of his wives and King Edward VI. Anne of Cleves died at the age of 41 on July 16, 1557.

This is the first time that I have read a book by Sarah-Beth Watkins and I really enjoyed how easy it was to read and the amount of information in this book. I did not know a whole lot about Anne of Cleves before reading this book, other than the fact that she was married to Henry VIII for a short time. Watkins’ book packs in so much information that you want to learn more about Anne of Cleves and her family.  This book is well researched and thoroughly enjoyable. If you want a fantastic book to introduce you to the life of Anne of Cleves, I highly recommend you read “Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII’s Unwanted Wife” by Sarah-Beth Watkins.

Book Review: “The Raven’s Widow: A Novel of Jane Boleyn” by Adrienne Dillard

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51a-rKfpABL._SX322_BO1,204,203,200_The rise and fall of the Boleyns have been something that has fascinated those who study the Tudor dynasty for centuries. We often view these series of events from the immediate Boleyn family, but what might it have been like for someone who was married to a Boleyn, like Jane Parker Boleyn, the wife of George Boleyn? Jane is often portrayed in literature as a woman who had a tumultuous marriage who sold out her husband when she was interrogated, someone who helped Katherine Howard with her secret liaisons behind Henry VIII’s back, and a woman who suffered from mental illness while in prison. If you take a look at Jane Boleyn’s life from this lens, she sounds like a troubled woman, but what if there was a different side to her? What if she was a good person who loved her husband and his family? That is the Jane Boleyn that Adrienne Dillard wanted to portray in her latest book, “The Raven’s Widow: A Novel of Jane Boleyn”.

Adrienne Dillard explains how she views Jane Boleyn and why she chose to write this particular story:

When the traces of Jane’s humanity are washed away, it’s easy for later generations to demonize her actions. What could have been perfectly innocent behaviour is seen through the prism of her later behaviour and ultimate ending: death as a traitor to the crown. It is my goal in writing this novel to give Jane some of that humanity back. I want to put a face to a name that has been blackened by assumption for the last five centuries. I want to remind people that Jane wasn’t some spectre lurking in the corner, plotting the downfall of others. She was a sister, a daughter, a wife, a friend, and a loyal servant. She had hopes and dreams. She had flaws and quirks. And to further muddy the waters, we have to consider her mental state. The choices she made may be hard to understand now, but at the moment that she made them, they made sense to her. (Dillard, 350).

Dillard structures her story as a parallel narrative, which is unique and effective when telling Jane’s story as it allows the reader to see the parallels between what happened to the Boleyns during their fall and Jane’s own fall. We are first introduced to Jane as she enters the Tower of London, awaiting her sentence after being involved with Katherine Howard. While Jane is in the Tower, she has flashbacks to her time with Anne and George Boleyn. Jane’s father wanted her to marry well and so he chose George Boleyn as her husband. To say that Jane was reluctant to marry such a man was an understatement, but as their story progressed, George and Jane grew to love each other, even through the countless miscarriages that Jane suffered.

Jane acts as a perfect “fly on the wall” character as she is a servant in the court of many of Henry VIII’s wives. She cares for not only her sister-in-law Anne Boleyn, but for Katherine of Aragon and it is rather interesting to read how Jane viewed this complex time in English history known as “The Great Matter”. Another great matter discussed throughout this novel is how religion was changing with new, radical theological ideas. Though we are not sure where Jane exactly stood on these issues, it is interesting to see how she might have responded to them.

Adrienne Dillard brought Jane Boleyn’s story from the shadows and illuminates it. By showing Jane as a loving and caring wife, daughter, servant, and friend, Dillard gives her readers a different perspective towards this captivating woman who suffered from mental illness. I did not know much about Jane’s story before reading this novel, but now I want to know more about her. If you want an engaging and thought-provoking novel about Jane Boleyn and the Boleyns, I highly recommend, “The Raven’s Widow: A Novel of Jane Boleyn” by Adrienne Dillard.