The Six Wives & Many Mistresses of Henry VIII: The Women's Stories by Amy Licence
| The Six Wives & Many Mistresses of Henry VIII: The Women's Stories by Amy Licence | |
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| Category: Biography | |
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Reviewer: John Van der Kiste
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| Summary: Henry VIII was famous for having six wives, but less is known of his mistresses. This book uncovers details of several more in a very well-researched volume which combines the familiar stories with a wealth of detail and a few overlooked facets of Tudor history. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 400 | Date: April 2017 |
| Publisher: Amberley | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1445660394 | |
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According to popular wisdom, Henry VIII had six wives and only two mistresses. The former statement is correct, but the latter only tells part of the story. Even while he was married to his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, there were many more ladies in his life.
Elizabeth Blount and Mary Boleyn, the sister of Anne, are the two best-known, but the list extends beyond that. Research reveals that during the early years, there were also Anne Stafford and Elizabeth Carew, who may or may not have borne him children. Some years later there was also Mary Berkeley, thought to have been a member of Catherine's court, and Joanna (or Joan) Dingley, a royal laundress. Henry, we are told in the introduction, was a deeply private man who liked to keep his amours known to only a select few (typical English reserve, it seems), and he generally seems to have kept his tracks well covered. In this he was quite unlike his contemporary, Francis I of France, well-known as a man who 'paraded his conquests with pride'.
The story of Henry's six unfortunate wives is well known and has been told often enough. The mistresses have received less attention and Ms Licence, who has become one of the most prolific contemporary chroniclers of the Tudors, weaves the tapestry together well. The combination of Henry's wandering eye and his passion for securing the succession with a male heir was a powerful one. Factor in to that the pivotal year of 1536, when it appears that the combination of a severe riding accident, apparent betrayal by Anne Boleyn, and the Pilgrimage of Grace in Yorkshire, the most serious of the rebellions against his rule, turned the most accomplished and dashing of European monarchs into an obese, cantankerous despot who would order the arrest and execution of almost anybody at will. The story of Henry's last ten years is a grim one, and it was perhaps grimmer for nobody more than the women who shared his life and their closest associates. Jane Seymour, the one who achieved the supreme prize by giving him a young prince and then sadly dying in childbirth, possibly had a lucky escape by not living long enough to incur his displeasure for some reason or other. Anne of Cleves was callously discarded, Catherine Howard became the object of his vengeance, and even Catherine Parr came close to ending up on a charge of treason.
Much of the story here is familiar, but the book adds another useful dimension to Tudor biography by interweaving the tale of the lesser-known mistresses as well as the tales of the wives. While there is little direct evidence regarding some of the 'others', Ms Licence makes out a convincing case with well-supported arguments in favour of their associations with Henry. Her little diversions into contemporary society and what it was like to be a woman at the Tudor court also lend atmosphere and colour to the story. The long, sad and sometimes tortuous story of Catherine of Aragon's rejection and Anne Boleyn's shockingly speedy fall from grace are both familiar, but after that it is almost as if a veil descends on the later years. This book fills the rest in very readably. It is no mean achievement of the author to come up with something new, another twist, to what has by and large long been a familiar tale. She also deserves credit for emphasizing that Catherine of Aragon was not technically divorced; the marriage was annulled on the grounds that it had been invalid from the start.
For additional reading on the theme, we can recommend another of the author's books, her comprehensive biography Catherine of Aragon: An Intimate Life of Henry VIII's True Wife; Prince Arthur: The Tudor King Who Never Was by Sean Cunningham, a biography of the prince who, had he lived, might have denied Henry VII the throne altogether; and The King is Dead by Suzannah Lipscomb, a beautifully presented study of the aftermath of the King's reign and death.
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You can read more book reviews or buy The Six Wives & Many Mistresses of Henry VIII: The Women's Stories by Amy Licence at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy The Six Wives & Many Mistresses of Henry VIII: The Women's Stories by Amy Licence at Amazon.com.
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