Best of
Tudor

2007

The First Queen of England: The Myth of "Bloody Mary"


Linda Porter - 2007
    A Latin scholar and outstanding musician, her love of fashion was matched only by her zeal for gambling. It is the tragedy of Queen Mary that today, 450 years after her death, she remains the most hated, least understood monarch in English history.Linda Porter’s pioneering new biography—based on contemporary documents and drawing from recent scholarship—cuts through the myths to reveal the truth about the first queen to rule England in her own right. Mary learned politics in a hard school, and was cruelly treated by her father and bullied by the strongmen of her brother, Edward VI. An audacious coup brought her to the throne, and she needed all her strong will and courage to keep it. Mary made a grand marriage to Philip of Spain, but her attempts to revitalize England at home and abroad were cut short by her premature death at the age of forty-two.  The first popular biography of Mary in thirty years, The First Queen of England offers a fascinating, controversial look at this much-maligned queen.

Elizabeth & Leicester: Power, Passion, Politics


Sarah Gristwood - 2007
    They shared an important commonality of experience — both with a parent dead on the headsman’s block, both imprisoned in the Tower just yards away. Within days of the death of her sister, Mary, he was at her side and within months, openly spoken of as her lover, even her future husband. Her relationship with her “bonnie sweet Robin” was one of the most important in the life of Elizabeth. For thirty years he loved her, advised her, understood her, sat by her bed in sickness, and represented her on state occasions. Yet, much of the fascination in their relationship comes from what is not on display: the sudden death — some said murder — of Leicester’s wife, which damaged his reputation irretrievably; and Elizabeth’s persistent refusal for ever afterwards to marry anybody at all.Not a conventional biography, Elizabeth & Leicester is, rather, an intimate portrait of an affair between two people at a crucial moment in history.

Mademoiselle Boleyn


Robin Maxwell - 2007
    And she is not to be disappointed, for her beautiful sister, Mary, has been handed a mission: to let herself be seduced by the King of France in order to uncover his secrets.Mesmerized by the thrilling passion, intrigue, and betrayal that unfolds, Anne discovers the power of being a woman who catches the eye of a powerful king. And, as she grows into a beautiful young woman, she undergoes her own sexual awakening, each daring exploit taking her one step closer to the life that is her destiny.

Dress at the Court of King Henry VIII


Maria Hayward - 2007
    It is the only other substantial record of the king's clothes in English archives on wardrobe and inventory.

The Tudors: It's Good to Be King - Final Shooting Scripts 1-5 of the Showtime Series


Michael Hirst - 2007
    This is not the story of the old, fat Henry you've read about in history books. At eighteen, the throne and the entire world became his. Young, sexy, and the most powerful man of his time, the king was known for his good looks and athletic prowess. He was so arrogant that he despised dealing with the consequences of his actions. King Henry executed people with little excuse, and single-handedly tore apart the Roman Catholic Church, the most powerful institution in medieval Europe. Passionate, vibrant, and scandalous, he forever altered the course of history. The Tudors, a Showtime Original Series starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, brings to life Henry's tumultuous early years in exquisite fashion. THE BOOK ALSO INCLUDES a foreward by Michael Hirst, creator and executive producer, eight pages of lush, full-color photos, detailed essays about the Tudor era and dynasty Tune into The Tudors on Showtime -- Sundays at 10pm starting April 1st

Henry VIII and the Art of Majesty: Tapestries at the Tudor Court


Thomas P. Campbell - 2007
    Henry VIII amassed an unrivaled collection over the course of his reign, and the author weaves the history of this magnificent collection into the life of its owner with an engaging narrative style. Now largely dispersed or destroyed, Henry’s extensive inventory is here reassembled and reveals how, through tapestry, Henry identified himself with historic, religious, and mythological figures, putting England in dialogue—and competition—with the leading courts of Early Modern Europe while promoting his own religious and political agendas at home. Campbell’s original account sheds new light on Tudor political and artistic culture and the court’s response to Renaissance aesthetic ideals. Sumptuously illustrated with newly commissioned photographs, this stunning re-creation of Europe’s greatest tapestry collection challenges the predominantly text-driven histories of the period and offers a fascinating new perspective on the life of Henry VIII.

Warwick the Kingmaker: Politics, Power and Fame during the War of the Roses


A.J. Pollard - 2007
    For twelve years he was the arbiter of English politics, not hesitating to set up and put down kings. In the dominant strand of recent English historical writing, Warwick is condemned as a man who hindered the development of the modern state; in earlier centuries he was admired as an exemplar of true nobility who defied the centralising tendencies of the crown. A. J. Pollard offers a fresh assessment, to which neither approach is entirely appropriate, of the man whose nickname has become synonymous with power broking.

Goddesses and Queens: The Iconography of Elizabeth I


Lisa Hopkins - 2007
    This collection of essays examines the diversity of the queen's extensive iconographical repertoire, focusing on both visual and textual representations of Elizabeth, not only in portraiture and literature, but also in contemporary sermons, speeches, and alchemical treatises. The collection broadens critical thinking about Elizabeth. Each essay contributes to the debate about the queen's developing iconicity not simply as a celebratory mode, but also as encoded criticism of her. Each of these essays explains the ways in which the varied representations of Elizabeth reflect the political and cultural anxieties of her subjects.

Henry VIII: Court, Church and Conflict


David Loades - 2007
    It explores Henry's policies and strategies and his manipulation of key players such as Wolsey, Cromwell, Fisher and More, as well as the shaping of his royal image over decades of change. It also probes the intriguing nature of the man behind the monarch, especially his complex religious beliefs that determined the shape of England's reformation. David Loades, an authoritative historian of Tudor England, begins by explaining how historians have treated Henry and the expectations contemporaries had of the Renaissance prince who ascended the throne. He describes the ensuing reign in detail, taking in the wars, law enforcement, the succession question, the court, the rebellions and the problem of Ireland, illustrating the narrative with original National Archives documents and full colour portraits of those involved.The author concludes by considering the ambiguous but still tangible legacy that this most high-profile of monarchs has left us.