This fascinating and occasionally salacious historical study delves into the lives of six Tudor women celebrated for their reputed wickedness. Collected here are illuminating accounts of Anne Boleyn a
This book delves into the lives of six Tudor women celebrated for their reputed 'wickedness'— Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard, the two consorts of Henry VIII who were executed for adultery; Anne Seym
This study of early modern queenship compares the reign of Henry VII’s queen, Elizabeth of York, and those of her daughters-in-law, the six queens of Henry VIII. It defines the traditional expectation
This book is a study of the marrying of Anne of Cleves to King Henry VIII. It contains fascinating material - including 'demonic' interference and sexual politics at court - which differs greatly from the usual stereotyped accounts of Anne. It also provides a rich context of royal courtship rituals, and a startling account of the king's failure to consummate his marriage. Contrary to the standard view, Henry's marriage procedures, from the advent of negotiations and the portrait of Anne by Hans Holbein the Younger to Henry's Rochester greeting of Anne - in disguise - and the Greenwich nuptials, all followed usual royal protocol. But the king's sexual incapacity, which prevented the consummation of the marriage, culminated in the fall and subsequent execution of Thomas Cromwell and his client Lord Hungerford, who were both tarred with the brush of sexual heresy.
This book is a study of the marrying of Anne of Cleves to King Henry VIII. It contains fascinating material - including 'demonic' interference and sexual politics at court - which differs greatly from the usual stereotyped accounts of Anne. It also provides a rich context of royal courtship rituals, and a startling account of the king's failure to consummate his marriage. Contrary to the standard view, Henry's marriage procedures, from the advent of negotiations and the portrait of Anne by Hans Holbein the Younger to Henry's Rochester greeting of Anne - in disguise - and the Greenwich nuptials, all followed usual royal protocol. But the king's sexual incapacity, which prevented the consummation of the marriage, culminated in the fall and subsequent execution of Thomas Cromwell and his client Lord Hungerford, who were both tarred with the brush of sexual heresy.
The events which led to the execution of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second queen, in 1536 have traditionally been explained by historians in terms of a factional conspiracy masterminded by Henry's minister Thomas Cromwell. Retha Warnicke's fascinating and controversial reinterpretation focuses instead on the sexual intrigues and family politics pervading the court, offering a new explanation of Anne's fall. The picture which emerges - placing Anne's life in the context of social and religious values, and superstitions about witches and the birth of deformed children - changes our perception of her role within the court, and suggests that her execution (occurring only four months after a miscarriage) was the tragic consequence of Henry's profound concern about the continuation of the Tudor dynasty.
"Scholars now have Warnicke to use as their chief one volume study of Mary"Julian Goodare, University of EdinburghIn this biography of one of the most intriguing figures of early modern European histo