"Mini-biographies of women from every walk of life and every corner of the globe . . . an informative, refreshing, and unique approach to the 16th century." — Adventures of a Tudor NerdThis retelling of the sixteenth century introduces the reader to a gallery of amazing women from queens to commoners, who navigated the patriarchal world in memorable and life-changing ways all around the world. Amy Licence has scoured the records from Europe and beyond to co...

**A gripping exploration of power, ambition, and untimely death in England's royal houses.**This book delves into the lives of ten young men whose destinies were intertwined with the tumultuous events of the Wars of the Roses and the rise of the Tudors. From battlefields to the Tower of London, their stories reveal the brutal realities of medieval life and the high stakes of dynastic inheritance.Discover the lost paths of history and the "what-ifs" that shaped England's most savage...

Philip of Spain is known in England primarily as the husband of Mary I and the adversary of Elizabeth I. The Spanish Armada hangs about his neck like an albatross. He is defined by his brief marriage, his lack of Englishness, his Catholicism, his otherness, and all the additional layers of complication that these bring.Yet Philip's life encompasses most of the major struggles and issues of the sixteenth century, as he battled to control the vast Empires acquired by...

The life of Honor, Lady Lisle, follows a dizzying narrative arc. Born into a West Country family, her second marriage propelled her into Anne Boleyn's court, as the new step-aunt to Henry VIII.Her husband, Arthur, was the illegitimate son of Edward IV, bearing the dangerous surname Plantagenet, one of a few survivors of the old regime. At his side, Honor witnessed tumultuous change in England, before heading out to run the Tudor enclave of Calais. Her surviving letters speak of a h...

The Wars of the Roses were not just fought by men on the battlefield. There were daughters, wives, mistresses, mothers and queens whose lives and influences helped shape the most dramatic of English conflicts. This book traces the women's stories on the Lancastrian side, from the children of Blanche, wife of John of Gaunt, through the turbulent 15th century to the advent of Margaret Beaufort's son in 1509, and establishment of the Tudor dynasty. From Katherine Swynford and Catherine of Val...

"An illuminating and entertaining read . . . an analytical assessment of the two figures who led the Lancastrian faction during the Wars of the Roses." — History . . . The Interesting Bits!He became king before his first birthday, inheriting a vast empire from his military hero father; she was the daughter of a king without power, who made an unexpected marriage at the age of fifteen. Almost completely opposite in character, together they formed an unlikely...

Take a 500-year journey back in time and experience the Tudor Era through the five senses.Much has been written about the lives of the Tudors, but it is sometimes difficult to really grasp how they experienced the world. Using the five senses, Amy Licence presents a new perspective on the material culture of the past, exploring the Tudors’ relationship with the fabric of their existence, from the clothes on their back, roofs over their heads and food on their table...

Catherine of Aragon continues to fascinate readers 500 years after she became Henry VIII's first queen. Her life was one of passion and determination, of suffering and hope, but ultimately it is a tragic love story, as circumstances conspired against her. Having lost her first husband, Henry's elder brother Prince Arthur, she endured years of ill health and penury, to make a dazzling second match in Henry VIII. There is no doubt that she was Henry's true love, compatible with him in every ...

Learn what went on behind closed doors in the Tudor court. Illegitimate children, adulterous queens, impotent kings, and a whole dynasty resting on their shoulders. Sex and childbirth were quite literally a matter of life or death for the Tudors - Elizabeth of York died in childbirth, two of Henry VIII's queens were beheaded for infidelity, and Elizabeth I's elective virginity signalled the demise of a dynasty. Amy Licence guides the reader through the births of Henry VII and Elizabeth of ...

Known to be proud, regal and beautiful, Cecily Neville was born in the year of the great English victory at Agincourt and survived long enough to witness the arrival of the future Henry VIII, her great-grandson. Her life spanned most of the fifteenth century. Cecily’s marriage to Richard, Duke of York, was successful, even happy, and she travelled with him wherever his career dictated, bearing his children in England, Ireland and France, including the future Edward IV and Richard III. What...

Babies are born every day, but only once or twice in a lifetime, a child arrives who will inherit the throne. This summer, the nation watched as Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, delivered our future king. There have been predictions, expectations and a flurry of media attention around the new parents but apart from the flashing cameras and internet headlines, this is nothing new. Royal babies have excited interest before their births, for more than a millennium. When a queen or princess co...

As Tudors go, Elizabeth of York is relatively unknown. Yet she was the mother of the dynasty, with her children becoming King of England (Henry VIII) and Queens of Scotland (Margaret) and France (Mary Rose) and her direct descendants included three Tudor monarchs, two executed queens and, ultimately, the Stuart royal family. Although her offspring took England into the early modern era, Elizabeth's upbringing was rooted firmly in the medieval world. The pivotal moment was 1485. Before then...