The Lives of Tudor Women by Elizabeth Norton
| The Lives of Tudor Women by Elizabeth Norton | |
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| Category: History | |
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Reviewer: John Van der Kiste
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| Summary: A skilfully-written book which is part collective biography, part social history. Beginning and ending with Elizabeth Tudors, the first two being the consort of King Henry VII and her shortlived daughter, and the last the famous Queen Regnant, this book recounts the lives of individuals from all walks of life, from sovereigns and consorts to serving maids, businesswomen, activists and martyrs. It also looks at various aspects of life for women and girls in Tudor England, including childcare, cosmetics, prostitution, murder, suicide and witchcraft. Written by an acknowledged expert on the Tudor era, it will be ideal for scholars and the general reader. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 416 | Date: October 2016 |
| Publisher: Head of Zeus | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1784081751 | |
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After a series of individual biographies on the major Tudor women, mostly royal, this book brings a new dimension in touching on the lives of individuals from all walks of life. However, it is much more than a simple collection of lives. While the Queens and princesses naturally dominate some of the chapters, it looks beyond the surface to devote attention to serving maids, businesswomen, activists and martyrs, as well as focus on various aspects of life for women and girls in Tudor England.
‘The Lives of Tudor Women’ is bookended by Elizabeths. The first two are Elizabeth of York, consort of King Henry VII, and her namesake daughter, while the last is the most famous of all, the woman who reigned for almost half a century. Throughout the text, the narrative is interspersed with accompanying short entries, each generally around two pages long, on specific relevant subjects. For instance, while discussing the Queen’s pregnancy, prenatal care and health, and the high mortality rate for mothers and children, the opening chapter has a few parallel photographs about ‘pleading the belly’, usually in the case of women convicted for theft at a time when the punishment for almost every offence was hanging. A few pages further is a mini-chapter on caesarean operations, which in those days was only carried out on a dead woman if there was a possibility that her infant might live as long as it was removed from her body in time. Chapters two and three discuss the infancy of the young Princess Elizabeth, her nursery and toys, and the care taken of her by nurse Cecily Burbage – but also the sad business of children’s funerals, for the princess only lived to be four years old.
The procession of Tudor women throughout the rest of the book includes the consorts of Henry VIII and his daughters, both reigning Queens in turn, as well as the pathetic saga of the first English Queen Regnant, the tragic Lady Jane Grey who had never wanted nor really expected to be Queen, yet paid the ultimate price. Less well-known are the stories of Jane Bocher, burnt at the stake for heresy; Elizabeth Barton, ‘the Holy Maid of Kent’, Anne Askew and Margaret Clitherow, martyrs all as well; Katherine Fenkyll and Rose Hickman, both successful businesswomen in their own right; and Jane Dormer, a lady-in-waiting to Queen Mary who after the latter’s death married into the Spanish aristocracy and went on to live to a ripe old age in her husband’s country. Some of these provide vivid accounts of what it meant for a woman to die for her faith in an age when there was no question of sparing women from the same fate as men, except if they were proved to be with child.
At the same time, other darker aspects of life (and death) such as Tudor prostitution, murder, suicide and witchcraft are also dealt with. Nearly two pages discuss Tudor cosmetics, one of their most famous users being the last Queen Elizabeth Tudor, who appreciated being able to ‘turn back time’.
Elizabeth Norton has already published books on five of the Tudor Queens and is well-placed to write this book. It will be ideal for scholars (the bibliography covers almost twenty pages) while still remaining thoroughly accessible to the general reader.
You could shelve this book next to Tudor Monastery Farm: Life in rural England 500 years ago by Ruth Goodman, Peter Ginn and Tom Pinfold. For a full life of the last Tudor Queen and those around her, we also recommend Elizabeth's Women: The Hidden Story of the Virgin Queen by Tracy Borman, and for her early life, The Temptation Of Elizabeth Tudor by Elizabeth Norton; or for the story of another woman on the edge of royalty, The Lost Tudor Princess: A Life of Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox by Alison Weir. You might also enjoy Arbella Stuart: The Uncrowned Queen by Jill Armitage.
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