Pen and Sword Books

I’m delighted to share my review for Mary Tudor: The French Queen by Amy McElroy #non-fiction #TheTudors

Here’s the blurb

Mary Tudor, Henry VIII’s sister, lived a remarkable life. A princess, duchess and queen, she was known as the English Rose for her beauty. Mary Tudor, Queen of France, aims to explore the life of one of the few who stood up to Henry VIII and lived to tell the tale.

Henry VIII is well known, but his larger-than-life character often overshadows that of his sisters. Mary Tudor was born a princess, married a king and then a duke, and lived an extraordinary life. This book focuses on Mary’s life, her childhood, her relationship with Henry, her marriages and her relationship with her husbands.

Mary grew up in close proximity to Henry, becoming his favourite sister, and later, after her marriage to the French king, she married his best friend, Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk. The events impacting the siblings will be reviewed to examine how they may have changed and shaped their relationship.

Purchase Links

Pen and Sword (publisher)

Amazon

My Review

Mary Tudor by Amy McElroy is a fascinating biographical account of the life of Mary, Henry VIII’s sister, and not to be confused with his daughter.

The story is quite remarkable, and while I knew something about her, I didn’t know everything. The chapters, which follow her through the 3 marriage proposals she receives, which result in 2 marriages, are quite astounding. So much time and effort went into trying to wed her to Prince Charles (later Emperor Charles), and then all of a sudden, she married Louis XII of France. I found it most fascinating. If anything, her 2nd marriage seems almost anticlimatic, even though it evidently wasn’t at the time. And, with all we know about Henry and his marital difficulties, Mary appears to have been somewhat serene about everything. I imagine she perhaps had a happier life, if one often troubled by the terrible debt her brother placed upon her (families!).

I really appreciated the author’s desire to keep this narrative to Mary and not to her children and grandchildren. It seems fitting to have a title devoted exclusively to her.

A fine portrayal of Mary’s eventful, if short life, with a lovely writing style.

Meet the author

Amy was born and bred in Liverpool before moving to the Midlands to study criminal justice and eventually becoming a civil servant. She has long been interested in history, reading as much and as often as she could. Her writing journey began with her blog, sharing thoughts on books she had read before developing to writing reviews for Aspects of History. The Lives of Women in the Tudor Era is Amy’s second book. Her first, Educating the Tudors, focused on the educational opportunities of all classes, those who taught them and the pastimes enjoyed by all.

The Ælfflæd ‘stole’ from St Cuthbert’s tomb – The Royal Women Who Made England

When I was writing The Royal Women Who Made England, I discovered that there is potentially one surviving item that could be associated with these royal women. While the identification is not certain, it seems highly likely that some religious items, discovered in the tomb of St Cuthbert in Durham, when it was opened in 1827, could have either been stitched by Ælfflæd herself, or commissioned at her request. The item has the following words stitched on it Ælfflæd Fiere Precepit (Ælfflæd had [this] made) – translation from E Coatsworth The Embroideries from the Tomb of St Cuthbert.

Ælfflæd was the second wife of Edward the Elder (899-924). It’s believed they probably married AFTER he became king of Wessex on the death of his father in 899. She was the mother to at least six daughters, and two sons, one of whom became king after his father’s death, for a brief 16 days. Her stepson, Athelstan, then became king of Wessex. Two of her daughters married into the ruling families of East and West Frankia. Another two daughters married into influential families in Europe. Two others spent their adult lives in a nunnery, one as a lay sister, and one as a nun.

The embroideries consist of a stole, a maniple and a possible girdle, and are believed to have been made for Bishop Frithestan – indeed, the other end of the embroidery reads Pio Episcopo Fri∂estano (for the pious bishop Frithestan). So, together it reads Ælfflæd had this made for the pious bishop Frithestan. Frithestan was the bishop of Winchester in the early tenth century. It’s likely he never received them, for why else would they have found their way to Durham and the tomb of St Cuthberht?

There are two possible reasons for this. Firstly, Ælfflæd may have either died, or no longer been married to the king when they were completed. Edward the Elder remarried Eadgifu, his third wife sometime between 917-919. We don’t know if this was because his second wife had died, or merely because he wished to take a new wife. Secondly, Bishop Frithestan fell out with the House of Wessex at about this time. Indeed, he played no part in King Athelstan’s coronation. The expensive commissions, with gold thread, therefore never came into the hands of Bishop Frithestan. Where they might have been for the intervening period, would be interesting to know.

When King Athelstan (924-939) made his famous trip to Chester Le Street in c.934, it’s written that he gifted the community of St Cuthbert with a stole, a maniple and a girdle. It’s believed that it’s these items, made by, or commissioned by his stepmother, that he gave. (The religious house from Chester Le Street moved to Durham in 1104). St Cuthbert was a north-east saint, who lived on Lindisfarne/Holy Island in the 600s, and while it’s believed the religious house fled from Lindisfarne in the wake of the Viking raider invasions and were essentially ‘on the move’ for over a hundred years, this interpretation is now being questioned by Dr David Petts and the excavations taking place on Lindisfarne. Whatever happened to the community in that period, they were extremely influential in the north of England, and did eventually settle at Chester Le Street.

The survival of these items is astounding. There are only, according to E Coatsworth, three such ‘large’ items from the Saxon era, the Bayeaux tapestry, the Durham embroideries and those of St Catherine in Maaseik, Belgium. If these items were truly made by Ælfflæd, then they are unique. I can think of no other item that survives from the era and which the royal women may themselves have touched. When I saw this image, I was astonished by the vibrancy of the gold thread. I imagine I’m not alone in that.

Reproduced by kind permission of the chapter of Durham Cathedral.

You can read The Royal Women Who Made England: The Tenth Century in Saxon England now if you’re in the UK, or from March if you’re in the US. It can also be purchased in epub version direct from Pen and Sword.

https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/The-Royal-Women-Who-Made-England-The-Tenth-Century-in-Saxon-England-Hardback/p/24395

https://books2read.com/TheRoyalWomenWhoMadeEngland

I’m so excited to share my review for Educating the Tudors by Amy McElroy #newrelease #non-fiction

Here’s the blurb

Education during the Tudor era was a privilege and took many forms including schools, colleges and apprenticeships. Those responsible for delivering education came from a variety of backgrounds from the humble parish priest to the most famed poet-laureates of the day. Curriculums varied according to wealth, gender and geography. The wealthy could afford the very best of tutors and could study as much or as little as they chose whilst the poorer members of society could only grasp at opportunities in the hopes of providing themselves with a better future.

The Tudors were educated during a time when the Renaissance was sweeping across Europe and Henry VIII became known as a Renaissance Prince but what did his education consist of? Who were his tutors? How did his education differ to that of his elder brother, Prince Arthur and how did Henry’s education change upon the death of his brother? There is no doubt Henry was provided with an excellent education, particularly in comparison to his sisters, Margaret and Mary. Henry’s own education would go on to influence his decisions of tutors for his own children. Who had the privilege of teaching Henry’s children and did they dare to use corporal punishment?

Educating the Tudors seeks to answer all of these questions, delving into the education of all classes, the subjects they studied, educational establishment and those who taught them.

Purchase Link

Pen and Sword Books

My Review

Educating the Tudors by Amy McElroy is a fascinating and thorough examination of the state of education for all during the Tudor era, following developments due to the Renaissance and the Reformation, as well as the introduction of the printing press. Not content with researching the tutors of the royal children from Arthur to Edward, Amy has also examined education for all levels of society as well as what would have been taught. With an eye for the difference between class, sex and wealth, Amy has examined what education was, and how it was undertaken, as well as the titans who were making use of their interest in learning to advance learning for all, making use of the printing press, even as they sought to catch the eye of the reigning monarch.

And this isn’t just book-learning, but also the paths of apprenticeships, as well as how people became lawyers, and just what effect the Reformation did have on an education system that was so heavily reliant on priests and had to be radically rethought when the monasteries, and later, chantries were closed.

I was fascinated by the subject matter, and learned so much from reading this book – indeed, even things I’ve read about before suddenly made a lot more sense.

An absorbing and well-researched book, which is sure to fascinate all those interested in the Tudors, as well as the development of education in England.

(I found the subject matter absolutely fascinating, especially as I’ve personally been researching the education of the children of King Alfred. I was struck by the similarities, despite the six hundred plus year distance between the two eras. I’m sure I won’t be alone in that – I hope:) And there’s a another link between the Tudors and the Saxons, as it was the renewed interest in learning that is responsible for many of the surviving Saxon text we now have, including the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.)

My thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for my review copy, but my hardback is in the post as well:)

Meet the Author

Amy my was born and bred in Liverpool before moving to the Midlands to study Criminal Justice eventually becoming a civil servant. She has long been interested in history, reading as much and as often as she could. Her writing journey began with her blog, sharing thoughts on books she had read, before developing to writing reviews for Aspects of History magazine and culminating in her own book.

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