The Queens and the Hive

by Edith Sitwell

Edith Sitwell.The Queens and the Hive. London: Macmillan, 1962. Reprint.Octavo. 542 pages. Publisher's binding and dust jacket.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction

542 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1962

About the author

Dame Edith Louisa Sitwell, DBE, was a British poet and critic.

Reviews

[Chantal E. R. H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used to love historical fiction. It was one of my favorite genres. Over the years I have liked it less and less, to the point where I've pretty much stopped reading it altogether. I was browsing Bookmooch.com and came upon this book by accident. I had never heard of it before. I decided to try it. So far, I am absolutely loving it. The amount of research, the the thought put into every single word... it's a beautiful, haunting, wonderful book. I haven't finished it yet, but I doubt my feelings about it will change. The Queens and the Hive has restored my faith and interest in historical fiction.


ETA 3/1/12: I finished it a couple of days ago. I love this book so, so much. I will definitely be reading it again in the future. I don't know if it would be considered historical fiction or just non-fiction. I can't recommend this book enough to people interested in the Tudors and the Stuarts. Unfortunately the copy I was reading completely fell apart and it looks like it might be out of print? I can not believe this book is out of print!!! Can't be?

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating and beautifully researched book based on the fight for dominance by three British Queens, Mary Tudor, Elizabeth 1st and Mary Queen of Scots. Violent, bloody and full of intrigue. Sitwell is not the easiest of writers, her language and construction are complex - but this is a wonderful read if you're interested in finding out more about one of the most bloody periods of English History.

[Alison Barber · Rating 4 out of 5]

A richly rewarding and fascinating account of the Elizabethan period, incredibly rich in detail and contemporary accounts. Not always easy to read due to the use of an astounding number of original sources the style and spelling of which requires extra concentration (and in my tattered old copy picked up second hand was in tiny print!).
Also often flips back a few years to cover parallel events and so resurrects people already killed off, but well worth the effort as the lives, personalities, intrigues and achievements of the period are so vividly evoked. Initially distracting after coming straight from Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy, Edith Sitwell’s astute, wry, but compassionate commentary is a beautifully written and enjoyable companion: ‘..the dangerous Mary (Queen of Scots) had to be disposed of. Murder was the obvious, most sensible way....but at first Queen Elizabeth was inexplicably sensitive on this point.’ Covering the period (in parts retrospectively) from the death of Henry VIII to the death of Elizabeth herself in 1603, it takes in the intrigues and political machinations and repercussions of events ranging from the murder of Lord Darnley, St.Bartholomew’s Day Huguenot massacre, the defeat of the Spanish Armada, Irish rebellions and beheading of many. It brings to life the well known and less known (found myself endlessly referring back to Wikipedia for who belonged to who - should have done myself a chart at the start with notes) from a spectacular period of history but particularly Elizabeth herself. Fabulous!

[russell barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hell's teeth this was a struggle. I'm not sure why I thought Dame Edith's Tudor history would be a amusing follow-up to Dame Lucy's biog on Victoria (or those kindly folk who voted for it), but I (and they) turned out to be sorely mistaken.

Lots of the reviewers on here have made reference to the lyrical prose, but I found most of that was confined to the earlier sections of Elizabeth's girlhood and the last few chapters. I found the rest quite a dense artistic approximation of Tudor language, interspersed with large sections of quotes taken from letters and diaries.

It is a good book, sitting somewhere between fiction and fact (faction?) but I felt Dame Edith kept getting bogged down in fixating on extraneous flourishes, and points off for self-referential footnotes quoting her brother. It did not sitwell with me. Ahem.

[Smiley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the Queen's speech before her soldiers with awe, admiration and appreciation. The speech ran thus:

'My loving people,
'We have been persuaded by some that are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit ourselves to armed multitudes, for fear of treachery: but I assure you, I do not desire to live in distrust of my faithful and loving people. Let tyrants fear. I have always so behaved myself that under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and goodwill in the loyal hearts and goodwill of my subjects; and therefore I am come amongst you, as you see, at this time, not for my recreation and disport, to live or die amongst you all; to lay down for God, for my Kingdom, and for my people, my honour and my blood, even in the dust. I know I have but the body of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a King, and of a King of England too, and think it foul scorn that Parma or Spain or any Prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm; to which, rather than any dishonour should grow by me, I myself will take up arms, I myself will be General, Judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field.
'I know already for your forwardness you have deserved rewards and crowns; and we do assure you, on the word of a Prince, they shall be duly paid you. In the meantime, my Lieutnant General shall be in my stead, than whom never Prince commanded a more noble or worthy subjects; not doubting but that by your obedience to my General, by your concord in the camp and you valour in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over the enemies of my God, of my Kingdom, and of my People.'(1963: 405-406)

[David]

This one occasionally reads like a contemporary historical thriller. On a personal level, I enjoyed the fact that so many of the period documents which Sitwell quotes seem to support the ethos imagined by Michelle Butler Hallett in the fictional 1593 of her latest novel, This Marlowe. The author's sympathies are clear; anyone she disapproves of is discussed in unarguably negative terms. But even the biases make the era live, and remind us of just how significant one's faith --or lack of same -- could be in those years.

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good comprehensive history of Elizabeth I. Includes the history of Mary, Queen of Scots so far as she relates to Elizabeth I...

[Bjipson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dense, with a lot of letters quoted at length...

[June Schwarz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun. Eccentric (deliberately so), addled (possibly by wealth), and at times maddening, but great fun.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in 1963 or 1964, and my rating is based on that reading. I will reread one day hoping I still like it as much as I did then.

[UWCSEA Libraries · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elizabeth I, Mary Stuart, and Mary Tudor -- all queens in the hive of England politics. A history with a distinctive voice. So enjoyable.

[Stephanie Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book looks at both Mary, Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I of England.