Elizabeth of York: The Forgotten Tudor Queen

by Amy Licence

As Tudors go, Elizabeth of York is relatively unknown. Yet through her marriage to Henry VII she became the mother of the dynasty, with her children including a King of England (Henry VIII) and Queens of Scotland (Margaret) and France (Mary Rose), and her direct descendants including three Tudor monarchs, two executed queens and, ultimately, the Stuart royal family. Although her offspring took England into the early modern world, Elizabeth's upbringing was rooted firmly in the medieval world, with its courtly and religious rituals and expectations of women. The pivotal moment was 1485. Before then, her future was uncertain amid the turbulent Wars of the Roses, Elizabeth being promised rst to one man and then another, and witnessing the humiliation and murder of her family. Surviving the bloodbath of the reign of her uncle, Richard III, she slipped easily into the roles of devoted wife and queen to Henry VII and mother to his children, and has been venerated ever since for her docility and beauty. Yet was she as placid as history has suggested? In fact, she may have been a deeply cultured and intelligent survivor who learnt to walk a difficult path through the twists and turns of fortune. Perhaps she was more of a modern woman than historians have given her credit for.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Tudor Period, Biography, Historical, British Literature, Royalty

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 2, 2013

About the author

Medieval and Tudor historian, with a particular interest in women's lives and experiences, also dabble in Modernism. I write fiction and non-fiction, also journalism for The Guardian, BBC History website, The New Statesman, The Huffington Post, The English Review and The London Magazine. I appeared in TV documentaries "The Real White Queen and her Rivals" and "The Private Lives of the Tudors." Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Reviews

[boogenhagen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave this one five stars not because it is an in-depth character study of Elizabeth of York - it isn't. But then again ironically, if you're a queen in English history you really don't want to be remembered in detail - if you are noted in the chronicles in more than a few lines at your death, it is because you're totally scandalous and an outrage to the standards of the day.

The interesting thing is that for all the English queen's before Elizabeth 1, the sign of a successful reign is to be noted at death as being beloved by the people and sorely missed and otherwise not noted at all.

Every other English queen mentioned repeatedly such as Empress Matilda, Eleanore of Aquitane, Isabela of France (Edward II's wife) and Margaret of Anjou (Henry VI's wife) are ALL remembered as being "She-Wolves who rip and eat the guts of their mate" and have really, really nasty reputations in the chronicles of their time.

Elizabeth 1 is the first woman ruler in over a 1000 years of English history who is remembered with great fondness in England and one of the few considered a good monarch and she had to sacrifice all hope of a family and intimate personal relationships to do it.

Elizabeth of York, by the standards of queenship in her time (and the fact that Henry Tudor managed to keep his throne in large part because of her popularity and his ability to eliminate all the near potential male heirs), was an enormously successful Queen who played her part as dynastic consort and the merciful/benevolent/graceful feminine half of the ultimate 16th century power couple to a superb degree.

Since medieval standards where all about fulfilling the expectations of how your gender should behave-- what your gender contributed to the inter-relations between the sexes was a well defined role and a good Queen had to be the living embodiment of the feminine highest standards of the age.

She had to be kind, she had to be able to intervene for mercy with the king, she had to dress well,she had to be pious and to be charitable to the poor and downcast, she had to oversee her children's education as future rulers and consorts and above all, she could never be seen to be wielding an undue amount of power or influence outside her own household. Medieval women were considered unfit to hold power or to rule and it would have been fatal for the establishment of a Tudor dynasty for E of Y to be seen as manipulative or grasping (as her mother Elizabeth Woodville was). This idea isn't considered an overt suppression of women at the time, it was considered a basic fact of biology or basically, just the way god made the world and men and women.

Essentially Henry Tudor had a very, very shaky claim on the throne on his own - yes his mum Margaret Beaufort was a great grandchild of John of Gaunt and Katherine Swynford and yes, that union's offspring were legitimized, but Katherine Swynford was still a mistress in the eyes of a lot of people who counted and there were better claimants than Henry with more legitimate bloodlines right there in England who could be considered to have a better right to the crown.

Henry T, for all he tried to cover it up, needed E of Y not only for her legal claim to the throne, but he also needed her to be the ultimate feminine ideal of the standards for women of her age and Amy Licence does a decent job of showing that. The need for the new Tudor regime to have the most bestest evah of the male and female ideal as personified in the King and Queen was imperative.

Henry T. and E of Y needed to represent the perfect family not only to demonstrate the fitness of the regime to rule, but also to prove to the English political body that here were leaders to trust, subsidize and support in order to maintain societal and political stability.

Henry T was a master at financial manipulation, but all the money manipulation in the world doesn't help if you can't gain the trust and support of the financiers and with Elizabeth as his better, more kinder and ennobling half, Henry T. was able to convince the London burghers and parliament to lend him money, support his financial writs in reigning in the nobles and subsidize his trade adventures. Thomas Penn tries to downplay this aspect of Henry T in Winter King: Henry VII and the Dawn of Tudor England, but as the years after Elizabeth's death show, she really did help to balance his financial acquisitiveness and aggression with a generosity and open handedness to the poor and downtrodden that served Henry T well for many years and let him use the power of money to intimidate and control a lot political rivals.

Ms. Licence also covers the Richard the III years and while she carefully draws no conclusions as to whether E of Y was in love with him or not, I think the evidence on the whole sides with the not in love statement. I do believe RIII probably ordered the deaths of her little brothers and we know he killed her uncle and half brother, the very fact that he had to swear in public not to harm or her sisters doesn't really lend credibility to the she was in lurve story, she was definitely wary of him and probably scared about what he would do to her future - he could dump her in a convent or marry her off to anyone and she did not have a lot choice in the matter.

Kings did get dispensations and marry their nieces (Phillip of Spain - Mary 1's hubby - did this) but where it is noted as being done, the niece lived in another country, was virtually unknown, and had not practically grown up with the king right next door. I do believe that she would have married him if the issue were forced but more out of a need to protect her family and herself rather than from any great romance. The Woodville's were extremely close as a family and it is doubtful that there would be a lot of loving passion for a man who had murdered half of it.

Margaret Beaumont is mentioned as well and again Ms. Licence doesn't really speculate on the relationship but I tend to believe that it was far warmer than what the few historical notes lead us to think. Keeping in mind the need to convey the "perfect family ideal" it makes a lot of sense for Margaret B. to do the "unpleasant aspects of household running" as the scapegoat for unpopular court decisions. This keeps Elizabeth shiny and virtuous in her role as a gracious and loving homemaker, AND successfully diverts criticism of Henry T --as Margaret B. can be written off as "the interfering mother in law, whose son does his best to dutifully respect her but she feels she is entitled to more and we all feel bad for the poor, sweet wife who has to deal with her". That is actually a fairly useful scapegoat to have when unpopular court decisions have to be made or politics indicate a change of courtiers.

As for the personal relationship between Elizabeth and Henry, well there isn't too much to go on, but if the financial expenditures are anything to judge by, they had a good partnership and probably a lot of fondness for each other. Elizabeth was always overspending her income by giving away money and gifts and Henry was always buying her immediate household (not the general court) things to increase her comfort or make up her shortfalls.

If the finances of a relationship can determine the emotional state of the union, Henry T. must have been very fond indeed. He never cut off her income (he usually increased it) or appeared to force her to live within her means (which he had the power to do), he just seems to have added lands to her revenues or went out and bought what she lacked. His accounting practices were very, very thorough and Henry T. went all out make sure his family lived in unprecedented wealth and comfort and that they had plenty of entertainments and amusements and also that Elizabeth's personal expenditures were provided for. Now granted money can't tell you everything, but I tend to believe that his notes about buying Elizabeth little extras means he more than just tolerated her or was only interested in the public face of his marriage.

Overall this book is a good impartial look at the time in which Elizabeth lived and the standards which she had to live up to. While there isn't a lot of personal to go on, there is a good amount of information that can allow for individual reader extrapolations without the author injecting their opinion and that is what I think a good historical biography ought to be. I just want the facts as they are known, any conflicts noted and then I want to be able to make my own decisions. Ms. Licence mostly avoids enforcing her opinions outside what is demonstrably true and that makes this a good biography with good references and it gives a good overview of the times of Elizabeth of York.

[Gilda Felt · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is advertised as "The true story of the white princess," but I found that the author used her imagination to fill in the gaps just as much as Philippa Gregory did, but at least Gregory calls her book a novel.

I knew ahead of time that a lot of the book would have to be filled with information about Elizabeth's contemporaries; we just don't know enough about the woman to fill a book. So I wasn't put off with the first chapter being more a short history of the Wars of the Roses and the its major players. What I did find disturbing was how much the author's bias shows through. Things that we can't know, one way or the other, are written as fact, especially when it comes to exonerating Elizabeth's, and her mother's, behavior.

The same can't be said for Licence's take on Richard III. If something bad was said about him, well, it was probably true. Because there were rumors, it must be fact that he was trying to dump his dying wife—who, along with her son Licence claims were sickly, no matter that there's no proof of that. And, of course, the same old story about the "princes in the tower." No one can say for sure what happened to them, but that doesn't stop Licence.

The author goes in the opposite direction when it comes to Henry VII. No matter that more than once contemporary source has proclaimed his stinginess, because he didn't have his family in rags somehow that's proof that he wasn't that way at all. The list goes on.

I was hoping for a balanced approach, with perhaps some new information regarding Elizabeth of York. That was not to be.

[Iset · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I won this book in a competition on Facebook.

Elizabeth of York is interesting to me because she bridges the Medieval world of the wars of the roses and the new Renaissance world of the Tudors, and because her marriage to Henry VII was both a unifying act and placed her at the vanguard of a new dynasty. Yet, Elizabeth herself is quiet in the pages of history, her married life in contrast to the upheaval of her childhood and the scandal of her teenage years when rumour had it that her uncle Richard III intended to marry her.

Amy Licence explores why this quiet life, which on the surface of it does not exactly make the most exciting history, is in fact a mark of Elizabeth’s success as queen, and the success of the new Tudor dynasty. Elizabeth’s humility, pious patronage, and generosity made her beloved of the English populace, and provided the solid, stable foundations on which the Tudor dynasty was built – marking themselves in contrast to the turmoil of the civil wars, and exerting a strong appeal through peace and prosperity.

I was surprised by how much page space Licence devotes to Elizabeth’s childhood and the wars of the roses, as I’m much more interested in her adult life, namely her relationships with her children, husband, and Tudor in-laws, the influence she exerted as queen, and her support for the Tudor regime, particularly what she thought about Perkin Warbeck. It's easy to forget in hindsight just how much upheaval marked Elizabeth's early life, and how her future was very much uncertain.

The look into a year of Elizabeth’s life through her household accounts was very interesting, and not something I’d read about before – but then I am not a specialist on her life and have not gone looking for sources, I suspect that these household accounts are “nothing new” from the point of view of specialists, it’s simply that the generalised reader hasn’t really seen them before.

I must admit to wishing for more, in particular I wanted to know about Elizabeth’s reaction to Perkin Warbeck, but, frustratingly, her private thoughts on the matter are not recorded. I would love to know what she thought about it all, but we just don’t know. The absence of recorded reaction and her continued unwavering support for her husband strongly implies that Elizabeth believed her brother was dead and that Warbeck was an impostor – as does Elizabeth Woodville’s actions years earlier in coming out of sanctuary, releasing her daughters into Richard III’s care, and agreement to the match between Elizabeth and Henry Tudor. I’m glad that Amy Licence highlights here how all the evidence points to the fact that Elizabeth and Henry enjoyed a loving marriage.

The book is a little short, and I would have liked more, but that isn’t really the author’s fault, there’s just so little recorded about Elizabeth’s life. A good book, though it simply can’t tell us all we would wish to know about Elizabeth.

7 out of 10

[Carolina Casas · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The real Elizabeth remains inaccessible through the lack of surviving records" yet Amy Licence brought her back to life digging through contemporary date and relying on archeological evidence and knowledge of the time, instead of falling trap (like some writers often do) of later century (or centuries) "sources" (two George Bucks, Sir Francis Bacon among others). Even contemporary sources are analyzed carefully as she tries to peacdd together this queen's life and separate fact from fiction and ask the important questions and give plausible answers behind each one. EOY was a woman who was pious and ambitious, who knew her duty and knew that the best way to fulfill the obligations that were expected of her was through marriage.
While Elizabeth's role in queenship is often forgotten we forget that she emulated the virtues of medieval queenship and her sanctified image -sanctified thanks to the beautiful imagery at her funeral and afterwards when Henry was laid to rest next to her (six years after her death) in 1509- lasts into posterity. When Henry VIII came into the throne, the ideal of the "perfect queen" no doubt was influenced by his mother, her death had shocked him and he said it was one of the most painful events in his life and how he viewed queenship was due in parts to the role his mother played to and excelled at.

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elizabeth of York: The Forgotten Tudor Queen This really wasn't about Elizabeth of York, it was a rehash of the Wars of the Roses and what her life might possibly have been like both during and after. It touches on the main events of her life including her possible affair with Richard III and the emergence of Perkin Warbeck as pretender to the throne but there is no evidence of any of the suppositions made about what she did, how she was feeling and the like. The author also has an irritating habit of repeating herself almost verbatim. So all in all, if you don't know much about the period this could be an interesting read but if you are looking for a biography of Elizabeth of York with supporting evidence you will have to look elsewhere. I found the book disappointing.
 
Edit: On reading this a second time I actually enjoyed it more and have consequently revised my star rating.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m tempted to label this a “perfect” biography.

Licence follows Elizabeth of York’s life from beginning to end, giving the reader both information about what happened to Elizabeth directly and what was happening around her, to try and put her world in context. She digs up all the primary evidence she can get her hands on, sifts carefully through what other historians have had to say about it, and very deliberately and pointedly holds back on ascribing unknown emotions, rightly pointing out that short of a beyond-a-doubt proven personal diary of Elizabeth popping up in which she writes: ‘I hate my husband with the passion of a thousand suns,’ etc, we can’t know how she felt about the people and events around her.

[Alisi ☆ wants to read too many books ☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book. Not a lot of content but there isn't a lot known about her either.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a nice, easy and fast read. Unfortunately, there isn't a great deal of information about the life of Elizabeth of York known. However, Amy License has managed to write a biography on the information that is available. The book tells us about The Wars of the Roses and how this would've affected Elizabeth's childhood and early teenage years. I'd say there is a fair bit of information given about Elizabeth's family in here too. There quite possibly wouldn't be enough to write a book if it was just about Elizabeth.
I find Amy License's writing style nice, easy to follow and it flows very well. This book was a pleasure to read. I loved the colour book plates within the book too.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

THIS is the story of Elizabeth of York I wanted to read! So much better than the White Princess. Of course, everything is open to interpretation, but I generally find biographies more enjoyable.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

a wonderful look at a woman who was central to bringing peace to England. And lucky enough her marriage became a love match. She was known as beautiful in face and spirit.

[George Foord · Rating 1 out of 5]

Why write a book if it is not about the person. It takes 74 pages for it to address this person and then after it is very brief. Gave up after a while

[Elena · Rating 1 out of 5]

Full of fillers, assumption and mistakes, totally biased against Richard III (here the maker of all evil) vs saintly Woodvilles and Tudors. The perfetc example: claiming that the Potuguese negotiations were staged by Richard because he wanted to marry his bastard niece. Of course, what King wouldn't embark himself in long and complicated negotiation with a foreign country only to say later in the face of the Portugues State Council... dumb you! I was just making fun of you! Now declare war if you want! Ridiculous, I don't have anything more to add. Avoid this author, do yourself a favour. History is another matter.

[Laura Szegfű · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm writing my master's thesis about the women around Henry VII. This is the first book I read about Elizabeth of York, and I'm a bit disappointed. It is very general, a lot about her age (e.g. the Wars of the Roses, I don't think it's relevant in this book), a lot of speculation -she may have felt this or that way, may have done this or that...I know there's not much information about her but I expected more. At least more about her relationship vith Henry. The bigger problem is, I don't know what else to read about her, I'm afraid that the other books are similar :/

[Jennifer Marney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think she only walked the path she did because of the power her mother in law Margaret Beaufort yielded over Henry the Vll he did almost everything she wanted but apparently it was a love match even though he locked her mother & her cousin up very strange but they were very different times

[Madly Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating look at the first Tudor Queen.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Rosie Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good read even though it’s a biography it reads like a novel

[Sharon Jacobs · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good attempt at an unbiased account. Did not really learn anything new that other history books have not covered but it was not full of hate or praise for the principle characters.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable and relatable, but the mistake of calling Thomas Stanley Henry VII's father in law instead of his stepfather diluted the credibility of the book for me.

[Tricia Cave · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is difficult to keep attention on and I felt like the focus shifted from her dad to her husband to her children more than it focused on her.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Source: Free copy from Amberley in exchange for a review.
Summary:
Elizabeth of York, eldest daughter of Edward IV, and Elizabeth Wydeville, was born February 11, 1465. Elizabeth Wydeville, had two sons by her first marriage, and ten children by Edward. Elizabeth and Edward's marriage was unpopular, especially with Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, and with Cecily Neville, Edward's mother. Warwick was in the process of negotiations with France, to secure a wife for Edward at the time of Edward's "secret" marriage. Elizabeth Wydeville was of Lancasterian heritage and this was a strong cause of friction. Elizabeth of York's childhood dramatically changed at age three, by the Battle of Edgecote Moor, it was a Lancastrian victory. Edward was defeated and her mother's father and brother were both killed. During this period Elizabeth of York, was in sanctuary with her mother and siblings at Westminster. Edward had been apprehended but was released and returned to his family. Three subsequent York victories ended the struggle and there was a brief time of peace until Edward's death at age 41. Elizabeth lived during the tumultuous years of the Wars of the Roses, originally known as the Cousin's Wars. In addition, her two brother's disappeared mysteriously in the Tower, they were presumed dead. After the Battle of Bosworth, when Richard III was defeated and killed, she married Henry Tudor, the new king of England. Elizabeth and Henry had seven children, four that lived past childhood. Henry VIII, the couple's second son, ruled England for nearly 38 years.
Amy Licence considers Elizabeth a "lost Tudor." She's been minimized by other family members which had more documented sources, and dominant marks in history.

My Thoughts:
I have to admit, before reading Elizabeth of York, I'd thought of her as passive and demure. Her life dictated and ruled by others who were in charge, and she sat waiting for her life to begin. However, people esteemed her for both an outward and inward beauty.
"There seems always to have been but one opinion as to the gentleness and goodness of Elizabeth." From the Dictionary of National Biography.
In the last year of life, documented sources tell us of her thoughtful gifts to the poor. Elizabeth was a thoughtful, caring, gentle soul. She'd lived among family members who were ambitious, calculating, vengeful, but this did not change her character. I admire Elizabeth. Despite how members of her family acted, or how life had brought about painful events, she continued to be a lovely gracious woman.
Amy Licence, has grafted into the story of Elizabeth of York, other notable historical figures and events. The Wydeville, York, Lancaster, Neville, and Tudor families, are all portrayed. The Wars of the Roses battles are described in brief. Pregnancy, birthing, caring for infants, diseases, childhood, and the history of printing press and books.
Licence remarks in the introduction:
"Tudor people can sometimes seem very close and at others, their behavior places them far from the twenty-first-century reader. To understand them, we have to try and get inside the Tudor mind, evaluate their actions according to their collective mentalite', if such a thing exists. Where the biographer and reader must be wary is in how their actions are interpreted. The late medieval 'environment' was very different from ours in social, cultural, political and religious terms. Thus the psychological backdrop of its inhabitants and the mechanisms by which they understood and acted on their emotions, indeed the very mental structures that produced them, differ widely from those of today. Put simply, our wallpaper has changed." Page 12.
In each of the Licence's books I've read and reviewed, she reminds me to be careful how I "interpret" the historical people, especially in regards to the era in which they lived. I appreciate Amy bringing my mind back to where it needs to be, to not make hasty judgments, and to take in to account the society, and culture, and unique circumstance in which they lived.
I cannot say that I learned anything new from any of the other historical figures presented, but Elizabeth of York is certainly known to me now. I'm most impressed in learning that she probably taught her own children. Elizabeth took an active part in her children's present and future lives, this tells me she had a special and unique relationship with her children that many queens did not have.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was purchased as part of my quest to learn more about Elizabeth of York. I have read a fair amount about the Tudors and an excessive amount about the Plantagenets, but Elizabeth - the link between these dynasties - always seems to be forgotten. I was so excited to find this biography that I paid double my normal limit for a book. I wish that I could say that it was worth it.

I'm not sure why so little exists to document the life of this woman who was daughter, niece, wife, and mother to kings, but this is more of a summary of the times that she lived in than the woman herself. Licence talks about the Wars of the Roses, reign of Richard III, and exploration of the new world and then supposes how Elizabeth may have felt about the events going on around her. Admittedly, this is due to the information just not being available, but that doesn't change the fact that I was hoping to read about Elizabeth not the world around her. Though I didn't learn much more about Elizabeth, I suppose it is nice to have a summary of her life for writing/research purposes rather than scouring separate sources.

[Danielle]

This was an interesting book. As the second biography I've read about Elizabeth of York, I didn't learn much (as she is such a reclusive character in history) but came across new perspectives. It was easier read than Alison Weir's Elizabeth of York, and as a result I would say could be read easily by younger people. Despite Licence's best efforts to keep the focus on Elizabeth of York, it inevitable strayed to the more powerful people at the time - like her mother, her mother-in-law and her husband. Her voice didn't shine through but remained hidden, questions about her were raised and many assumptions were made - unsurprisingly. But overall, not bad, yet not great.

[Tomi Adenekan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I watched The white Queen with devotion and, a few weeks later when I booked a 2 day stay in York and looking for something to read I thought, why not? It's so detailed and I understand all the different lineages more. Although, I still struggle to remember which Elizabeth was married to which Henry! It's an interesting window into the some aspects of the 15th century.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an enjoyable read, but again the subject can't really justify a whole book as there's so little historical evidence. However, it's always useful to read about this period from a female perspective.

[Barbara Lynn Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book on the life of Elizabeth of York. The author did an excellent job of giving a clear picture of what kind of person Elizabeth of York was. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in reading about Elizabeth of York.

[Darren · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing and well written book on Elizabeth York from which I learnt a lot and have seen an interest in Elizabeth grow.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good information about the general structure of Tudor society, but not enough on Elizabeth of York herself and her life. Also, Licence needs to cite her sources more often and work on her bias.