Terrifying Tudors

Horrible Histories #15

by Terry Deary

Discover all the foul facts about the Terrifying Tudors with history's most horrible headlines.

All the foul facts about the Terrifying Tudors are ready to uncover, including:

• who invited Queen Lizzie to visit his brand new toilet
• and what you get when you sew the front of a chicken to the back of a pig
• fully illustrated throughout and packed with horrible stories – with all the horribly hilarious bits included
• with a fresh take on the classic Horrible Histories style, perfect for fans old and new
• the perfect series for anyone looking for a fun and informative read
• Horrible Histories has been entertaining children and families for generations with books, TV, stage show, magazines, games and 2019's brilliantly funny Horrible Histories: the Movie – Rotten Romans.

Get your history right here and collect the whole horrible lot.

Read all about it!

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Childrens, Historical, Humor, Tudor Period, Biography

Paperback

First published September 18, 1998

About the author

A former actor, theatre-director and drama teacher, Deary says he began writing when he was 29. Most famously, he is one of the authors of the Horrible Histories series of books popular among children for their disgusting details, gory information and humorous pictures and among adults for getting children interested in history. Books in the series have been widely translated into other languages and imitated.

A cartoon series has been made of the series of books and was shown on CiTV for a period in 2002.

The first series of a live-action comedy sketch show of the same name was shown on CBBC in 2009 and a second series is due.

Terry is also known widely throughout children and adult reading groups alike for his True Stories series (see below for series list).

He received an Honorary Doctorate of Education from the University of Sunderland in 2000. His numerous accolades also include the Blue Peter "Best Nonfiction Author of the Century" Award in the U.K.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Ieva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brīnišķīgs atradums Tukuma humpalās - nieka 58 centi un ieguvu labāko manis lasīto grāmatu par Tjūdoriem (jo tieši par viņiem atsevišķi vēstures studijās man nenācās lasīt, konkurence ir Otra Boleinu meita utml. grāmatas). Bērnībā ļoti jūsmoju "Vēsturisko šausmeņu" sēriju (latviski tika izdoti Satriecošie ēģiptieši, Trūdošie romieši, Negantie vikingi un Zemiskie viduslaiki), tāpēc pilnīgi noteikti nevarēju noturēties un uzreiz pēc pirkuma metos lasīt. Un šoreiz nebiju vīlusies - tas pats brīnišķīgais angļu humors, ko atceros vēl pēc tik ilgiem gadiem. Lasot sajutos kā tajā brīnišķīgajā Tauera ekskursijā, kurā paveicās būt Londonas apciemojuma laikā. Protams, apzinos, ka tā ir bērnu grāmata, bet neviens nekad nav par vecu, lai atkārtotu un uzzinātu jaunus faktus par vēsturi un pasmietos.

[Cherlynn | cherreading · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐

Informative with a good dose of humour as always. The Tudors are one of my favourite people to read about. I remember admiring Queen Elizabeth a lot but this book actually made me question everything!

[Emilija · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t like this book as much as others in the Horrible Histories series. It didn’t go into much detail or depth, and really, it felt like a collection of trivia facts about the tudors, rather than a normal Horrible Histories book.

[Gabriel Ho]

Divorced, beheaded and died
Divorced, beheaded, survived
I'm Henry VIII, I had 6 sorry wives
Some might say I ruined their lives...

Catherine of Aragon was one
She failed to give me a son
I had to ask her for a divorce
That broke her poor heart of course

Young Anne Boleyn, she was two
Had a daughter, the best she could do
I said she flirted with some other man
And off for the chop went dear Anne

Lovely Jane Seymour was three
The love of a lifetime for me
She gave me a son, little prince Ed
Then poor old Jane went and dropped dead

Divorced, beheaded and died
Divorced, beheaded, survived
I'm Henry VIII, I had 6 sorry wives
Some might say I ruined their lives...

Anne of Cleeves came at four
I fell for a portrait I saw
Then laid eyes on her face and cried "She's a horse!
I must have another divorce!"

Catherine Howard was five
A child of 19, so alive
She flirted with others, no way to behave
The axe sent young Cath to her grave

Catherine Parr, she was last
By then all my best days were past
I lay on my deathbed aged just 55
Lucky young Catherine, the last, stayed alive

Divorced, beheaded and died
Divorced, beheaded, survived
I'm Henry VIII, I had 6 sorry wives
You could say I ruined their lives...
Yea, I killed them

[Emmaby Barton Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

some fun facts i learned

- better understanding of catholics v protestants (henry’s new religion - ofc catholics mad as was forced onto them and they were punished executed forced to convert etc) all so a man could get a divorce!! (obvs not that the catholics weren’t doing shit things haha)
- a flea circus is wild lol
- the dislike of jews bc some guy wanted liz 1 to like him again
- monarchs moving between palaces etc so didn’t have to smell the toilets being cleaned out

[Bunny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just how I like my Tudors, fast and dirty.

Weird sentence is weird.

Short, funny, and informative. I even learned things I didn't know, which is always surprising.

[Charlocked (Bookish-Charlie) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've always loved learning History through small facts and anecdotes and when they're gruseome, it's even better ! Dark times were the times of the Tudors... You didn't want to mess around with Bad Ol' Henry VIII...

[Noah Gurney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Timmy Jimmy

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entertaining children's history book about Tudors is full of well- and little-known facts that make it easier to remember historical persons and events.

[Siobhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a child history was one of my favourite school subjects thus making Horrible Histories the perfect books for me.

Nowadays children have the television series yet I belong to the older group that had the books. Personally, I believe any child who has an interest in history should give these books a go. They’re truly gripping and so many topics are covered.

Honestly, Horrible Histories are well worth a read.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Horrible Histories explains history in the most fun way possible. It has epic one-liners, funny cartoon sketches and really interesting facts. I had to do a project on the Tudors, and i found this book really useful.

[Yolanda kisenyi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learnt thet in the Tudor times there were many crucial punishments example stertching people and gauging their eyes out

[skaska123 · Rating 3 out of 5]

There wasn't much information about Henry 8 or Queen Elizabeth. The book was just a collection of random facts moreso than the other Horrible History books.

[James Lawner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Damn, the story of The Tudors is so riveting and fascinating, just like Game of Thrones!

[Iulia_R · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5⭐️

[Nisa Mohd · Rating 4 out of 5]

■ A brief yet impactful overview of the Tudors, uncensored history. The gruesome reality of the past is presented in a fun, creative and cheeky narrative. I enjoyed all the comical illustrations attached.
■ The fun thing about these quizzes at the end of each reigns, is the way the author phrases the questions and answers, with a different concept each time. But always, the motivation is, to challenge the teachers!
■ Full of dark senses of humour. The horrible histories of the cruelty of the rulers and “noble” men were indeed, Terrifying! For example, a short Shakespeare’s play titled Titus Andronicus was included. It was one of Queen Elizabeth I’s favourite pieces. How wonderfully horrible taste for entertainment, yeah?
■ Although the book was meant to be an engaging introduction approach to history to children, I would not recommend it. Teenagers, maybe. For grown-ups with young hearts, please, it is highly recommended! Amusing reading!

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a more in-depth look into the Tudors, specifically focusing on Henry VIII, Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I.

While the book is marketed at being more in-depth and giving a lot more information than the previous Terrible Tudors book, in all honesty there isn’t much in this book that is new. There’s a lot more of a focus on the grisly elements of the Tudor era but there’s not a lot of new information that you wouldn’t have seen anywhere else before.

Which maybe when you’re a kid you don’t notice so much but as an adult you definitely notice it and feel a little bit cheesed off by it.

[Xanthi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m ill at the moment, so I’m only really up to reading stuff that isn’t too dense. This is entertaining and not too taxing, which is what I need right now.
Of course there needed to be a follow up book about the Tudors - there was a lot about them that was horrible!
I’ve seen QE1 being rather romanticised in films so it’s good to read about her that cuts through the bs. Infact, that’s what I like the best about this series.

[Nerea Blackthorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I highly liked this book.
It's a book that talks about the Tudor dynasty: the Henrys, King Edward, Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, Mary Queen of Scots, and even the son of Mary Queen of Scots is referenced, James VI of Scotland and I of England.
I'm a huge lover of history and the Tudor times are pretty interesting for me, and this book made me learn something more about it.
Although it is a book for children, mainly, it can be read by anyone.

[Declan Waters · Rating 3 out of 5]

Filled full of facts (which I can't remember), which help to provide a good timeline for the period between Henry VII and Elizabeth I. As you would expect from the title very English in nature (don't expect a view of the world at the same time), but an interesting catch-up and reminder of the period.

[Maple Class · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story was about lots of facts about the Tudors. Henry Tudor was so fat he fell over, got stuck in mud and staretd choking, Did you know Queen Elizabeth's godson invented the first flushable toilet? Did you know when the last Tudor died, a maid dropped an emerald ring out of the window as a sign that the Tudors had ended?
By Louis

[Barbara Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and facts, intermingled for maximum entertainment. Research has rarely been so much fun! These books help gain the big picture and point me to the areas I need to investigate. Best of all for a children's author, the author has done some of the work for me - identify Tudor life aspects which will resonate with kids or fascinate them.

[Julia Serafinska · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contained many jokes for a younger audience but was fun and interesting to read. I would of liked it more if it had some more accurate facts and more details. Overall, I'm giving this book 4 stars because it was fascinating, easy and quick to read but also affordable. I would recommend this book for children aged (9-12).

[Hayden · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book; I like horrible history because it tells me all of these interesting facts about history I never knew, like different types of torture. The Tudors were a British royal family who got a period of British history named after them, the most famous one is Henry the 8th for his wife problems.

[Sean Harding · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Horrible History tale from Deary who is the master of making history come alive for well actually for readers of all ages - because all ages can enjoy it and it can be a b0ok shared and discussed with by families.
History is one of my favourite subjects and these books are great.

[Asad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for a quick read when you have nothing else to do or are trying to kill boredom. After reading this I have added all the other horrible history books on my list as this was a very interesting and humorous read! Slimy Stuart’s is next....

[Ryhona · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love all of the stories and the facts and the explanations also the funny characters this book made my day love all the books i read but this is one of my top 5. this almost got me to stay in once i laughed so much.

[Becky Galambos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was already past this reading level when these came out, but a younger fellow historian told me that I need to read them anyway, so when I found a set at HPB I grabbed them. What a great kid series about the messy parts of history that are usually left out of the textbooks.

[Tammie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read- July 2021
- I've been in a reading slump for most of this month so decided to pick up a book or two in this series to try and get me out of the slump. I really enjoy reading books in this series.

[Matthew Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the very best, which is perhaps inevitable given its rich seam of source material, but it's so endlessly informative and entertaining, even to an adult with a decent History A Level who should know it all but clearly doesn't.