Tudor and Stuart Consorts: Power, Influence, and Dynasty

Queenship and Power

by Aidan Norrie (Editor), Carolyn Harris (Editor), J. L. Laynesmith (Editor)

This book examines the lives and tenures of all the consorts of the Tudor and Stuart monarchs of England between 1485 and 1714, as well as the wives of the two Lords Protector during the Commonwealth. The figures in Tudor and Stuart Consorts are both incredibly familiar―especially the six wives of Henry VIII―and exceedingly unfamiliar, such as George of Denmark, the husband of Queen Anne. These innovative and authoritative biographies recognise the important role consorts played in a period before constitutional monarchy: in addition to correcting popular assumptions that are based on limited historical evidence, the chapters provide a fuller picture of the role of consort that goes beyond discussions of exceptionalism and subversion. This volume and its companions reveal the changing nature of English consortship from the Norman Conquest to today.

396 pages, Hardcover

First published July 20, 2022

Reviews

[Carol-Ann Johnston · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting look at the way different Consorts have been portrayed by themselves or others and how those images have shaped our view, whether rightly or wrongly, today.