Elizabeth, Captive Princess

Elizabeth Trilogy #2

by Margaret Irwin

In this, the second of Margaret Irwin’s great trilogy about the life of ‘Good Queen Bess’, Elizabeth I, the imperious, high spirited heroine of Young Bess finds herself the prey of her sister Mary’s jealous suspicions. The death of her young brother, Edward IV; the accession of Bloody Mary; the execution of Lady Jane Grey; her own imprisonment in the Tower of London; and the arrival of Philip of Spain to marry Queen Mary provide the powerful background to Irwin’s masterful novel as Elizabeth strives to achieve her ambition, the Crown of England.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Tudor Period, Historical, Royalty, British Literature, 16th Century

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1948

About the author

Born in 1899 and educated at Oxford, Irwin was recognized as a novelist of well-researched and occasionally heart-breaking historical fiction. She is best known for her trilogy about Elizabeth I: Young Bess, Elizabeth Captive Princess, and Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain. Young Bess was made into a movie starring Jean Simmons.

Irwin also wrote passionately about the English Civil War, causing generations to fall in love with the ill-fated but charismatic Earl of Montrose.

Reviews

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This captivating novel about the young Princess Elizabeth during the reigns of her brother Edward VI and her sister Mary I during the time during the time when she came under suspicion of being involved in treasonable plots and closely watched and kept in semi-captivity with the threat of the axe always hanging over her head.
This novel encapsulates intelligent and passionate dialogue, which could have been taken from a dramatic historical play, and effectively delves into the mind of Elizabeth, with consummate understanding of psychology, who it presents as a headstrong, imperious, courageous and intelligent, not hesitant to use her sexual attractiveness to her advantage - an ultimate survivor.
This book traces the political machinations of the time as well, and also the tragic story of the Queen for nine days, Lady Jane Grey and her execution at the hands of Mary, a fate that could well have befallen Elizabeth. Characters such as Lady Jane and Queen Mary's minds are probes here with the same consummate skill that the author does for Elizabeth during these times. The dangerous times of the rule by the neurotic and fanatical Mary I are captured and the drama of these perilous days for Elizabeth captured by what she wrote at the time 'Much suspected by me, Nothing proved can be, Elizabeth, prisoner'.

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good continuation of young Bess. Elizabeth comes so alive in the pages of this book.

[Orsolya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Queen Elizabeth I is one of (if not, ‘the’) most talked about and well-known monarchs in history. Every detail from her conception to her death was recorded. Historical-fiction author Margaret Irwin brought the early life of Elizabeth to readers in the 1940s in the ‘Elizabeth Trilogy’. Following up “Young Bess”, Irwin’s second novel focuses on Elizabeth’s tumultuous years when Jane Grey and Elizabeth’s half-sister Queen Mary were holding the crown in, “Elizabeth, Captive Princess”.

Readers familiar with Irwin’s novels will find much of the same stylistic attributes in “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” along with some disappointing surprises. Irwin’s sequel to “Young Bess” suffers from a snail-paced slow start which sadly doesn’t ever pick up its gait. As per usual Irwin flair, “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” is told by an omnipresent narrator through the eyes of various figures with alternating chapters. This creates a complex, multi-layered macro-view of the time period and the events taking place which is excellent for those readers seeking an emphasis on the history (Irwin’s work can’t ever be dismissed as “fluffy”). However, Irwin does stray to the dry side of storytelling and tends to leave Elizabeth out of the fray.

In fact, Elizabeth seems to be left out of her own story with the spotlight mostly being on Jane, Mary, and other political machinations taking place. The reader doesn’t ever grow a bond with Elizabeth or see a true character arc developing organically. This slows the novel and is a let-down based on the first book in the trilogy.

Adding to this, is the fact that the text in “Elizabeth, Captive Princess is mostly a reflection of events versus an active portrayal of the proceedings and therefore the novel reads much like a history book. There is an absence of truly compelling material or intrigue that readers would find to be riveting.

On the other hand, Irwin’s writing is literary and often times beautiful with descriptive passages, strong metaphors, and historical accuracy which lend an almost classic lit air to “Elizabeth, Captive Princess”. The text leans towards philosophical meanderings and streams of consciousness which readers can grasp even decades later, strengthening the writing and content.

In usual Irwin-fashion, “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” has stylistic composition including mid-sentence punctuation and run-on/compound sentences. Although this can deter new readers; those having read other Irwin novels and/or “Young Bess” will not be too thrown by this.

Logically, “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” quickens a bit in pace and plot when the Wyatt Rebellion comes into play and Elizabeth enters the tower. Elizabeth’s character still doesn’t truly come alive or step onto a glittering platform but the novel becomes sensibly more dimensional.

Despite this slight height in the story, “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” still incurs a battle it seems to continue to lose. Irwin insists on peppering the pages with poems/sonnets/songs which feel out of place and disjointed with the story. She also implores heavy use of foreshadowing which is far from subtle (well, at least for those familiar with the subject). These add only to damper the novel.

The conclusion of “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” is as much of a failure as the rest of the novel. Although Irwin sets the scene for the next novel in the trilogy; there is still a filter towards Elizabeth and a lack of arousal in both emotion and reading pleasure. The ending is simply: flat.

Irwin does not offer an author’s note to explain the historical truths in “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” but luckily the novel is predominately based on facts.

“Elizabeth, Captive Princess” is a dull, disappointment that is nothing more than a filler novel in the Elizabeth Trilogy. Nothing really occurs in the plot and Elizabeth fails to jump off the pages. “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” is a dud and certainly one of Irwin’s weaker pieces. Yes, the novel should be read if keeping in-line with the trilogy; but, do not expect a terrific read or to be mesmerized. “Elizabeth, Captive Princess” is a snooze fest.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

King Henry VIII is dead. King Edward is lying in his bed about to die as well. Who will reign next? It was thought that Lady Jane Grey would but she has been executed. Now, it is between Mary and Elizabeth. Elizabeth knows she will be a better Queen than Mary. Unfortunately because Mary is the older of the two, it makes sense that Mary would be the next Queen. Of course, Mary does becomes Queen. Though not a lot of people are happy about it. There is a plot to get Mary out of the throne. Mary is stubborn and won’t give up the throne easily. Elizabeth is conniving and is trying to find a way to overthrow Mary. Will she succeed?

Elizabeth, Captive Princess is book two in the Elizabeth I trilogy. I read the first book, Young Bess because I was interested in getting to know Elizabeth better. A lot of the books about the Tudors is about King Henry VIII, his wife Anne, his daughter Mary and his son, Edward but there are not a lot of books about Elizabeth. I think she is overlooked. She is very intelligent and knows what her goals are and hold to achieve them. On the flip side, while I am liking this trilogy, I found this book to be a bit slow. I didn’t find the characters that interesting and at times the story moved really slowly. Though, there were some hit and misses with this book for me; I still can’t wait to finish this trilogy. Elizabeth, Captive Princess is a book fit for a Princess or Queen.

[Pat MacEwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fairly in depth look at the period between the death of Edward VI and the marriage of Mary Tudor to Phillip of Spain. It was highly readable, and detailed concerning the interactions of Elizabeth's story with those of the Nine Days' Queen, Jane Grey, the Duke of Suffolk (Jane's father), and Bloody Mary herself. The author incorporates a good deal of Elizabethan phrasing but makes it painless and easy to read by leaving out the slang that might require most readers to consult a dictionary. She also does a great job of depicting the attitudes of the time regarding religion, gender roles, and politics, making a complicated subject much more understandable for the non-historian. The basis of the religious conflict was glossed over, however, in several respects, in the interests of moving the story forward. It does do an excellent job of portraying the major players and their personal contradictions of character and belief. The author's admiration for Elizabeth I is a little too obvious, at times, but having read this middle book, I will now get hold of the other two parts of the trilogy and see how the rest of the story goes!

[Marjorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a complex book that delves in to more than the superficial facts of the years of Queen Mary's reign. The imaginings of the pressures put upon the young Elizabeth Tudor by both the Court, the People and Herself are well executed and are doubtless based on extensive research of contemporary reports and documents.

My issues with this book were that it seemed to got lost in iot's own web of intrigue and language. In evoking the Tudor Era you expect a certain amount of words unfamiliar to modern ears and turns of phrase and sentence structure that feel strangely familiar and yet alien at the same time. However, in this book the obfuscation of Elizabeth seeps too earnestly on to the page and left me re-reading some passages several times to try and discern their meaning and how they would affect the outcome.

Of course, this is a fictionalisation of a real life so we know that however afraid Elizabeth is that Mary is going to have her executed as a Traitor or a Heretic we know it does not come to pass. However, there is still a palpable sense of terror in some sections and there is genuine tension in the pages - admirably done.

I did not enjoy this as much as Young Bess, it was just a little too dry for me and some of the humanity had been stripped from the characters, rendering them almost as caricatures. I found this to be particularly telling with Queen Mary whilst she waits for her Spanish Prince to finally make the journey to England to marry her. Even Elizabeth herself suffers from time to time with becoming stagnant and lifeless on the page.

Overall this is a well crafted tale but you do need to have an interest in the Tudors or Social History to really glean enjoyment from it.

[May · Rating 3 out of 5]

Same qualms with this as I had with Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain, except I think I'm used to Irwin's writing style now and don't actually mind it as much. At the very least, I've grown accustomed to the way she shifts POVs (and it might be more prevalent in E&P) and semicolon overuse. This book, however, also doubles way down on the "Elizabeth loved Thomas Seymour completely and it wasn't sexual harassment and abuse" storyline, which I know is a product of the time, but it's still gross to have to slog through. I liked this book a lot, liked how Margaret Irwin writes Elizabeth (for the most part), and liked that it covers a period of time that doesn't get a lot of attention.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this isn't the best novelisation of Queen Elizabeth I that I have read, I still enjoyed this book which focused on her life between the reign of her younger brother, Edward VI, and her sister, Mary Tutor. Even though it was obvious that Elizabeth, Captive Princess was well researched, at times I found the plot dragged a bit.

However, Ms Irwin brought Elizabeth alive and provided an interesting perspective of her in her younger life. She was highly intelligent, charming, headstrong and courageous. Mary, on the other hand, was short-sighted (both literally and figuratively), jealous and convinced her decisions were absolutely right. It is no wonder Elizabeth Tutor's reign is often referred to as the Golden Age.

[NayNay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book with a love/hate relationship. I loved YOUNG BESS the first book in this trilogy, it was a five-star read, I loved everything about it. Now this book, there was such a lack of focus on Elizabeth and the secondary characters seemed flat, uninteresting, I just could not connect with any of them. But I did enjoy the author's writing. I love her descriptive style and the way she recreated Tudor London.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although initially published in the 1940's, this remains a remarkably modern telling of Elizabeth's stand-off (if you will) against Mary following the death of King Edward. It stands alone nicely, but I might appreciate it more if I read the book that came before and after this one. Completing the trilogy is on my list.

[Louis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a little slow for the first couple chapters but then got into its stride, focusing more on Lady Jane and then Queen Mary, than Elizabeth. This was really interesting and whilst not strictly about Elizabeth explains the reason that she is captive.
I look forward to the next book in this series.

[Maddie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Leanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

As brilliant as the first book.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting historical novel, filled with actual facts. I really enjoyed learning a whole different side to the "Bloody Mary" versus young Elizabeth the first story.

[NoName · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well researched and well written. Excellent book.

[Lorraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Tudor period has always been my favourite in British history. My favourite monarch of that era is Elizabeth I. A brilliant political strategist, supporter of the arts, sciences, and exploration. She brought England into its own renaissance. This book, which is fictional, follows Elizabeth from the death of Edward VI through the 9-day reign of Lady Jane Grey to the crowning of Mary and the arrival of Philip of Spain to London. During that time, Elizabeth has to avoid favouring any groups which have ambitions of putting their favourite on the throne. She knows that if she does, she will suffer the same fate as her mother, Anne Boleyn. It is a dangerous path she must make for herself. In the course of this book she is captured by Mary's followers and imprisoned in the Tower of London. At the end she is exiled outside the city until Mary and Philip call her to court and give her freedom again. However, she is astute enough to know that she will be watched constantly for acts of treason - even in those with whom she associates. This book is part of a series. The storyline is interesting and exciting but dryly written at times. I wondered if it was a YA novel. Not terrible and I would read the subsequent novel in the series of I had the chance.

[Laura Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second in the trilogy about Elizabeth I's life before she became Queen delivers masterly psychological insights into the hopes and fears of three remarkable women: Elizabeth, the politically astute fighter; her sister Mary, a valiant, determined but tragic figure; and Jane Grey, the studious, naive, devout Protestant a victim of her ambitious relatives.

The story opens with 19 year old Elizabeth resisting attempts to lure her to court to see her dying brother, Edward VI. She believes him to be dead and instinctively knows her life or her liberty will be at risk should she go. What follows is her struggle to stay alive and in the succession through the coup that takes Lady Jane Grey to the throne, albeit briefly, to the triumphant accession of her embittered, lonely sister, Mary and the early years of her reign. During this time, Elizabeth spends much of her time in semi-captivity and under constant suspicion of treasonable plotting.

Elizabeth is portrayed as a charismatic enigma; sometimes flighty and wild and accused of coquetry by a jealous Mary, but also deeply aware of the risks that surround her, religious and political. She is by upbringing a Protestant, but must pay lip service to the Catholic faith of her sister, despite that doing so is tantamount to denying her own birthright - successor to Mary should she die childless.

Irwin creates three dimensional characters and explores their terrors and pleasures in vivid, dramatic prose. The reader is kept fully engaged in the respective fates of the three central female characters especially. As usual, it is obvious Irwin did copious amounts of research into the period and the main protagonists, but from my perspective, she shows a fairly typical bias in her depiction of Mary who was not the despot her father had been and whose mercy and administrative talents are rather overlooked in this novel. This is a minor quibble though as the book is on the whole compelling and enjoyable and does a great PR job on Elizabeth.

[Kathleen Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second in a trilogy written by Margaret Irwin about Elizabeth Tudor.In the beginning of this book King Edward dies and Lady Jane Grey is deposed after only nine days on the throne. Most of this story takes place during her sister Mary Tudor's reign as Queen of England.

Mary is doing what she can to get rid of the Protestant faith that was the religion of Henry VIII and that Elizabeth grew up with. Mary becomes unpopular when Mary decides she is going to marry

Prince Philip of Spain. The country does not want Spain in control of England. There is an uprising and afterwards Elizabeth is brought to court and questioned, as Mary believes she was behind the uprising. She is imprisoned in the Tower, but after a time Mary was convinced to let Elizabeth go as there was not a lot of evidence against her. She is moved to Woodstock where she spends a year under house arrest. This is where the book pretty much ends. I liked this book but i think I preferred Young Bess over this one, although I definitely want to read the last in the trilogy. I am a fan of any books Elizabethan in nature so I was not too disappointed in this telling of the girl who became Queen of England from 1558 to 1603.

[Gaile · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sequel to Young Bess, the woman who becomes
Elizabeth I finds herself in peril when her
brother, Edward VI dies.
First Jane Grey is announced Queen as she is
protestant while Elizabeth's sister, Princess
Mary, the true heiress is a staunch Catholic.
England rallies around Henry VIII's daughter,
Mary and she is crowned. Although at first, friendly
with her sister, an uprising casts suspicion on
Elizabeth and she finds herself Mary's prisoner.
Mary proves a fanatic about her religion. Against
the wishes of the people of England, she married
Phillip II Of Spain. As Mary becomes ever more fanatic,
the people turn to Elizabeth as their only hope and Mary's
hold on her prisoner becomes ever tighter.
In the Tower, Elizabeth comes to know and fall in live with
Robert Dudley who will remain her life long favorite. Phillip
is also taken with Elizabeth.
Even though the reader knows Elizabeth will survive, how this
girl of a genius intelligence does survive makes this a thrilling
read.

[drey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Queen Elizabeth has always fascinated me, and when Sourcebooks offered up Elizabeth, Captive Princess for review, I jumped at it. After all, I did like Young Bess.

Elizabeth's half-brother Edward is King, and has been sickly. When she is summoned to his sick-bed, she instead pleads illness and refuses to make the journey, certain that he is already dead and she may be riding into a trap. Such is the auspicious start to this next novel in Margaret Irwin's trilogy on Queen Elizabeth, which covers the period from Edward's death to Mary's ascension to the throne and marriage to Philip of Spain.

I have never quite grasped all of the nicknames for the people revolving around Elizabeth, and had to actively remember who is whom. Luckily for me, this did not detract from my enjoyment of the book. Fans of historical fiction and Queen Elizabeth should pick this one up--as well as Young Bess, if you haven't read that yet.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed the first of the trilogy. I think perhaps its focus was too short.
I would have loved to read more about Elizabeth in the tower and her blossoming infatuation with Robert Dudley someone who ultimately tried to usurp her own claim to the throne through Jane Grey.
I felt that the book didn't really bring across the real fear she must have felt at being her sisters prisoner seen as her mother was beheaded for treason.
The book felt as though Elizabeth knew all along that she was destined to be Queen rather then spending any real time on her numerous illnesses which in my opinion were probably caused by the great stress of the situation.
Mary's thoughts could have been more explored also.

Final verdict: a read that didn't really add any further knowledge to the Tudor period for me and could have been padded out some more with some explanation for key players behavior.

[Irene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was very interested to find this book, second in a series, by Margaret Irwin -- first published in 1947. I wanted to read this because it covers the years of Elizabeth's life from her brother Edward's death through the first few years of Mary's reign, and ending when Phillip of Spain arrives and ER I is let out of the tower. The next book covers the years where supposedly she is between Philip and Mary, implying a triangle that I was not aware of. They are novels, and therefore, one wonders where the elaboration is heaviest in the work. I think the portrait of ER I here is interesting and portrays a young woman with hard won political skill gained by living in the roller coaster of her times.

[Helene Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review - This was a very interesting interpretation of Elizabeth's time in the Tower of London after the nine days reign of Jane Grey. It imagines the thoughts and feelings of Elizabeth after the death of her half-brother, Edward VI, and her thoughts on religion and how to overcome the difficulties besetting her, like clearing her path to the throne through her half-sister and controversy over religion.

Genre? - Historical / Drama

Characters? - Elizabeth I / Mary I / Philip II of Spain / Jane Grey / Kat Ashley / Robert Dudley

Setting? - London (England)

Series? - Elizabeth #2

Recommend? – Yes

Rating - 15/20

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book! I have the entire trilogy by Irwin on order and can't wait to get to 3rd book. This time period is a mystery so I was very interested to find out who are the major players. As a result of this book and other back reading I find myself in great admiration of E1. The depictions of the English people's love for her are very moving as well.
As back story, I just found out the Phillip saved E1 so as to avoid Mary of Scots and her French alliances controlling England. Duh! How could I live so long without having that pointed out to me before??

[Margaret Chind · Rating 2 out of 5]

The time period of this novel is fascinating and I do really love the titles in this series. Although the writing from Margaret Irwin is not quite my cup of tea, I felt there was a lot of speaking with out saying anything, but for some they might love it. I definitely would give her another chance, but would not quite call it a favorite.

*Thanks to Sourcebooks, Inc for providing a copy for review.*

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The middle book in a Trilogy about Queen Elizabeth I when she was a princess. This book begins with Edward VI’s death, as Elizabeth is summoned to his side with the story moving through Jane Grey’s short reign and subsequent imprisonment and execution, and then Elizabeth's own captivity.
Though I know the history well enough to follow the characters and story, I would recommend beginning with the first book in the Trilogy, Young Bess.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is good, don't get me wrong, it just suffers in comparison to Young Bess because there is a severe lack of dashing Tom Seymour. Though, there is an entrance of dashing Robert Dudley which makes up for it. And also neatly highlights how much older, and wiser and more constrained Elizabeth is becoming. The teenage spark and adoration for Seymour is reworked into her awareness of how dangerous love is.

[Karen Galber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Irwin captures Elizabeth as a young girl. We see her as the woman she is about to become. She is politically aware. The book opens when Edward becomes king through the regency of the Duke of Somerset and John Dudley's regencies' through Jane Grey's nine day reign and Mary's reign and ends with Mary's proposed marriage to Philip of Spain. Mary is depicted not as bloody Mary but as a sad old maid and extremely jealous of Elizabeth.

[Carla Nayland]

Second in this vivid, beautifully written trilogy about Elizabeth I of England. Imprisoned in the Tower, charting a dangerous course through the shifting political alliances at the court of her half-sister Mary, will Elizabeth survive to claim the crown?
Review: http://www.carlanayland.org/reviews/e...

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a book that I received when I was about 12 (a long time ago) and kept to reread. It was one of the first books that I read about Elizabeth Tudor and contributed to my fascination with her. It isn't really a long book, and it covers a brief period after her brother Edward has died, and Mary has become Queen. Of course, most of the dialogue is fiction, but the action is historical.