25 Nov 2011
By eilidhcatriona
In History
What do you know about Mary Boleyn, sister of the better-known Anne? The chances are that whatever you think you know is incorrect or unsubstantiated. Recent fiction such as Philippa Gregory’s The Other Boleyn Girl, along with various historical studies, have convinced us that it is certain that Mary gave birth to two children by Henry VIII, and that she was promiscuous and branded a whore – but these “facts” are far from proven.
Alison Weir’s latest work Mary Boleyn: ‘A Great and Infamous Whore’ is the first full length biography of the lesser known Boleyn sister. With little historical evidence to go on, Mary has been misunderstood and misrepresented for centuries, and Weir aims to attempt to set the record straight.
Alison Weir
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22 Oct 2010
By eilidhcatriona
In History
The Princes In The Tower by Alison Weir is an examination of the centuries old mystery of what happened to the 12 year old Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York, when they disappeared in the Tower of London when Richard III usurped the throne in the 1480s.
Alison Weir is well-known for her books covering the Tudor period, the Wars of the Roses and some earlier periods as well. She is an authoritative writer, and one whom I respect as she writes clearly and in a very readable style, and when there is doubt over an event she lays out all the evidence before explaining the most likely conclusion.
Alison Weir
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15 Sep 2010
By eilidhcatriona
In History
Lancaster and York: The Wars of the Roses by Alison Weir is an historical book covering much of the fifteenth century, and some of the fourteenth century, chronicling and examining the causes, effects and the course of the Wars of the Roses.
The Wars of the Roses were, in simplistic terms, the struggle between the houses of Lancaster and York for the crown of England during the fifteenth century. Henry VI of Lancaster was descended from an usurper of the throne, and so when he turned out to be a feeble and easily led ruler, the crown was taken by Edward IV of York, who asserted that he had a better claim to the throne and that he would be a better leader.
Alison Weir, The Wars of the Roses
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15 Aug 2010
By eilidhcatriona
In History
Over the last year or so I’ve become fascinated by the Tudors, particularly Henry VIII and his wives. This is something I knew next to nothing about until I started reading the Shardlake novels by C.J. Sansom, and that inspired me to start reading the history. Having read about Henry VIII, the next place to go seemed to be his heirs.
Children of England by Alison Weir covers the period immediately after Henry VIII’s death, when his son Edward became king at the age of 9, and then continues through his reign, the tragic and short reign of Jane Grey, that of Mary, daughter of Katherine of Aragon, until her death and the ascension of Elizabeth to the throne.
Alison Weir, Henry VIII
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