ayataniguchi

Certainly a more sober and accurate POV on Henry's marriages than most of the books out there today, focusing a great deal on the complex machinations of politics and war that were the backdrop of his life with six women and some-odd mistresses. I found it a little hard to follow in regards to lack of discussion on the overlap of wives/mistresses except in retrospect. Clearly the presence of the up-and-coming next-in-line must have been much more disturbing to the peace than he lets on. There is also little discussion on the richness of courtly life in comparison to the space spent on establishing timelines, outside interests, critical viewpoints, places, etc., so it was at times difficult to envision the actual personalities of the people involved (except, of course, for Henry and Catherine of Aragon). On one hand, the lack of such discussion provides a much more grounded viewpoint of the court as a whole versus say, The Tudors, or some such nonsense, and doesn't quite paint Henry as the raving lunatic people have come to think of him as a result of historical fictions. On the other hand, surely the dramatics of contests, pageantry, injuries, and miscarriages were slightly more important than this book implies. One of Anne's miscarriages is only mentioned offhandedly in the past-tense, and her 'monstrous' birth is not even discussed, though it was a critical piece of "evidence" against her. He only gives the barest hint that Anne of Cleves might have always known Henry was impotent and was simply playing her cards close to the vest as his 4th imperiled wife. At any rate, as a history of the complicated politics of the time with the women of Henry's life factored in, it is very well done. As a revelation of the women themselves, it is somewhat lacking.

2022-11-14 16:38