Six Tudor Queens: Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen: Six Tudor Queens 1

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Even though Katherine’s story is introduced and explored extensively in ‘Katherine of Aragon’, the first novel in the Six Tudor Queens series, she makes several appearances down the line. This is not an unbiased book, nor should it be. This is a highly personal tale, told completely from one woman's perspective. Such a singular perspective doesn't allow for an unbiased telling. We see the events of this well-known historical period through a single set of eyes, augmented by the opinions of those in her household who are loyal to her, those who fight for her rights against those of Anne Boleyn. Anne Boleyn will get her say in the next book; in this book, she is only the “night crow” or “that woman” or "the Lady." And that's fine. This is not a history book or even a biography. This is historical fiction. Get interested in the history behind the story, but don't get your history from the story, even though this particular story is being told by an historian.

Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen - Six Tudor Queens Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen - Six Tudor Queens

I actually enjoyed this portrait of Katherine from first arrival in England to her death. I'm a fan of the Tudor period. This was well written and easy light enjoyable reading. Alison Weir is the top-selling female historian (and the fifth best-selling historian overall) in the United Kingdom, and has sold over 2.7 million books worldwide. She has published seventeen history books, including The Six Wives of Henry VIII, The Princes in the Tower, Elizabeth the Queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry VIII: King and Court, Katherine Swynford, The Lady in the Tower and Elizabeth of York. Alison has also published five historical novels, including Innocent Traitor and The Lady Elizabeth. Her latest biography is The Lost Tudor Princess, about Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox. She is soon to publish Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen, the first in a series of novels about the wives of Henry VIII. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and Sciences and an Honorary Life Patron of Historic Royal Palaces, and is married with two adult children. Henry chose to divorce Katherine. He then chose to cut off Anne's head. I find the suggestion that Anne had power over him insulting. Henry VIII became mean and vindictive toward Katherine and even had his messengers threaten her with arrest for treason. The author does a very good job of portraying intrigue at the royal court and painting a picture of England 500 years ago. I recommend it to historical fiction fans. Henry VIII’s third queen is dead, leaving the King’s only son without a mother and the country without a queen. And as preparations are being made for Queen Jane’s funeral, her stepdaughter, the Lady Mary, laments the country’s loss.Solo ed unicamente la Fede in Cristo e alla Chiesa Cattolica ha mosso così questa donna, non ha smosso ne ha ceduto la sua coscienza neanche sottomettendola al bene di sua figlia Maria, unica figlia vivente di Caterina ed Enrico... Alison Weir managed to describe the inner world, the emotions and the long-suffering fate of Katherine of Aragon, the first wife of the King Henry the eighth. Through her writing and her deep knowledge of history she brings into live the political principles, the values and the games during the Tudor’s domination in England.

Six Tudor Queens Series by Alison Weir - Goodreads

And a good one. Alison Weir thoroughly immerses us in the world of Katherine, her household, her retinues and routines, her high and low fortunes. We are with her every step of the way as she lives through the disappointment of her marriage to Arthur, as she floats through the glorious first years of her marriage to Henry, as she slowly becomes beaten down, small defeat by large, when Henry finds Anne, leaves Katherine, and splits Christendom in two in his quest to satisfy his desire to have a male heir. By the end of the book, it's quite easy for the reader to loathe both Henry and Anne as Katherine suffers repeated bouts of ill health, living in constant fear from the specter of poisoning hanging over both her and her daughter, Mary's, heads. Each illness of Mary's fills the reader with the same pangs of terror as it does Katherine, despite knowing that Mary survives these years of hell, years which imprint on her character indelibly. Non sto farvi nessun riassunto perchè la storia, gli avvenimenti li conosciamo tutti... mi colpisce però, che la "grande questione" girasse soprattutto sul terrore di Enrico di non lasciare nessun erede al trono, rischiando quindi di lasciare l' Inghilterra ad altri casati. La sua ossessione non nacque dall' oggi al domani, ma crebbe pian piano, Caterina rimase sempre fedele e vicino al marito, aiutandolo con la sua grande saggezza e sapienza, a capire la follia della cosa..... ma nulla da fare. That had been a strange business, veiled in secrecy. Not even to Maria would Catalina confide her secret suspicions that all might not be quite well with Arthur – and that some dreadful First betrothed at the age of three to Arthur, Prince of Wales, the young princess of Spain, Catalina, sails to England at sixteen years of age to marry. Because she is the daughter of the esteemed monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella, Catalina’s marriage to Arthur is designed to ensure an Anglo-Spanish alliance against France. In an unforeseen twist of fate, Catalina – anglicized to Princess Katherine – is betrothed to Henry VIII, heir to the English throne. Though her marriage is at first loving, outside forces soon cause a rift between Katherine and Henry VIII - one that threatens their relationship, Katherine’s status as Queen, and the future of the nation. I found the last letter Catherine wrote to Henry heartbreaking and moving, but I leave you with the mystery and I invite you to read the book.

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I must admit a certain empathy for Katherine of Aragon, so I’d been looking forward to this book since I first heard Alison Weir was writing it. Like many, I was failed by my history teachers, who I remember dismissed Katherine’s almost twenty-four year marriage in their haste to get on to the ‘interesting’ bits. That meant it was up to me to learn Katherine’s amazing story of courage, love, loss - and determination. The book is divided into three parts; Katherine’s life as a widowed princess in a foreign land being treated as a pawn in the political machinations between England and Spain, then her life as a much-loved queen and finally, being moved around the country after her husband sets her aside. Brought up in the magnificent castles of Scotland under the storm of her parent’s turbulent marriage, Margaret Douglas is well-acquainted with the changing whims of those who hold power. And when her father is exiled by King James V, Margaret is sent to England to seek refuge with her uncle, King Henry VIII. King Henry VIII spends the Six Tudor Queens series determined to steer his kingdom clear of further strife. And he believes that a male heir will permit him to do just that. In fact, even though Anne Boleyn’s beauty ultimately stole Henry’s love away from his first wife, it was Katherine’s inability to give him a male heir that first fractured their relationship. A princess of Spain, Catalina is only sixteen years old when she sets foot on the shores of England. The youngest daughter of the powerful monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella, Catalina is a coveted prize for a royal marriage - and Arthur, Prince of Wales, and heir to the English throne, has won her hand. But tragedy strikes and Catalina, now Princess Katherine, is betrothed to the future Henry VIII. She must wait for his coming-of-age, an ordeal that tests her resolve, casts doubt on her trusted confidantes, and turns her into a virtual prisoner.