'The Tudor age' is worthwhile for its fascinating descriptions of daily life and anecdotes about the era's famous figures. It will be an informative and attractive addition to public library shelves.

The turbulent Tudor Age never fails to capture the imagination. But what was it truly like to be a woman during this era? The Tudor period conjures up images of queens and noblewomen in elaborate court dress; of palace intrigue and dramatic politics. But if you were a woman, it was also a time when death during childbirth was rife; when marriage was usually a legal contract, not a matter for love, and the education you could hope to receive was minimal at best. Yet the Tudor century was also dominated by powerful and dynamic women in a way that no era had been before. Historian Elizabeth Norton explores the life cycle of the Tudor woman, from childhood to old age, through the diverging examples of women such as Elizabeth Tudor, Henry VIII’s sister; Cecily Burbage, Elizabeth's wet nurse; Mary Howard, widowed but influential at court; Elizabeth Boleyn, mother of a controversial queen; and Elizabeth Barton, a peasant girl who would be lauded as a prophetess. Their stories are interwoven with studies of topics ranging from Tudor toys to contraception to witchcraft, painting a portrait of the lives of queens and serving maids, nuns and harlots, widows and chaperones. Norton brings this vibrant period to colorful life in an evocative and insightful social history.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • For the first time in decades comes a fresh look at the fabled Tudor dynasty, comprising some of the most enigmatic figures ever to rule a country. “A thoroughly readable and often compelling narrative . . . Five centuries have not diminished the appetite for all things Tudor.”—Associated Press In 1485, young Henry Tudor, whose claim to the throne was so weak as to be almost laughable, crossed the English Channel from France at the head of a ragtag little army and took the crown from the family that had ruled England for almost four hundred years. Half a century later his son, Henry VIII, desperate to rid himself of his first wife in order to marry a second, launched a reign of terror aimed at taking powers no previous monarch had even dreamed of possessing. In the process he plunged his kingdom into generations of division and disorder, creating a legacy of blood and betrayal that would blight the lives of his children and the destiny of his country. The boy king Edward VI, a fervent believer in reforming the English church, died before bringing to fruition his dream of a second English Reformation. Mary I, the disgraced daughter of Catherine of Aragon, tried and failed to reestablish the Catholic Church and produce an heir. And finally came Elizabeth I, who devoted her life to creating an image of herself as Gloriana the Virgin Queen but, behind that mask, sacrificed all chance of personal happiness in order to survive. The Tudors weaves together all the sinners and saints, the tragedies and triumphs, the high dreams and dark crimes, that reveal the Tudor era to be, in its enthralling, notorious truth, as momentous and as fascinating as the fictions audiences have come to love. Praise for The Tudors “A rich and vibrant tapestry.”—The Star-Ledger “A thoroughly readable and often compelling narrative . . . Five centuries have not diminished the appetite for all things Tudor.”—Associated Press “Energetic and comprehensive . . . [a] sweeping history of the gloriously infamous Tudor era . . . Unlike the somewhat ponderous British biographies of the Henrys, Elizabeths, and Boleyns that seem to pop up perennially, The Tudors displays flashy, fresh irreverence [and cuts] to the quick of the action.”—Kirkus Reviews “[A] cheeky, nuanced, and authoritative perspective . . . brims with enriching background discussions.”—Publishers Weekly “[A] lively new history.”—Bloomberg

Focuses on the society, politics and culture of Tudor England, examines its strengths and weaknesses and portrays the personalities and politics of the monarchs and politicians.

From the arrival of Henry Tudor and his army, at Milford in 1485, to the death of the great Queen Elizabeth I in 1603, this was an astonishingly eventful and contradictory age. All the strands of Tudor life are gathered in a rich tapestry - London and the country, costumes, furniture and food, travel, medicine, sports and pastimes, grand tournaments and the great flowering of English drama, juxtaposed with the stultifying narrowness of peasant life, terrible roads, a vast underclass, the harsh treatment of heretics and traitors, and the misery of the Plague.

This new Companion is an invaluable guide to one of the most colourful periods in history. Covering everything from the Reformation, controversies over the succession and the prayer book to literature, the family and education, this highly accessible reference tool contains commentary on the key events in the reigns of the five Tudor monarchs from Henry VII to Elizabeth I. Opening with a general introduction, it includes a wealth of chronologies, biographies, statistics, and maps, as well as a glossary and a guide to the key works in the field. Topics covered include: The establishment of the Tudor dynasty; monarchs and their consorts; rebellions against the Tudors The legal system- central and ecclesiastical courts Government- central and local; the Monarchy and Parliament The Church – structure and changes throughout this tumultuous period Ireland- timeline of key events Population- numbers and distribution The World of Learning- education; literature; religion The key debates in the field. This book will be essential reading for all those with an interest in the Tudor Age.

Ever since its first publication in 1953, James A. Williamson’s The Tudor Age has been lauded for its vivid and vigorous approach to the riches of its subject, the Tudor Age. The present volume is the second edition, originally published 1957, which contains an additional three-part appendix, and will appeal to students of the Tudor Age and general avid historians alike. “There are many things to admire in this volume...[Williamson] is to be congratulated upon his persistence in his declared intention of telling a story instead of describing the results of a post-mortem examination. After a brief introductory chapter in which he sets the early Tudor scene, he sustains his narrative throughout the entire book.”—S. T. Bindoff, History Today