Katherine the Queen: The Remarkable Life of Katherine Parr, the Last Wife of Henry VIII

by Linda Porter

Overview

The general perception of Katherine Parr is that she was a provincial nobody with intellectual pretensions who became queen of England because the king needed a nurse as his health declined. Yet the real Katherine Parr was attractive, passionate, ambitious, and highly intelligent. Thirty years old (younger than Anne Boleyn had been) when she married the king, she was twice widowed and held hostage by the northern rebels during the great uprising of 1536–37 known as the Pilgrimage of Grace. Her life had been dramatic even before she became queen and it would remain so after Henry's death. She hastily and secretly married her old flame, the rakish Sir Thomas Seymour, and died shortly after giving birth to her only child in September 1548. Her brief happiness was undermined by the very public flirtation of her husband and stepdaughter, Princess Elizabeth. She was one of the most influential and active queen consorts in English history, and this is her story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312616960
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	12/20/2011
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	715,007
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Linda Porter has a doctorate in history from the University of York, England. She was the winner of the 2004 Biographers Club/Daily Mail Prize in England and is the author of The Myth of "Bloody Mary," also available from St. Martin's Press. She is married with one daughter and lives near London.

Editorial Reviews

Rich, perceptive, nuanced and creative, this first full-scale biography gives one of Britain's best but least-known queens her due.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Linda Porter has done a marvellous job . . . she evokes the whole terrifying and exciting world of the Tudor courts, packed with intrigue and danger.” —A.N. Wilson

“A well-documented, compelling story filled with the intrigue and drama one has come to expect of the time period. . . . This is the stuff of a cable miniseries, but Porter tempers the narrative with Katherine's accomplishments, creating a balanced, satisfying read.” —The Post and Courier, Charleston, SC

“Porter's vividly written biography confirms her belief that Katherine was an influential woman. As stepmother she shaped Elizabeth I, one of England's most successful monarchs. More importantly, Porter presents a portrait of an attractive woman more than capable of navigating the treacherous waters of life at the duplicitous Tudor court.” —Peter Burton, Daily Express

“Porter offers a nuanced picture of family allegiances and intellectual background.” —Financial Times

“Porter's account of Katherine's life is colourful and well-paced . . . those who enjoy Tudor history will agree with Porter's assessment that Katherine's was indeed a remarkable life.” —Matthew Dennison, Mail on Sunday

“Porter provides a reliable synthesis of the best historical research on Katherine's life and times, while periodically going beyond it to offer original contributions.” —Peter Marshall, The Literary Review

“Porter's lively and detailed account gives us a reinvigorated image of Katherine.” —Lancashire Evening Post

From the Publisher

Although often depicted by the Victorians as a matronly nurse to an elderly king, Katherine Parr (1512–1548), according to Porter, was a stylish trendsetter of 30, sensual, confident, dynamic, exceptionally educated and cultured, and able to perform with aplomb on both an English and international stage. Born into a prominent, northern family of Yorkist sympathies, Katherine was widowed twice before marrying Henry VIII: a brief first marriage thrust her into a troubled family; her second husband, John Neville, Lord Latimer, put his life and fortune at risk when he became embroiled on the side of the rebels in the 1536 northern uprising, known as the Pilgrimage of Grace. Probably already in love with seasoned diplomat and soldier Sir Thomas Seymour, the king's brother-in-law, when she married Henry, the pragmatic Katherine embraced her royal role with enthusiasm. British historian Porter (The Myth of "Bloody Mary") claims Elizabeth I's education, religious beliefs, and consciousness of personal image owed much to her loving stepmother. Rich, perceptive, nuanced and creative, this first full-scale biography gives one of Britain's best but least-known queens her due. 16 pages of color illus. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly

Against the backdrop of Henry VIII's five previous marriages, Katherine Parr receives short shrift. Painted as a matronly woman selected by Henry to be the antithesis of the sexually liberal Katherine Howard, Parr is generally viewed unenviably as nursemaid to an autocrat whose obesity, age, and increasingly unpredictable temper made him no catch. Porter (Mary Tudor: The First Queen) has set out to provide us with a fresh perspective on this intelligent, ambitious, and resilient woman, the consort who outlived Henry. Here we do not see Katherine quietly tending Henry's ulcerous legs, but rather carving out her identity through her impressive scholarly and literary achievements and her brief time as regent. She also gave Henry's children the warm family life so long denied them. In closing, Porter touchingly (and rightly) credits Parr's role in nurturing the brilliant and indomitable Elizabeth I. VERDICT Readers with an interest in women's history and/or Tudor England should find this biography a refreshing and gratifying read.—Tessa L.H. Minchew, Georgia Perimeter Coll., Clarkston

Library Journal