England from the perspective of its consort queens - a distaff history of the nation from 1066 to 1503.

England's medieval queens were elemental in shaping the history of the nation. In an age where all politics were family politics, dynastic marriages placed English queens at the very centre of power - the king's bed. From Matilda of Flanders, the Conqueror's queen, to Elizabeth of York, the first Tudor consort, England's queens fashioned the nature of monarchy and influenced the direction of the state. Occupying a unique position in the mercurial, often violent world of medieval state-craft, English queens had to negotiate a role that combined tremendous influence with terrifying vulnerability.

Lisa Hilton's meticulously researched new book explores the lives of the twenty women who were crowned queen between 1066 and 1503, reconsidering the fictions surrounding well-known figures like Eleanor of Aquitaine and illuminating the lives of forgotten figures such as Adeliza of Louvain. War, adultery, witchcraft, child abuse, murder - and occassionally even love - formed English queenship, but so too did patronage, learning and fashion. Lisa Hilton considers the evolution of the queenly office alongside intimate portraits of the individual women, dispelling the myth that medieval brides were no more than diplomatic pawns.

England from the perspective of its consort queens - a distaff history of the nation from 1066 to 1503.

About the Author

Lisa Hilton is the acclaimed author of The Real Queen of France: Athenais and Louis XIV, Mistress Peachum's Pleasure, Queens Consort: England's Medieval Queens and The Horror of Love. She is the author of two novels, the bestselling Wolves in Winter and The House with Blue Shutters, which was shortlisted in the UK for the Commonwealth Fiction prize. She was educated at Oxford University, and lives in central London.

http://lisa-hilton.com/

Reviews
A fascinating study * INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY *
As Hilton displays so effectively through the depth of her research, no two queens were the same... a fascinating read * New Statesman *
Reading this stimulating pageant of a book... one frequently shudders at the fate of the women in bygone ages -- Antonia Fraser * Mail on Sunday *



Book Information
ISBN 9780753826119
Author Lisa Hilton
Format Paperback
Page Count 576
Imprint Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Publisher Orion Publishing Co
Weight(grams) 456g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 152mm * 36mm