I am featuring books in the order that they were added to my Goodreads To-Read shelf, so sometimes there will be a couple weeks in a row of books on the same topic.
Neglected Book of the Week
Why did I add Anne of Cleves: Henry VIII's Discarded Bride to my TBR?
Because she is easily the most successful of his wives (unless you count Jane having the common sense to die before Henry could find fault and execute her too) and managed to outlive every last one of them.
Have you read this book, or is it somewhere on your TBR? If you've read it, would you recommend it to others?
Happy Reading!
Sarah
Sounds like a neat book. Love the cover. I don't know a lot about Henry VIII ans his wives. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeletehttp://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2020/07/books-from-backlog-july-23.html
I am really excited to get to this one. In my eyes Catherine of Aragon is the only true queen, the queen Henry did not deserve. I have some great recs if you are interested in learning more about any of these women!
DeleteI know nothing about his surviving wife so I'd be interested in reading this one. Hope you like it, Sarah.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Anne of Cleves was the one who Henry said was ugly and he didn't like her. She, thank goodness, agreed to an annulment and went on to live as 'the King's sister'. collecting properties and rents. Quite the nice little life she ended up with after all.
DeleteI lose interest in his wives after Queen Katherine and Anne, to be honest, and find Anne notable only for giving us Elizabeth. #aragonforever
ReplyDelete#ARAGONFOREVER!
DeletePersonally I do not find Anne notable at all, but that is also because I do not think much of her daughter, either. Jane Seymour and Katherine Parr are not terribly interesting to me, but I have a soft spot in my heart for Catherine Howard. Anne of Cleves intrigues me because she outlived the whole lot, which took some skill in the end, seeing as how Henry was practically bonkers.
Gasp! Somenone who doesn't think the world of Liz? Do tell.
DeleteHow have you missed out on any of my QEI rants??!! Ask CK, lol.
DeleteBut in all seriousness, I think she was a giant baby and exactly like her dad in the worst ways possible. Comparisons between her and Mary are grossly unfair, as Henry and Elizabeth executed as many if not more Catholics as Mary did Protestants (not saying any of it was right, but she is remembered as Bloody Mary only because history is written by the victors, and Elizabeth came after her).
And don't even get me started on her pretend show of anger/remorse over the execution of MQoS. Blech. She knew damn well the execution warrant would be carried out before her signature was even dry. She had supposedly signed and torn up a couple warrants already, yet she just magically forgets that she signed yet another, and it disappeared? Cecil could hardly contain himself, he'd been calling for MQoS's blood for YEARS. Her show of sadness was such garbage. She had been jealous of MQoS for decades and could not handle not being the prettiest in all the land. Barf. So she imprisoned a fellow monarch when she had no right to, and then pushed said-monarch quite figuratively to the edge. After being locked up for so long, even death would look pretty good to MQoS so she had literally nothing to lose but her life in associations with any of the plotters looking to take down QEI.
Nothing good comes from a situation involving Anne Boleyn. She didn't deserve her execution, nor did any of the men who died with her. But, I refuse to feel sorry for someone who knew the stakes, made big promises she couldn't realistically guarantee to deliver on, and was a horrible person, particularly to Mary.
Okay, rant over!
:D I admire your passion. I've cooled considerably over the years, both from learning about religious persecution and from becoming a partisan of Queen Katherine. I've NEVER liked Anne Boleyn, though.
DeleteI deeply admire Catherine greatly, because she never wavered in her stance and though it kept her and Mary apart for the rest of their lives, she stood up for herself and Mary's birthrights. Anne Boleyn is THE WORST.
DeleteI must read more Tudors, I must read more Tudors..... [grin]
ReplyDeleteYou must, you must, you must!
Deletehope you enjoy it
ReplyDeletesherry @ fundinmental
Thanks, Sherry!
DeleteNow I am definitely curious. I hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteOne would think having their marriage to Henry annulled would lessen the intrigue, but she got out of a what was sure to be a terrible marriage and was set for life as 'the King's sister' with properties and rents that were hers and hers alone. Not to shabby for a girl from Cleves.
DeleteHmmm... I never heard of this book before, but it sounds interesting!
ReplyDeleteHere’s my Books from the Backlog!
Ronyell @ Rabbit Ears Book Blog
Anne is quite unique in Tudor history. I enjoy reading about her.
DeleteI would like to know more about Anne. My latest book from the backlog, though it has only been there for a couple months, is The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. I am reading it now and it is giving me many feels.
ReplyDeleteI just finished Allegedly by Tiffany Jackson and OMG! Talk about the feels! except my feels are of rage and anger and damn, that book is amazing. I have no idea how to write a remotely coherent review of it.
DeleteI am endlessly intrigued by this Anne because so little is know. There is always that talk of her previous betrothal, and I don't think I believe that she had a baby before marrying Henry, I also don't put much stock in those who said she wanted to be with Henry again after Catherine Howard's murder. I want to know so much more about Anne!