Henry VIII: The King and His Court Summary and Reviews

Henry VIII: The King and His Court
by Alison Weir

Henry VIII: The King and His Court
List Price: $28.00
Our Price: $25.30
You Save: $2.70 (10%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $11.02 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


or

Book Summary Information

Author: Alison Weir
Edition: Hardcover
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2001-05-01
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 640

Book Reviews of Henry VIII: The King and His Court

Book Review: Estimable essay on the era of Henry VIII
Summary: 5 Stars

In one sense, I am at a disadvantage in assessing this volume. I am not an historian of this era, so I cannot confidently judge well the accuracy of Alison Weir's rendering of events and people. I have, of course, read other works dealing with this period, and I'm not sure that my understanding of them would contradict her major points.

That said, I am most impressed with this work. The author covers many aspects of English history--including day-to-day life--of the time. We read of medical practice (ugh), music, art, architecture, customs, drama, clothing, sports (e.g., hunting, archery, tennis, jousting, and so on), the internecine politics (when losers could lose their lives; politics was serious business), and the relationships among families in England of the era. This book is as much about the country at that time as about Henry VIII.

Henry VIII is portrayed in great detail. This is not a Charles Laughton view of the king. It is much more nuanced. It is true that, if Weir be correct, Henry became more rigid and unforgiving and vain and distrusting and autocratic as he aged. He drove England close to financial ruin with his wars (which often had little effect, even though costing much) and with his incessant building projects (his own palaces as one key example).But this should not detract from other of his accomplishments. He supported the arts; he was one of the more educated and intellectually oriented monarchs of the time. It may be that Weir romanticizes him to some extent, and that ought to be noted. But his was not simply a dissipated period in English history.

Of course, many would wonder about his rendering of the multitudinous wives of the monarch. Weir does spend time on this part of his life, including the Machiavellian politics associated with Henry's marriages (factions would use potential wives as pawns in power struggles). Weir's assessments of the various wives are pretty fair. We might be surprised to know of his affection for Katherine of Aragon; it is fascinating to watch the pas de deux between Anne Boleyn and Henry before their wedding; and so on.

Then, the descriptions of the hard ball politics of the era--featuring actors such as Wolsey, Cromwell, More, Cranmer, and the nobles of the time.

All in all, an accessible and very readable work on Henry VIII and his time. I'd strongly recommend. . . .

Biographies & Memoirs Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Biographies & Memoirs Books
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance ImageDreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
by Barack Obama
Crown; Published: 2007-01-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $15.53
Price in other shops: $25.95
Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia ImageEat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia
by Elizabeth Gilbert
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2007-01-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops: $15.00
The Wordy Shipmates ImageThe Wordy Shipmates
by Sarah Vowell
Riverhead Hardcover; Published: 2008-10-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.97
Price in other shops: $25.95
Letter to My Daughter ImageLetter to My Daughter
by Maya Angelou
Random House; Published: 2008-09-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.09
Price in other shops: $25.00
The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream (Vintage) ImageThe Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream (Vintage)
by Barack Obama
Vintage; Published: 2008-07-15; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.04
Price in other shops: $7.99
Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice ImageHere's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice
by Maureen Mccormick
William Morrow; Published: 2008-10-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.78
Price in other shops: $25.95
A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity ImageA Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity
by Bill O'Reilly
Broadway; Published: 2008-09-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.67
Price in other shops: $26.00
Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World ImageDewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World
by Vicki Myron
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2008-09-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.89
Price in other shops: $19.99
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time ImageThree Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time
by Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2007-01-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.25
Price in other shops: $15.00
The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life ImageThe Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life
by Alice Schroeder
Bantam; Published: 2008-09-29; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $19.25
Price in other shops: $35.00
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers ImageThe Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers
by Margaret George
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 1998-09-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.08
Price in other shops: $16.95
The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn ImageThe Life and Death of Anne Boleyn
by Eric Ives
Wiley-Blackwell; Published: 2005-07-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.26
Price in other shops: $21.95
Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life (Ballantine Reader's Circle) ImageEleanor of Aquitaine: A Life (Ballantine Reader's Circle)
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 2001-04-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.75
Price in other shops: $17.00
Queen Isabella: Treachery, Adultery, and Murder in Medieval England ImageQueen Isabella: Treachery, Adultery, and Murder in Medieval England
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 2006-12-26; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.56
Price in other shops: $16.95
The Princes in the Tower ImageThe Princes in the Tower
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 1995-07-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.95
Price in other shops: $14.95
Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey ImageInnocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 2007-11-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.44
Price in other shops: $14.95
The Wars of the Roses ImageThe Wars of the Roses
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 1996-06-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.00
Price in other shops: $16.00
The Life of Elizabeth I ImageThe Life of Elizabeth I
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 1999-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.10
Price in other shops: $17.00
The Children of Henry VIII ImageThe Children of Henry VIII
by Alison Weir
Ballantine Books; Published: 1997-07-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.74
Price in other shops: $16.00
The Six Wives of Henry VIII ImageThe Six Wives of Henry VIII
by Alison Weir
Grove Press; Published: 1991-01-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.53
Price in other shops: $16.95