Contemporary observers described the young king in glowing terms. At over six feet tall, with rich auburn hair, clear skin, and a slender waist, he was, to many, "the handsomest prince ever seen." From this starting point in
Henry VIII, the King and His Court, biographer extraordinare Alison Weir reveals a Henry VIII far different from the obese, turkey-leg gnawing, womanizing tyrant who has gone down in history. Henry embodied the Renaissance ideal of a man of many talents--musician, composer, linguist, scholar, sportsman, warrior--indeed, the Dutch humanist Erasmus (not a man inclined to flattery) declared him a "universal genius." In scholarly yet readable style, Weir brings Henry and his court to life in meticulous, but never tedious, detail. Weir describes everything from courtly fashions to political factions and elaborate meals to tournament etiquette. Along the way she offers up charming--if all too brief--glimpses of Henry's court: tiny Princess Mary, still a very young girl, at her betrothal ceremony saying to the proxy, "Are you the Dauphin of France? If you are, I want to kiss you"; Henry weeping with joy as he held his long-awaited son and heir for the first time; Henry showing off his legs to the Venetian ambassador ("Look here! I have also a good calf to my leg"); Henry's courtiers dressing in heavily padded clothes to emulate--and flatter--their increasingly stout monarch. She also reveals some surprises, for example, that Henry and Katherine were still hunting together as late as 1530, even though Henry was desperately trying to have their marriage annulled. Weir also describes surprisingly happier times in their relationship; Henry loved to dress up in costume, and "was especially fond of bursting in upon Queen Katherine and her ladies in the Queen's Chambers.... Henry took a boyish delight in these disguisings and Katherine seemingly never tired of feigning astonishment that it was her husband who had surprised her." Henry's queens receive relatively little attention here (for them, see Weir's excellent
Six Wives of Henry VIII), but this book is fascinating and a joy to read. Alison Weir has done it again.
--Sunny Delaney
Henry VIII, renowned for his command of power, celebrated for his intellect, presided over the most stylish—and dangerous—court in Renaissance Europe. Scheming cardinals vied for power with newly rich landowners and merchants, brilliant painters and architects introduced a new splendor into art and design, and each of Henry's six queens brought her own influence to bear upon the life of the court. In her new book, Alison Weir, author of the finest royal chronicles of our time, brings to vibrant life the turbulent, complex figure of Henry VIII and the glittering court he made his own.
In an age when a monarch's domestic and political lives were inextricably intertwined, a king as powerful and brilliant as Henry VIII exercised enormous sway over the laws, the customs, and the culture of his kingdom. Yet as Weir shows in this swift, vivid narrative, Henry's ministers, nobles, and wives were formidable figures in their own right, whose influence both enhanced and undermined the authority of the throne. On a grand stage rich in pageantry, intrigue, passion, and luxury, Weir records the many complex human dramas that swirled around Henry, while deftly weaving in an account of the intimate rituals and desires of England's ruling class—their sexual practices, feasts and sports, tastes in books and music, houses and gardens.
Stimulating and tumultuous, the court of Henry VIII attracted the finest minds and greatest beauties in Renaissance England—poets Wyatt and Surrey, the great portraitist Hans Holbein, "feasting ladies" like Elizabeth Blount and Elizabeth FitzWalter, the newly rich Boleyn family and the ancient aristocratic clans like the Howards and the Percies, along with the entourages and connections that came and went with each successive wife. The interactions between these individuals, and the terrible ends that befell so many of them, make Henry VIII: The King and His Court an absolutely spellbinding read.
Meticulous in historic detail, narrated with high style and grand drama, Alison Weir brilliantly brings to life the king, the court, and the fascinating men and women who vied for its pleasures and rewards.
| Henry VIII: a disgrace for a crown | 2010-02-13 | 1 / 5 |
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This book looks like a fairy tale to me. Are we thinking about the same despotic ruler, good for nothing, remarkable only for his irresponsible rupture with the Church to satisfy his lust and his greed on the lands of the Church? He wasn't even a legitimate king, since his father had been an usurper, and all his children, except Mary, the daughter of Catherine of Aragon, bastards.
A humanist? For God's sake, he was totally unbalanced, a mediocrity turned into a bloodthirsty savage who claimed the heads of those who served him well and who actually ruled England, like Cardinal Wolsey and Thomas More. What the hell is this book talking about? |
| Impressive | 2010-02-09 | 5 / 5 |
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Alison Weir is a fabulous biographer. Her research is very thorough and her writing isn't so bogged down by details that you get lost. She has completely outdone herself with this book. I have read several books about the six wives of Henry VIII, but never a biography of his own life so this was a treat.
I always thought of Henry VIII as some egotistical monster that liked divorcing or beheading his wives so that he could move on to his next catch. Yes, he had an ego, a big one, but he wasn't a monster. He was influenced by so many things, his upbringing, his religious beliefs, and especially that of his personal counselors. I always thought of him as a one man show being king and head of the Church of England after he left the Catholic faith, but it wasn't that way at all. I didn't realize the impact that his counselors had on his decisions until I read this book. Anne Boylen wasn't taken down by Henry, she was taken down by his closest counselor, who didn't like her and wanted her gone. So he made her into an adulterer and a traitor, two things that she was not.
I love how the author puts you into Henry's world by describing how the court worked, what he ate, where he slept, what his rooms were like, what the houses/castles he lived in were like and what he wore. His daily life is very well described and is easy to imagine.
It was also interesting to find out more about what kind of person he was. He was extremely intelligent and talented. He was a marvel at sports of all kinds, played musical instruments, wrote music and poems and was very well educated. He was also a charmer and knew how to put on a good show. He had a big temper as well so everyone around him had to be careful about what they said or did in order to not incur his wrath.
He was very fit and active until he started to have a recurring infection in his legs that would send him to bed for weeks on end and eventually took his life. After the infection began he started putting on weight and it made his condition even worse. They don't really know what happened to him the last few weeks of his life as he was in almost total seclusion and no one let any information out about what was going on. So the cause of death can only be speculated at. His death was kept a secret for two days after he died.
Fabulous book. If you want to understand Henry VIII, read this. Definitely a different perspective than I had anticipated.
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| Quintessential Alison Weir - detailed yet an interesting read | 2010-01-07 | 5 / 5 |
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I've read several of the Weir biographies chronicling the major players in the court of Henry VIII. All were generally sympathetic to the "King's Majesty" yet looking at the big picture of adultery, beheadings, Catholic defilement blah blah that occurred during his reign, one wonders why. How is it that some individuals are chronicled historically as great leaders yet others with far less crimes are vilified? No judgement here - Just a rhetorical question.
A "lively, interesting read" with good supporting documentation. I especially like that Weir's accounts are consistent from one tome to the next. However, for new fans of the Tudor period, I would start with Weir's "The Six Wives of Henry the VIII". "Six Wives' is almost the equivalent of TMZ for the middle ages and better suited to the shortened attention spans and personality driven media of the 21st century. |
| It Goes On For Days | 2009-10-30 | 2 / 5 |
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| I am a big Alison Weir fan, but this book is probably the most boring, and confusing I have ever read. In fact, Its hard to even pick it up. She has VERY meticulously researched King Henry's Court, and the Time Period , but it all seems to run in together. I would read this book for the well documented research, but I would check it out at your local Library, or through a friend. |
| Henry lives again | 2009-10-07 | 5 / 5 |
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| Brings the old terror back to life again. Weir has the wonderful ability of making history fascinating and immediate. She puts the reader right in the middle of Henry's court, which this reader liked very much. |
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