I can never forget my homeland,’ Catalina declared, tears welling as visions of the land of her birth came to mind, ‘but I am determined to be a good Englishwoman.’ She blinked the tears away. Weir is one of my favorite somewhat inaccurate/casual historians so I'm disappointed in this showing.

Six Tudor Queens: 1-6 Book Bundle - The Works Six Tudor Queens: 1-6 Book Bundle - The Works

This story saddened me deeply with the unjust way in which Katherine was treated. Women were very much at the mercy of the men-folk, and were considered chattels with little or no say in how they led their lives, or what opinions they had. In fact, anyone who had an opinion which did not mirror the King’s met untimely and cruel deaths. Those who remained loyal to Katherine were many, and suffered cruelly for it. What made it even more poignant for me, is that she continue to love Henry until she drew her last breath. It amazes me very much how it is perfectly in line with the true historical facts, let us clarify not only the rise of Henry VIII, the court life, about all the Dukes and Counts that revolve around the figure of the King., but absolutely true are all the epistolary references that we find reported in the book, obviously leaving room for all that romanticized component that keeps the story of Catherine standing up. Bestselling author and acclaimed historian Alison Weir takes on what no fiction writer has done before: creating a dramatic six-book series in which each novel covers one of King Henry VIII's wives. In this captivating opening volume, Weir brings to life the tumultuous tale of Katherine of Aragón. Henry's first, devoted, and "true" queen. Katherine, a Spanish Princess, came to England to marry Arthur of Wales. But she ended up in King Henry VIII’s bed. For a time, Katherine was happy. She was Queen of England and her husband dearly loved her.If you are familiar with Katherine’s life, there is little point in rehashing it here. If you know little about her, then you will find this an engrossing portrait of a women who believed completely in doing her duty. She would never have questioned her parent’s, or later, her husband’s, wishes. She was sent to England to be Queen and she had every intention of carrying out this role to the best of her ability and creating an alliance between England and Spain. So, it makes it even more moving that when Henry decides he wants a divorce that, for once, she digs in her heels and refuses to move over gracefully. Alison Weir è stata bravissima a creare dei dialoghi ricchi di riferimenti storici e culturali, fa parlare Caterina come una vera Regina, o meglio, come una Regina così dotta e sapiente ( così tutti all' epoca la ritenevano) da spingere il lettore ad approfondire qualche avvenimento storico o opera filosofica o umanistica riportata nei dialoghi della Regina. Katherine of Aragon is the paragon of virtue betrothed to Arthur, the Prince of Wales. With his death proceeds the ramifications of the Reformation and the rise and fall of one of the most notorious women in England's history. Six Tudor Queens is the dramatic retelling of King Henry VIII’s affairs with the six women that shaped his reign. The novels are supposed to reimagine King Henry VIII’s most trying years from the perspective of these women whose lives he essentially ruined.

Six’: How Tudor Queens Turned Into Pop Stars The Making of ‘Six’: How Tudor Queens Turned Into Pop Stars

La vita a corte viene descritta molto bene, ma non saranno mai gli intrighi messi come fulcro di questo libro, .. ma il dolore straziante di questi due sposi, che pur amandosi tantissimo, si proprio così..... Enrico amava alla follia Caterina, non riuscirono mai piu a ritrovarsi a causa di questi impedimenti, l'assenza di un erede maschio al trono e il terrore di aver disobbedito a Dio avendo sposato la moglie di suo fratello. This series hinges on King Henry’s determination to sire an heir. The Six Tudor Queens series takes readers to a time when England had fallen into and survived a series of Civil Wars, the result of many a messy conflict over the subject of inheritance. As we view everything through Katherine’s eyes, Henry VIII is portrayed in a mainly positive light, no matter how reprehensible his behaviour. It would have been interesting to have witnessed the frustration he must have felt towards her; however Weir resists the temptation to stray from her remit. King Henry VIII spends the Six Tudor Queens series determined to steer his kingdom clear of further strife. And he believes that a male heir will permit him to do just that. In fact, even though Anne Boleyn’s beauty ultimately stole Henry’s love away from his first wife, it was Katherine’s inability to give him a male heir that first fractured their relationship.And a good one. Alison Weir thoroughly immerses us in the world of Katherine, her household, her retinues and routines, her high and low fortunes. We are with her every step of the way as she lives through the disappointment of her marriage to Arthur, as she floats through the glorious first years of her marriage to Henry, as she slowly becomes beaten down, small defeat by large, when Henry finds Anne, leaves Katherine, and splits Christendom in two in his quest to satisfy his desire to have a male heir. By the end of the book, it's quite easy for the reader to loathe both Henry and Anne as Katherine suffers repeated bouts of ill health, living in constant fear from the specter of poisoning hanging over both her and her daughter, Mary's, heads. Each illness of Mary's fills the reader with the same pangs of terror as it does Katherine, despite knowing that Mary survives these years of hell, years which imprint on her character indelibly.