Even by the age of nine, the young Lady Margaret Beaufort's desire was to save England. Her idol was the young maiden of OrlΓ©ans, Jeanne d'Arc, who had ridden on her white horse with banners flying in the sunshine to save France. Her imagination, while vivid, could not prepare her for the harsh realities of the world. Like Joan of Arc, Lady Margaret would eventually come to realize that battles and wars are brutish affairs, and victory is not certain.
While her mother might have prepared her better or been kinder, neither Lady Margaret, her mother, or any woman controlled her future. They were "wedded and bedded" and treated like chattels of the lords and masters whose political interests were paramount. Despite this, this young, unprepared girl, with little training and skills, managed to learn to ride into her future and outwit the men who blocked her way.
Heavily sustained by her faith and her personal conviction of God's will, Lady Margaret insisted her son have a king's name as she never wavered in her belief that he would be King. One day, she would be the King's Mother, Margaret Regina, and could do what she wanted! Despite barely seeing her son for most of his young life, Henry Tudor and his future were never far from her thoughts. She plotted, conspired, and formed alliances to thwart her Yorkist enemies and bring about the future she had envisioned.
The renowned historian and storyteller, Philippa Gregory, has written a poignant and enthralling account of a lonely, pious, and bitter woman who was never allowed to marry for love. A woman who, through her unwavering devotion, ruthless alliances, and plotting, was able to secure a future for her son. Told in the first person, Gregory pulls you into this tender young girl's heart, and we experience her life and emotions as never told before. This incredibly engrossing account is a terrific read on its own, however, I am sure the reader will find it even more satisfying when read with the first book, The White Queen, in Gregory's newest series, The Cousins' War (the original name for the famous "War of the Roses" between the Houses of Lancaster and York). Whether you are a lover of English history or not, this is an amazing story you will not want to miss!
Heiress to the red rose of Lancaster, Margaret Beaufort never surrenders her belief that her house is the true ruler of England and that she has a great destiny before her. Her ambitions are disappointed when her sainted cousin Henry VI fails to recognize her as a kindred spirit, and she is even more dismayed when he sinks into madness. Her mother mocks her plans, revealing that Margaret will always be burdened with the reputation of her father, one of the most famously incompetent English commanders in France. But worst of all for Margaret is when she discovers that her mother is sending her to a loveless marriage in remote Wales.
Married to a man twice her age, quickly widowed, and a mother at only fourteen, Margaret is determined to turn her lonely life into a triumph. She sets her heart on putting her son on the throne of England regardless of the cost to herself, to England, and even to the little boy. Disregarding rival heirs and the overwhelming power of the York dynasty, she names him Henry, like the king; sends him into exile; and pledges him in marriage to her enemy Elizabeth of Yorkβs daughter. As the political tides constantly move and shift, Margaret charts her own way through another loveless marriage, treacherous alliances, and secret plots. She feigns loyalty to the usurper Richard III and even carries his wifeβs train at her coronation.
Widowed a second time, Margaret marries the ruthless, deceitful Thomas, Lord Stanley, and her fate stands on the knife edge of his will. Gambling her life that he will support her, she then masterminds one of the greatest rebellions of the timeβall the while knowing that her son has grown to manhood, recruited an army, and now waits for his opportunity to win the greatest prize.
In a novel of conspiracy, passion, and coldhearted ambition, number one bestselling author Philippa Gregory has brought to life the story of a proud and determined woman who believes that she alone is destined, by her piety and lineage, to shape the course of history.
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