Elizabeth's Bedfellows
An Intimate History of the Queen's Court
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Narrated by:
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Susannah Tyrrell
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By:
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Anna Whitelock
About this listen
Elizabeth I acceded to the throne in 1558, restoring the Protestant faith to England. At the heart of the new queen's court lay Elizabeth's bedchamber, closely guarded by the favoured women who helped her dress, looked after her jewels and shared her bed. Elizabeth’s private life was of public, political concern. Her bedfellows were witnesses to the face and body beneath the make-up and elaborate clothes, as well as to rumoured illicit dalliances with such figures as Robert Dudley. Their presence was for security as well as propriety, as the kingdom was haunted by fears of assassination plots and other Catholic subterfuge. For such was the significance of the queen's body: it represented the very state itself. This riveting, revealing history of the politics of intimacy uncovers the feminized world of the Elizabethan court. Between the scandal and intrigue the women who attended the queen were the guardians of the truth about her health, chastity and fertility. Their stories offer extraordinary insight into the daily life of the Elizabethans, the fragility of royal favour and the price of disloyalty.
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Story
The Plantagenet queens of England played a role in some of the most dramatic events in our history. Crusading queens, queens in rebellion against their king, queen seductresses, learned queens, queens in battle, queens who enlivened England with the romantic culture of southern Europe - these determined women often broke through medieval constraints to exercise power and influence, for good and sometimes for ill.
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A real Masterpiece!
- By Amazon Customer on 03-30-21
By: Alison Weir
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Henry VIII
- By: Abigail Archer
- Narrated by: Sarah Nichols
- Length: 3 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Henry VIII ruled England from 1509 to 1547. As a young man, he was fond of sports and hunting and was said to be uncommonly handsome. Standing more than six feet tall, he loomed large in the lives and minds of his subjects as he navigated his country through the tricky diplomatic and military hazards of the 16th century.
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WASTE OF TIME
- By The Louligan on 09-04-20
By: Abigail Archer
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The Turbulent Crown
- The Story of the Tudor Queens
- By: Roland Hui
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 22 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Ten remarkable women. One remarkable era. In the Tudor period, 1485 to 1603, a host of fascinating women sat on the English throne. The dramatic events of their lives are told in The Turbulent Crown: The Story of the Tudor Queens.
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a very good listen
- By Evil Guppy on 09-21-19
By: Roland Hui
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Bloody Mary
- By: Carolly Erickson
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 23 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Here is the tragic, stormy life of Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon. Her story is a chronicle of courage and faith, betrayal and treachery - set amidst the splendor, pageantry, squalor, and intrigue of 16th-century Europe. The history of Mary Tudor is an improbable blend of triumph, humiliation, heartbreak, and devotion - and Ms. Erickson recounts it all against the turbulent background of European politics, war, and religious strife of the mid-1500s.
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A good history
- By A. Barrios on 05-21-15
By: Carolly Erickson
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Elizabeth and Mary
- Cousins, Rivals, Queens
- By: Jane Dunn
- Narrated by: Donada Peters
- Length: 19 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
In a rich and riveting narrative, Jane Dunn reveals the extraordinary rivalry between the regal cousins. It is the story of two queens ruling on one island, each with a claim to the throne of England, each embodying dramatically opposing qualities of character, ideals of womanliness (and views of sexuality), and divinely ordained kingship.
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Fantastic book
- By Catharina on 05-09-04
By: Jane Dunn
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Mistress Anne
- The Exceptional Life of Anne Boleyn
- By: Carolly Erickson
- Narrated by: Simon Prebble
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
A powerful ruler, an alluring young woman, a scandal that would rock the nation: Anne Boleyn’s life story sounds more like a juicy TV docu-drama than a chapter of English history. Although she is not of noble birth or even especially beautiful, Anne Boleyn manages to rise to the very pinnacle of the English aristocracy. Renowned for her extraordinarily vivid recreations of historical events, Carolly Erickson brings out the full fascinating story of the enigmatic Anne Boleyn.
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Just OK for me.
- By Amazon Customer on 01-11-12
By: Carolly Erickson
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Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him
- The Secret History Behind the Tudor Throne
- By: Tracy Borman
- Narrated by: Julie Teal
- Length: 17 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Henry VIII is best known in history for his tempestuous marriages and the fates of his six wives. However, as acclaimed historian Tracy Borman makes clear in her illuminating new chronicle of Henry’s life, his reign and reputation were hugely influenced by the men who surrounded and interacted with him as companions and confidants, servants and ministers, and occasionally as rivals - many of whom have been underplayed in previous biographies.
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Exceptional.
- By bigdjunta on 08-02-19
By: Tracy Borman
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Sister Queens
- The Noble, Tragic Lives of Katherine of Aragon and Juana, Queen of Castile
- By: Julia Fox
- Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
- Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
The history books have cast Katherine of Aragon, the first queen of King Henry VIII of England, as the ultimate symbol of the Betrayed Woman, cruelly tossed aside in favor of her husband’s seductive mistress, Anne Boleyn. Katherine’s sister, Juana of Castile, wife of Philip of Burgundy and mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, is portrayed as “Juana the Mad,” whose erratic behavior included keeping her beloved late husband’s coffin beside her for years.
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Sad but Fascinating Lives
- By Cariola on 06-29-12
By: Julia Fox
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The Fall of Anne Boleyn
- A Countdown
- By: Claire Ridgway
- Narrated by: Claire Ridgway
- Length: 7 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
During the spring of 1536 in Tudor England, events conspire to bring down Anne Boleyn, the Queen of England. The coup against the Queen results in the brutal executions of six innocent people - Anne Boleyn herself, her brother, and four courtiers - and the rise of a new Queen. Drawing on 16th-century letters, eye witness accounts, and chronicles, Claire Ridgway leads the listener through the sequence of chilling events one day at a time, telling the true story of Anne Boleyn's fall.
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Fascinating, well researched, and great narration.
- By Katherine K. Carlisle on 01-19-16
By: Claire Ridgway
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The Betrayal of Mary, Queen of Scots
- Elizabeth I and Her Greatest Rival
- By: Kate Williams
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
This is the story of two women struggling for supremacy in a man's world, when no one thought a woman could govern. They both had to negotiate with men - those who wanted their power and those who wanted their bodies - who were determined to best them. In their worlds, female friendship and alliances were unheard of, but for many years theirs was the only friendship that endured. They were as fascinated by each other as lovers; until they became enemies. Enemies so angry and broken that one of them had to die, and so Elizabeth ordered the execution of Mary.
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Doe Eyed Mary Stuart
- By Missee on 02-28-19
By: Kate Williams