When the 15-year-old Henrietta Maria, daughter of Henri IV of France and Marie de Medici, arrived in England in June 1625 to marry Charles I, she could not speak English. She discovered her future husband to be short, puny, stiff in manner, who spoke with a stammer. Within months, Henrietta was at odds with both her new husband and his country, because of her Frenchness, Catholicism, extravagance and her refusal to be crowned at the Protestant coronation ceremony. However, Charles turned to his wife following the assassination of his favourite, the Duke of Buckingham, and the next ten years were the happiest of Henrietta's life. Her loyalty and personal bravery saw her stand by him during the Civil War: she tried to sell her jewels to raise money and supplies and lead a force of 5000 men from York to Oxford. When she became pregnant, she escaped to France - running the gauntlet of a blockade - where she tried to persuade other countries to come to Charles's aid. This study of the passionate and courageous wife of Charles I also details the life of the Court during the great age of court patronage.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Hardcover
Queen Henrietta Maria, the Queen Consort of Charles II and mother of Charles II and James II, is quite difficult to assess. One on hand she was - after a bumpy start - the beloved wife of the King and a loyal companion in all his troubles, on the other hand her being a Catholic and quite sticking to it did nothing to help to improve the situation. One can admire her determination to support the King while her - may one call it undiplomatic behavior - can only be critized.
Alison Plowdon has presented the reader with a great study of this Queen and she manage to stir the reader through the difficult times, separating her different roles and looking into the real influence she had on her husband. Quite astonishing results - her influence was not that great to shape the policies, but she provided the emotional suppot the King needed and help to implement the policies. She just being there and being a Catholic was the problem for many Protestants. It is quite difficult to blame her for being herself. It was the King's rather unfortunate choice of a wife. But she could have been more sensitiv , calming tensions instead of pouring oil into the fire.
Alison Plowden looks behind the rather flattering Van Dyck portraits and the vicious Roundhead propaganda. One gets a feeling for the real Henrietta Maria. There is more understanding for her, but I can not say that I liked her. But the book is a very good read and makes one re-assess this Queen Consort.
Alison Plowdon has presented the reader with a great study of this Queen and she manage to stir the reader through the difficult times, separating her different roles and looking into the real influence she had on her husband. Quite astonishing results - her influence was not that great to shape the policies, but she provided the emotional suppot the King needed and help to implement the policies. She just being there and being a Catholic was the problem for many Protestants. It is quite difficult to blame her for being herself. It was the King's rather unfortunate choice of a wife. But she could have been more sensitiv , calming tensions instead of pouring oil into the fire.
Alison Plowden looks behind the rather flattering Van Dyck portraits and the vicious Roundhead propaganda. One gets a feeling for the real Henrietta Maria. There is more understanding for her, but I can not say that I liked her. But the book is a very good read and makes one re-assess this Queen Consort.
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
This study of the life of Henrietta Maria gives the reader a clear picture of the period leading up to and including the English Civil War. The book is very strong on the Queen's political influence (or lack of it), and many long-held misconceptions are exploded. the same clarity extends to the tensions and intrigues surrounding the various factions at Court. The Queen comes across well, and Ms. Plowden remains objective in her assessment of Henrietta's faults.
I personally found this a very enjoyable read, although I was left with the impression that the biography could have easily been half as long again at least. I would have liked to learn more about the Queen's relationship with her husband and children, for example, and about daily life at Court before and during the war - how did female courtiers react to Henrietta? What was her relationship with her friends based on; what made them like her?
I personally found this a very enjoyable read, although I was left with the impression that the biography could have easily been half as long again at least. I would have liked to learn more about the Queen's relationship with her husband and children, for example, and about daily life at Court before and during the war - how did female courtiers react to Henrietta? What was her relationship with her friends based on; what made them like her?
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Catholic Queen of the English Revolution
26 May 2004
By K. Maxwell
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Henrietta Maria, Princess of France, is known to history as the very Catholic Queen of Charles 1st of England. She came to England as a teenager and married a man dominated by his favourite, the Duke of Buckingham. It looked like a marriage doomed to years of unhappiness. However, that all changed when the Duke was killed and Charles transferred his affections to his wife. They formed a bond of friendship and love that was to last the rest of their lives. In a fairy tale this would be the "happily ever after" scenario.
However, reality took a turn of the worse eventually and Henrietta's staunch and very public Catholicism in a deeply Protestant country was to cause the royal couple much anguish in the years to come as England descended into a civil war where Henrietta lost nearly everything she loved.
This book chronicles a life of great changes and a watershed in English history. At times the snippets of letters quoted between Charles and Henrietta are strangely reminiscent of those of Nicholas and Alexandra in the Russian Revolution. Plowden has produced a biography that is easy to read, but not especially academic in tone. It sticks to the subject of Henrietta and does not get diverted into other lives except as they impacted on hers. If you are after an accessible, modern history of Henrietta's life then this is probably the book you are after. However, if you are after an academic book quoted entirely from sources within Henrietta's lifetime you will probably be disappointed.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty informative biography on Henrietta Maria
10 Jun 2006
By lordhoot
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Not much have been written about the uncrowned queen of Charles I of England. That make this very readable biography on Henrietta Maria a welcome addition to any library on English history.
The book appears to be well researched, well written and it don't burden you down with overwhelming amount of information. It was nevertheless, quite informative and interesting. Many aspects of Henrietta Maria and her marriage to Charles I came to light. This marriage proves to be work of gradual evolution for Henrietta Maria as she tries to adapt and adjust ever so slowly as a role of wife, friend and queen. The author made this the key element of the book as it was the key element of Henrietta Maria's life. The book appears to be geared toward the novice to intermediate level reader of English history. It may be a relief that this book wasn't covered with footnotes, annotated sources and all that. Alison Plowden who happened to have many biographies under her belt, wrote a very readable book about someone not well known by the reading public.
As previously noted, the book doesn't sway far from the subject. It centered strongly around Henrietta Maria and her activities. All elements outside of her sphere remains outside the areas of this book. Even the English Civil War and trial of her husband which resulted in his beheading got a superficial treatment. This proves to be both the strength and the weakness of the book itself.
Thus the book come highly recommended.
The book appears to be well researched, well written and it don't burden you down with overwhelming amount of information. It was nevertheless, quite informative and interesting. Many aspects of Henrietta Maria and her marriage to Charles I came to light. This marriage proves to be work of gradual evolution for Henrietta Maria as she tries to adapt and adjust ever so slowly as a role of wife, friend and queen. The author made this the key element of the book as it was the key element of Henrietta Maria's life. The book appears to be geared toward the novice to intermediate level reader of English history. It may be a relief that this book wasn't covered with footnotes, annotated sources and all that. Alison Plowden who happened to have many biographies under her belt, wrote a very readable book about someone not well known by the reading public.
As previously noted, the book doesn't sway far from the subject. It centered strongly around Henrietta Maria and her activities. All elements outside of her sphere remains outside the areas of this book. Even the English Civil War and trial of her husband which resulted in his beheading got a superficial treatment. This proves to be both the strength and the weakness of the book itself.
Thus the book come highly recommended.
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