"Queen Elizabeth II is the longest-reigning British monarch. Discover more engaging details of her life and how she brought the royal family into the twenty-first century"--

This essential reference is a concise, accessible guide to the great dynasties of English royalty. The collection of biographical sketches encompasses the period from the establishment of monarchical power by the early Norman kings through the reign of Elizabeth II. This updated edition includes a new essay describing the recently tumultuous reign of the Windsors. Included are details of the weddings of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, and of...

Surprised to discover that there was no modern biography of the first Tudor queen and mother of the infamous Henry VIII, Alison Weir has written the first in-depth, engaging book about this woman who was born a York but died a Tudor. Daughter of the last Yorkish king, sister to the murdered princes in the tower, and wife of the first Tudor king, Elizabeth of York's life formed a bridge between the end of the House of York and the beginning of the...

The life of Princess May of Teck is one of the great Cinderella stories in history. From a family of impoverished nobility, she was chosen by Queen Victoria as the bride for her eldest grandson, the scandalous Duke of Clarence, heir to the throne, who died mysteriously before their marriage. Despite this setback, she became queen, mother of two kings, grandmother of the current queen, and a lasting symbol of the majesty of the British throne. Her...

"When the Duke of Windsor abdicated the throne in 1936, his shy, uncertain, unprepared younger brother became King. Sally Bedell Smith was granted by Queen Elizabeth II special access to the letters and diaries of George VI and Elizabeth, to tell the story of how their love, devotion, and strong marriage led George VI to overcome insecurities and difficulty speaking and to become an exceptional leader. His wife Elizabeth, a pretty, confident, and...

"Extraordinary. . . . It is a tribute to Starkey's narrative drive, his puckish wit, and sharp discrimination that it doesn't seem a page too long. . . . With each queen, Starkey offers a vivid character study but also has fresh discoveries that subtly alter the picture he started out with." - Sunday Times (London) The dramatic, legendary story of Henry VIII, his six wives, and the England they ruled-told by one of the world's preeminent historians...

"They were the closest of sisters and the best of friends. But when, in a quixotic twist of fate, their uncle Edward Vlll decided to abdicate the throne, the dynamic between Elizabeth and Margaret was dramatically altered. Forever more Margaret would have to curtsey to the sister she called 'Lillibet.' And bow to her wishes. Elizabeth would always look upon her younger sister's antics with a kind of stoical amusement, but Margaret's struggle to find...

Presents the life of Queen Elizabeth I, from her birth to Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn in 1533 and her imprisonment by her half-sister, to her reign as queen, which brought peace, stability, and prosperity to sixteenth-century England.

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Around the year 1049, William, Duke of Normandy and future conqueror of England, raced to the palace of Baldwin V, Count of Flanders. The count’s eldest daughter, Matilda, had refused William’s offer of marriage and publicly denounced him as a bastard. Encountering the young woman, William furiously dragged her to the ground by her hair and beat her mercilessly. Matilda’s outraged father...

"The official companion to the Masterpiece presentation on PBS, Victoria delves into the private writings of the young Queen Victoria, painting a vivid picture of the personal life of one of Englands greatest monarchs. From the producers of Poldark and Endeavour, ITVs Victoria follows the early years of the young queens reign, based closely on Victorias own letters and journals. Now explore this extensive collection in greater depth, and discover...