Background
She was born at Quetta in India, a descendant of both Edmund Plowden and Henry Chichele.
( This volume gives an account of the women both behind t...)
This volume gives an account of the women both behind the scenes and at the forefront of 16th-century English history, including Mary Tudor, Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots, and Henry VIII's six wives. The women of the royal family are the central characters; what they ate, how they dressed, the books they read, and the letters they wrote are all addressed. Yet even the greatest of these women suffered the universal legal and physiological disabilities of womanhood, and while some triumphed over them, others went under.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750928808/?tag=2022091-20
(This is the concluding part of Alison Plowden's biography...)
This is the concluding part of Alison Plowden's biography. It presents Elizabeth I at the peak of her form - tough, vigorous and autocratic, her appetite for the pleasures and problems of life seemingly unquenchable.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750921986/?tag=2022091-20
(A study of the lives of the six princesses of the House o...)
A study of the lives of the six princesses of the House of Stuart who lived through the violent social and political upheavals of the 17th century. Of the six, one was the direct ancestress of the present British royal family, one was the mother of a king of England and one died in prison.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750932384/?tag=2022091-20
( "I delight in this work," wrote the young Victoria shor...)
"I delight in this work," wrote the young Victoria shortly after she became Queen. She was an engaging creature, high-spirited and eager to be 'amused." But her early years were difficult ones. Fatherless from the age of eight months, she was brought up at Kensington Palace in an atmosphere thick with family feuds, backbiting and jealousy—the focus of conflicting ambitions. Though her uncle William IV was anxious to bring her into Court circles, her German mother and the calculating John Conroy were equally determined that she should remain under their control. The 'little Queen," who succeeded to the throne a month after her 18th birthday, was greeted by a unanimous chorus of praise and admiration. She embraced the independence of her position and often forced her will on those around her. She met and married Albert, marking the end of her childhood and the beginning of a glorious legend.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750978570/?tag=2022091-20
(The relationship between Queen Elizabeth I of England and...)
The relationship between Queen Elizabeth I of England and her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots is a complex one, they were united by blood but divided by religion. Championed by continental and underground English Catholics as the rightful Queen of England, Mary was nevertheless given protection by her cousin after she was deposed amid outrage at her immoral behaviour. Rumours of Papist plots revolving around Mary abounded and Elizabeth was put under extreme pressure to be rid of this dangerous threat to her sovereignty and to the Protestant church in England, but it was only after much reluctance and procrastination that Elizabeth finally signed Mary's long-drafted death warrant. The story of their relationship is narrated here, and analyzed. Alison Plowden shows how political fear brought about the worst and the best in the two queens.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750921684/?tag=2022091-20
(Featuring illustrations and personal accounts from both R...)
Featuring illustrations and personal accounts from both Royalist and Parliamentarian supporters, this is the untold story of the women of the English Civil War. The author includes accounts of Queen Henrietta Maria, Mary Bankes and Anne Fairfax alongside the experiences of ordinary women and young girls.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750912219/?tag=2022091-20
( The first volume of Plowden's acclaimed Elizabethan qua...)
The first volume of Plowden's acclaimed Elizabethan quartet charts the first 25 years of Elizabeth's life Alison Plowden's captivating portrait of the young Elizabeth Tudor, bringing to life her many identities as ruler, woman, and politician, is a triumph of narrative history. Elizabeth I is perhaps England's most famous monarch. She was born in 1533, the product of the doomed marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Her mother was condemned as a witch and after her death, Elizabeth was disinherited and finally imprisoned by her jealous half-sister, Mary. Her childhood was one of fear and danger, as she was aware from the outset that the eyes of the world were upon her and that to survive she would have to rely on her own judgment and strength of character. Many tried to use her for their own ends, however she rose out of the shadows and on the death of her sister, she became Gloriana—England's most iconic queen.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0752459430/?tag=2022091-20
(The gathering of intelligence through espionage was an in...)
The gathering of intelligence through espionage was an integral part of diplomacy in 16th-century Europe. Every major state could call on the services of wide-ranging and highly organized networks of spies and informers who penetrated the nooks and crannies of court and chamber. As the sectarian warfare that was ravaging Europe became more deadly, the effective manipulation of intelligence networks became vital, especially in Elizabethan England - a kingdom under threat from continental Catholicism and from the intrigue surrounding Mary Queen of Scots. This book charts the early years of the English secret service as it evolved under the direction of the Elizabethan spymaster, Francis Walsingham, who gained a high reputation for his success in breaking the plots aimed at the subversion of the Elizabethan state.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0710811527/?tag=2022091-20
(Presents a study of life during the Interregnum: the uniq...)
Presents a study of life during the Interregnum: the unique period in England's history, when it was a commonwealth, from 1649-1660. Drawing on contemporary memoirs, diaries, letters, newspapers and state papers, this book aims to reveal what family life, religion
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750918837/?tag=2022091-20
(Written by an established royal biographer, this is a fre...)
Written by an established royal biographer, this is a fresh study of the lives of the six princesses of the House of Stuart who lived through the violent, social and political upheavals of the 17th century. One is the direct ancestress of the present British royal family, one was the mother of a king of England, and one died in prison at the age of 14. Another become Madame de France and two were English queens regent. Elizabeth, daughter of James VI and I, at the age of nine attracted the unwelcome attentions of the Gunpowder plotters, who planned to use her as their puppet queen. Later, she and her husband, Frederick, Count Palatine of the Rhine, were crowned King and Queen of Bohemia in the cathedral at Prague, but within a year - in what was to prove the opening engagement of the Thirty Years War - the Imperial Habsburg army drove them into ignominious flight. Known as the "Winter Queen", Elizabeth bore 13 children - among them the famous Cavalier commander Rupert of the Rhine - while her youngest daughter become the mother of the future King George I. Her brother Charles I and his queen, Henrietta Maria, had three surviving daughters. Mary, the eldest, left England at an early age to be married to the Prince of Orange: her only child would one day be King William III. The second girl, Elizabeth, together with the little Duke of Gloucester, fell into the hands of the Parliamentary party early in the Civil War and they were the only members of the family able to say goodbye to their father on the eve of his execution. Henrietta Anne, or Minette, the youngest child, was smuggled out of England disguised as a boy and brought up as a Catholic at the French court. Pretty, clever and popular, she married the unpleasant brother of Louis XIV and was deeply involved in the secret negotiations leading to the Treaty of Dover, before her tragic death at the age of 26. Mary and Anne, the daughters of James II and his first wife, Anne Hyde, were prudently raised as Protestants by their uncle Charles. Mary shed bitter tears when first presented with her cousin and future husband, William of Orange, but soon fell deeply in love and together the couple ruled England after the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Anne, the last Stuart sovereign, married George of Denmark but, like her sister, failed to produce an heir, thus leaving the way open for the Winter Queen's German grandson.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750916117/?tag=2022091-20
( The relationship between Queen Elizabeth I of England a...)
The relationship between Queen Elizabeth I of England and her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, is one of the most complex, tempestuous and fascinating in history. United in blood but divided by religion, the two women were in some ways uniquely close; in others, poles apart. Championed by English Catholics as the rightful Queen of England, Mary was nevertheless given protection by her cousin after she was deposed amid outrage at her immoral behaviour. Rumours of papist plots involving Mary were rife and Elizabeth was put under extreme pressure to be rid of this dangerous threat to her sovereignty and to the Protestant church in England. After much reluctance and procrastination Elizabeth finally signed Mary's death warrant. Alison Plowden shows how political fear brought out the worst and yet the best in these women, and how history was overshadowed for centuries afterwards.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750932392/?tag=2022091-20
( For most, the name of Lady Jane Grey means the "nine da...)
For most, the name of Lady Jane Grey means the "nine days queen," the child who was used as a pawn in the power politics of the Tudor realm by both her parents and the Northumberlands. This volume tells the tragic story of Jane's life and death, but also reveals her to be a woman of unusual strength of conviction with an intelligence and steady faith beyond her years. It also provides insight into the least known of Henry VIII's wives, Katherine Parr.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750937696/?tag=2022091-20
(ThelLives of Caroline of Brunswick and Princess Charlotte...)
ThelLives of Caroline of Brunswick and Princess Charlotte of Wales. Tells the story of the two fiercely independent women using a wealth of contemporary correspondence, memoirs, journals and press reportage Illustrated with 24 black and white plates.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0283994894/?tag=2022091-20
(Caroline of Brunswick, wife of George Prince of Wales and...)
Caroline of Brunswick, wife of George Prince of Wales and Prince Regent, and her daughter, Princess Charlotte, lived out their lives surrounded by a cast of characters who might have been lifted straight from the pages of some Gothic novel. Theirs was a saga of passion and pathos, tragedy and black comedy, feuding and fighting - all set in Regency England against a backdrop of Europe in turmoil. The marriage of the Prince of Wales - renowned for his intemperance, hedonism and plain ordinary selfishness - to his cousin Caroline of Brunswick in 1795 was a preordained disaster. The groom is said to have called for brandy when he first laid eyes on the bride, while the bride was later to swear that the groom spent most of their wedding night lying in the grate in a drunken stupor. Brought together for reasons of financial and dynastic expediency, the couple split up within a year of the birth of their daughter, Charlotte Augusta in 1796. The colourful story of these two fiercely dependent and ultimately tragic women is brilliantly told by Alison Plowden, tapping a wealth of contemporary correspondence, journals, memoirs and contemporary press reportage. "Caroline & Charlotte" constitutes a real-life Regency romance which makes gripping and poignant reading.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750941731/?tag=2022091-20
( Elizabeth I is perhaps England's most famous monarch. B...)
Elizabeth I is perhaps England's most famous monarch. Born in 1533, the product of the doomed marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth was heir to her father's title, then disinherited and finally imprisoned by her half sister Mary. But in 1558, on Mary's death, she ascended the throne and reigned for forty-five years. Respected by her subjects and idolised by future generations, Gloriana's fierce devotion to her country and its people truly made her England's fairest queen and icon. In the wake of Reformation Europe lay deeply divided by religion. This, the second volume of Alison Plowden's acclaimed Elizabethan quartet, charts the dramatic and many-faceted struggle between Elizabeth and the Catholics of England and the rest of Europe who, denouncing the queen as a heretic, a bastard and a usurper, threatened to overthrow her and re-establish the supremacy of Rome in all Christendom.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/075092196X/?tag=2022091-20
She was born at Quetta in India, a descendant of both Edmund Plowden and Henry Chichele.
Privately educated, she worked for the British Broadcasting Corporation as a script editors She later recalled: "A secretary writing scripts was a little like a performing monkey at the British Broadcasting Corporation - there was a sort of "Fancy, what a clever little girl" attitude."
In 1970 she decided to leave the British Broadcasting Corporation to go freelance. Her first book, ‘The Young Elizabeth’ (1972), was followed by ‘Danger to Elizabeth’ (1973), ‘Marriage With My Kingdom’ (1977), about Elizabeth"s courtships, and ‘Elizabeth Regina’ (1980), which presented the Queen at the height of her powers.
Collectively these books became known as Alison Plowden"s "Elizabethan Quartet".
While working on this series she also published ‘Tudor Women’ (1979). After the quartet she wrote ‘Elizabethan England: life in an age of adventure’ (1982).
In addition she wrote many drama and other scripts for British Broadcasting Corporation radio between 1963 and 1988. Later she turned her attention to the 19th century with ‘The Young Victoria’ (1983) and ‘Caroline and Charlotte’ (1989), then the Civil War period with ‘The Stuart Princesses’ (1996), about the six princesses of the House of Stuart who lived through the violent upheavals of the 17th century.
This was followed by ‘Women All on Fire’ (1998), about the activities of women on both sides of the Civil War.
One of these women was Queen Henrietta Maria, of whom she published a biography in 2001. She continued with ‘In a Free Republic - life in Cromwell"s England’ (2006) and the last of her 25 books ‘The Winter Queen’ (about Elizabeth Stuart, wife of Frederick V, Elector Palatine who accepted the crown of Bohemia), to be published posthumously in 2008. She was devoted to animal welfare, and shared her home with two cats.
( The first volume of Plowden's acclaimed Elizabethan qua...)
(Caroline of Brunswick, wife of George Prince of Wales and...)
(Written by an established royal biographer, this is a fre...)
( This volume gives an account of the women both behind t...)
( For most, the name of Lady Jane Grey means the "nine da...)
(Featuring illustrations and personal accounts from both R...)
(The relationship between Queen Elizabeth I of England and...)
( The relationship between Queen Elizabeth I of England a...)
(A study of the lives of the six princesses of the House o...)
(Presents a study of life during the Interregnum: the uniq...)
(The gathering of intelligence through espionage was an in...)
( "I delight in this work," wrote the young Victoria shor...)
(ThelLives of Caroline of Brunswick and Princess Charlotte...)
(This is the concluding part of Alison Plowden's biography...)
( Elizabeth I is perhaps England's most famous monarch. B...)
(The Tudor era belongs to its women. No other period of En...)