Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury 1473-1541: Loyalty, Lineage and Leadership [Paperback]

Hazel Pierce (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 2009

In this first biography of a significant female figure in the male-dominated world of British Tudor politics, Hazel Pierce reconsiders the life and martyrdom of Catholic duchess Margaret Pole against the changing social and political landscape of her times. Pole, niece of both Edward IV and Richard III, was the only woman apart from Anne Boleyn to hold a peerage in her own right during the sixteenth century, and this important contribution to medieval scholarship provides a matchless understanding of aristocratic women during that time period, as well as new interpretations of Henry VIII and his relationship with the nobility.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A vivid and scholarly evocation of . . . politics in the Tudor period." -- The Catholic Herald --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Hazel Pierce is a historian and member of the Royal Historical Society who has published widely on fifteen- and sixteenth-century British history.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: University of Wales Press; Revised edition (April 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0708321895
• ISBN-13: 978-0708321898
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,448,416 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Too Near the Throne, April 7, 2009

By 

Stephanie A. Mann (Wichita, KS USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury 1473-1541: Loyalty, Lineage and Leadership (Paperback)

This is an excellent biography: Hazel Pierce does not speculate, she does not dramatize, she does not invent emotion or try to read her subject's mind and heart. She just tells the story of this magnificent woman's fascinating life.
Link to Plantagenet England, friend and confidant of Catherine of Aragon, godmother and governess to Princess Mary, mother of Reginald Pole, future Archbishop of Canterbury, Margaret Pole was the richest woman in England, with lands and houses in her own name. From being favored by Henry VIII she fell to being imprisoned in the Tower of London, losing all her holdings; one son executed, another son exiled, she was unjustly condemned and horribly executed. She was not even legally tried, and was given an hour's notice of her death.
Winston Churchill summed up Henry VIII's reign with the sad commentary on the failure of the once great promise of the Renaissance prince, noting the executions of queens (Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard), chancellors (Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell), a holy bishop (Fisher) and numerous monks and abbots (Richard Houghton and the Carthusians; Richard Whiting and the monks at Glastonbury), and 'almost every member of the nobility in whom royal blood ran'--Margaret Pole was one of those nobles. Hazel Pierce ensures that she is known for more than being one of Henry VIII's victims.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Scholarly and well written, but...,, June 25, 2009

By 

cyberpiglet "cyberpiglet" (Coudersport, PA USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury 1473-1541: Loyalty, Lineage and Leadership (Paperback)

this is actually more of a group biography of the Pole family than a biography of Margaret. In fact, Margaret disappears for long portions of the text while the focus shifts to the lives of her sons. It seems that Pierce has chosen the poitical dealings of the family during the time of Henry VIII's "great matter" as her main thrust here - which is fine, but I wish the book had been presented as such. As Margaret was, for a time, a major court figure and governess to the Princess Mary, I was hoping for a book that would focus more on those aspects of her life - which are examined only briefly. This is a wonderful book for one who is interested in the history of the Pole family, but less than satisfying for one whose major interest is women of the Tudor era.