Review - Margaret Tudor - Two Lives

I have now read two recent and separate accounts of the life of Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots, Princess of England - the "other Tudor Princess".

The first, about a year ago, was by Sarah-Beth Watkins - Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots: The Life of King Henry VIII’s Sister - and the second, just recently, by Melanie Clegg - Margaret Tudor: The Life of Henry VIII's Sister.

Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots - Sarah-Beth Watkins

I would view this as an entry level biography, which gives us a glimpse into her early life as a Tudor princess; her struggles as Queen of Scotland and then as regent for her young son, James V; her failed marriages; constant political struggles between England & Scotland; and ultimately, her fight to ensure her son gained his inheritance.

These were turbulent times and would be even more so for an inexperienced young woman thrust upon the political scene, viewed with suspicion by both her new country and the land she left behind.

Watkins concludes with a wrap of the fate of her children and her legacy - which resulted in the marriage of Mary Queen of Scots to her cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, thus uniting the two lines of descent from her.

It is a small tome - which no doubt could have been bulked out with descriptions of people and places, her wardrobe and a history of the times, but we would still not get anything of Margaret herself - so I am glad this was not done.  In the end, Margaret's life is spent in the shadows of the men in her life: father, husband, brother, son.

Margaret Tudor by Melanie Clegg

This time we begin with the accession of Henry VII, Margaret's father, to the throne of England, before moving onto Margaret's childhood and betrothal aged 7yo to the 23yo James IV of Scotland. In this tome, we are treated to a more indepth study of the Tudor court and household as a whole - and how certain events touched upon Margaret - so there is a lot on her siblings.

What did become evident, was how very similar the events surrounding her own betrothal and marriage mirrored those of her sister-in-law Katherine of Aragon: the haggling over dowry, the delays, the on again / off again political manouevring from both James IV and Henry VII; and later, the pregnancies, miscarriages, and loss of babies, whilst surrounded by her husband's litter of illegitimate offspring.

Once in Scotland, Margaret's troubles did not end - the constant animosity between her husband and her brother, both wanting her loyalty, whilst simultaneously being viewed with suspicion and distrust.  Following the death of James at Flodden (1513), Margaret, barely 23yo, finds herself ill-equipped to deal with the pressure and political intricacies required to fend off both internal rivals and her own brother during the regency of her infant son, James V.  A disastrous foray into an ill-conceived second marriage did not make for easy bedfellows of the Scottish nobility.  And even when able to shake off the shackles of this failed marriage, and seeing her son finally consecrated as King, she embarks on a third marriage, which pretty much ends up like the previous.

What this tome does do is gives us the young Margaret - petulant, fond of getting her own way, desirous of being the centre of attention, and casting her into a role where she is merely a powerless  figurehead.  Her struggles for recognition as was her due as Dowager Queen show that a woman's lot, no matter what her status, can be a hard one: one bad marriage can result in the loss of status, income, children, where you are left literally begging for support whilst ignored by both your own family and adoptive country, leaving you alone and embittered, casting around for allies that do not always her you interests at heart.

I think that is what the reader will take away most from this - that the grass is not always greener on the other side, and the fairy tale of being princess and queen does in reality, not always have a happy ending.

Both tomes are well written and well researched, and are recommended as a good entree into the world of one of the lesser documented of the Tudor princesses.

More on Margaret:

Queen Margaret Tudor: The Story of a Courageous But Forgotten Monarch by Stuart McCabe

Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots by Patricia Hill Buchanan

The Rose and the Thorn: The Lives of Mary and Margaret Tudor by Nancy Lenz Harvey

The Thistle and the Rose - The Sisters of Henry VIII by Hester W. Chapman

Review: The Forgotten Queen

When most talk of the Tudors, the focus is usually on Henry VIII, his six wives, and his children.  Often forgotten are the siblings of Henry VIII, in this instance, his elder sister, Margaret.

Margaret was married to James IV, King of Scotland, and her offspring and their offspring, would make an indelible impact upon the political reigns of Henry and his children, notably that of Elizabeth I.

So, it was with this in mind that I was curious to see how Margaret would be portrayed in this fictional account of her life, The Forgotten Queen by DL Bogdan.

"From her earliest days, Margaret Tudor knows she will not have the luxury of choosing a husband. Her duty is to gain alliances for England. Barely out of girlhood, Margaret is married by proxy to James IV and travels to Edinburgh to become Queen of Scotland."

Margaret's story is told in the first person narrative - so we are really hearing Margaret's story from her own perspective.  This form of story-telling is, I guess, an attempt to make the reader more empathetic towards the main character, who in this instance is selfish, petulant, childish, rude and egotistic.  Whilst this behaviour is understandable in a very young woman who is married off to a complete stranger in a foreign country for purely political reasons, it wears thin as Margaret ages.  Something else that really puts me off is the attempt at native dialects - it detracts from my reading pleasure.

Margaret's real story is an exciting read - this woman was a true survivor of the politics of her day.  

Further Reading:

• Margaret Tudor on wikipedia
• Queen Margaret Tudor: The Story of a Courageous but Forgotten Monarch by Stuart McCabe
• The Sisters of Henry VIII: Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scotland (November 1489-October 1541), Mary Tudor, Queen of France and Duchess of Suffolk (March 1496-June 1533) by Hester W. Chapman
• The Thistle and the Rose: The Sisters of Henry VIII. by Hester Chapman
• Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots by Patricia Hill Buchanan
• The Sisters Of Henry VIII: The Tumultuous Lives Of Margaret Of Scotland And Mary Of France by Maria Perry
• King Harry's sister, Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scotland by Michael Glenne
• The rose and the thorn: the lives of Mary and Margaret Tudor by Nancy Lenz Harvey