Anne Boleyn: Fatal Attractions (2010)

Claire at The Anne Boleyn Files offers a great review of the controversial new biography Anne Boleyn: Fatal Attractions, written by Professor G.W. Bernard of the University of Southampton, whose previous works includes the highly pro-Henry VIII book, The King's Reformation.

I am hoping to do a short review of this book myself at some point, but I doubt I will be able to do better than that posted today by Claire on her fantastic website, which recently very kindly featured my article on Anne Boleyn's birth.

There has been some excitement in the British newspapers about there finally being a biography which "proves" Anne Boleyn was guilty of the crimes for which she was put to death in 1536. However, it turns out that the subject-matter of Professor Bernard's book is a good deal less certain than they - or he - would like and he certainly does not argue that she committed incest with her brother, Viscount Rochford.

Claire's conclusion of Anne Boleyn: Fatal Attractions is a very fair one, all things considered: -

"Bernard finishes his book by saying that the Anne Boleyn he has presented is not the Anne who held Henry off for years, who inspired the break with Rome, who had a leading role in the English Reformation and who was the innocent victim of conspiracy. Instead, he explains how he has tried to “recover the historical Anne Boleyn” by reviewing all of the evidence. Although I do not agree with many of his theories, I have to applaud Bernard for his endeavours and for putting together such a good book. I’m glad to say that I can enjoy a book and respect Bernard’s views without agreeing with him. My Anne is still an innocent Anne and a victim of an awful miscarriage of justice."

You can read the full review here.

Did a volcanic eruption in Iceland help cause the French Revolution?

Historical novelist and blogger, Elena Maria Vidal, comments on the theories that a large volcanic eruption in 18th-century Iceland may have helped bring about the French Revolution of 1789.

British Royal Records and Trivia

The Longest-Reigning Sovereign in British history was Queen Victoria, who ruled from the age of eighteen in 1837 until her death at the age of eighty-one in 1901. With a reign of just over 63 years, Victoria narrowly beat the previous record-holder, her grandfather, King George III, who ruled from 1760 until 1820. The longest-reigning monarch in world history was Pepi II, who was Pharaoh of Egypt for 94 years, coming to the throne as a 6 year-old and dying a centenarian.

The Shortest-Reigning Sovereign in British history was Lady Jane Grey (1537 - 1554), who was Queen for just under a fortnight in the summer of 1553. A great-granddaughter of King Henry VII, Jane was pushed onto the throne by her dying cousin, Edward VI, who didn’t want the throne to pass to his Catholic half-sister, Mary Tudor. Jane reluctantly accepted, under pressure from her parents and her religious convictions, but she was overthrown nine days later when Mary, the rightful heiress, seized the throne and Jane was executed a year later, at the age of seventeen.

The Oldest Ruler is the current Sovereign, Queen Elizabeth II (b. 1926), who is 84 years-old. Her Majesty passed the previous record-holder, her great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, in 2007.

The Oldest Member of the Royal Family was the late Queen Mother, mother of the current Queen and widow of King George VI. Born Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1900, the Queen Mother died in 2002, at the age of 101.

The Oldest Royal to come to the Throne in Britain was the Duke of St. Andrews, who became King William IV at the age of 64 in 1830. Nicknamed "Sailor Bill" because of his love of the navy, he was the younger brother of King George IV, who had died childless.

The Youngest Royal to come to the Throne anywhere in the British Isles was Mary, Queen of Scots (1542 - 1587), who became reigning Queen of Scotland at the age of just six days old, following the sudden death of her father, King James V. In England, the record-holder was King Henry VI (1421 - 1471), the son of King Henry V and Queen Catherine de Valois, who came to the throne at the age of only nine months in 1422, following his father's death on military campaign.

The tallest British monarch was King Edward I, who ruled from 1272 to 1307 and who stood at 6ft 3in in height.

The Last Empress of China

The Mad Monarchist's blog carries a very interesting post on the life of the last Empress of China - perhaps best-known to many in the West thanks to the heartbreaking performance of actress Joan Chen in the 1987 movie The Last Emperor (above, on the right.)

The trailer for The Last Emperor can be seen here.

The Northern Ireland Rich List

Despite being one of the smallest parts of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland has always been amongst its wealthiest on average, even during the days of the Troubles. To this day, it apparently has the highest ratio of Mercedes Benz cars to people anywhere in the western world - including Germany.

Lord Belmont in Northern Ireland has posted a list of the Top 10 Richest People in Northern Ireland. Usually, I'm not too interested in the "Rich Lists," but in this case, from the point of view of my novel Popular (published by Penguin, February 2011), the list would apparently place the fictitious Anthony Harper, father of lead character, Meredith, as the fourth richest man in Ulster.

Next Week

A bit like my Holy Week posts, from next week (May 1st) I will be posting on the fall of Anne Boleyn (above), beginning with her last public appearance on May 1st following through to her death on May 19th - covering her arrest, her imprisonment, her trial and the fates of those accused alongside her.

Marie-Antoinette's Adopted Children

American novelist, Elena Maria Vidal, profiles a lesser-known aspect of the private life of Marie-Antoinette, Queen of France, the heroine of Miss Vidal’s first novel, Trianon.

Whilst many people know that Marie-Antoinette and her husband, King Louis XVI, were the parents of four children – Marie-Thérèse (1778 – 1851), Louis-Joséph (1781 – 1789), Louis XVII (1785 – 1795) and Sophie-Hélène (1786 – 1787) – few know that the Queen actually adopted several impoverished children and their story is told here on Elena Maria Vidal’s superb blog, Tea at Trianon.