<![CDATA[Katherine Swynford]]>

false <![CDATA[Katherine Swynford]]>

499712

In her remarkable new book, Alison Weir recounts one of the greatest love stories of medieval England. It is the extraordinary tale of an exceptional woman, Katherine Swynford, who became first the mistress and later the wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster.<br><br>Katherine Swynford’s charismatic lover was one of the most powerful princes of the 14th century, the effective ruler of England behind the throne of his father Edward III in his declining years, and during the minority of his nephew, Richard ll. Katherine herself was enigmatic and intriguing, renowned for her beauty, and regarded by some as dangerous. Her existence was played out against the backdrop of court life at the height of the age of chivalry and she knew most of the great figures of the time — including her brother-in-law, Geoffrey Chaucer. She lived through much of the Hundred Years War, the Black Death, and the Peasants’ Revolt. She knew loss, adversity, and heartbreak, and she survived them all triumphantly. Although Katherine’s story provides unique insights into the life of a medieval woman, she was far from typical in that age. She was an important person in her own right, a woman who had remarkable opportunities, made her own choices, flouted convention, and took control of her own destiny — even of her own public image. <br><br>Weir brilliantly retrieves Katherine Swynford from the footnotes of history and gives her life and breath again. Perhaps the most dynastically important woman within the English monarchy, she was the mother of the Beauforts and through them the ancestress of the Yorkist kings, the Tudors, the Stuarts, and every other sovereign since — a legacy that has shaped the history of Britain.

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Katherine Swynford

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I read the Anya Seton book, and I knew it probably wasn't quite like that, so when I saw a book on Katherine Swinford I may have pounced on it. I hav...more...]]> 4 2 false false Mon Mar 02 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Oct 29 06:43:03 -0700 2008 Tue Mar 03 11:28:13 -0800 2009 Katherine is a more satisfying read, for all its inaccuracies.

Apparently very little is actually known about Katherine, an...more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Jan 26 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 05 07:32:21 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 26 01:12:47 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 2 false false Tue Mar 10 13:54:14 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 10 14:02:19 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 2 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Sep 17 21:26:13 -0700 2007 Fri Oct 19 15:43:42 -0700 2007 Anya Seton's wonderful novel on 14th Century England, Katherine. In fact, Weir admits she likes the novel - although she doesn't hesitate to let you know what's historically inaccurate about it.

Katherine lived in interesting times...more...]]> 1 1 false false Sun Apr 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Apr 06 10:40:38 -0700 2009 Sun Apr 26 19:30:13 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Thu Feb 14 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 08 20:37:58 -0800 2008 Sat Feb 16 22:38:20 -0800 2008
I ended up with a much clearer sense of John of Gaunt, Henry IV and Edward III. Which is fine, but not what was intended.

So, do I recommend it? If you have an interest in ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jul 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 19:07:08 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 19:18:36 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Apr 18 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 18 19:09:15 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 18 19:09:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1 0 false false Fri Oct 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 04 11:18:12 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 11:29:43 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Nov 05 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 02 21:40:57 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 11 13:45:48 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Mar 05 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 06 09:29:03 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 06 09:36:08 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Mar 22 12:49:47 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 22 12:53:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Jun 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Jan 25 11:51:03 -0800 2009 Wed Jun 10 08:48:35 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jun 25 21:29:33 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 13 10:20:55 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 25 21:29:33 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun May 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 12 02:11:09 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 12 02:14:17 -0700 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Sat Oct 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 29 13:40:31 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 03 09:30:13 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jun 02 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 10 23:04:32 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 03 14:56:08 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Feb 03 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 25 17:19:34 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 25 17:25:06 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 04 20:34:13 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 04 20:36:44 -0800 2009 The author is very detailed oriented, and there was much ...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=499712