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61st out of 395 books
—
141 voters
Lady Jane Grey: A Tudor Mystery
by
Eric Ives
Lady Jane Grey, is one of the most elusive and tragic characters in English history.In July 1553 the death of the childless Edward VI threw the Tudor dynasty into crisis. On Edward's instructions his cousin Jane Grey was proclaimed queen, only to be ousted 13 days later by his illegitimate half sister Mary and later beheaded. In this radical reassessment, Eric Ives rejects...more
Hardcover, 367 pages
Published
October 12th 2009
by Wiley-Blackwell
(first published September 25th 2009)
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Would have given this a four and a half stars if available. No five because of the last chapter dealing with the treatment of Lady Jane Grey in the centuries following her death in the popular culture. Why do these scholarly authors think they need to throw that in at the end? Eric Ives is so respected, wrote an excellent book on the subject but still felt compelled to discuss that. Too weird.
Okay, for the text of the book. Ives gives strong evidence to support his theories of why Lady Jane beca...more
Okay, for the text of the book. Ives gives strong evidence to support his theories of why Lady Jane beca...more
Eric Ives is nothing if not thorough. The short queenship (not 9 days, incidentally) of Lady Jane Grey is explored from nearly every possible vantage point - exhaustively so. The book puts forth some interesting ideas about power and motivation behind what he Ives deems "The Rebellion of Mary Tudor," but on the whole has disappointingly little to say about either her or even Lady Jane Grey herself. Jane the Queen doesn't really emerge as a person until the final few chapters. Perhaps "Northumber...more
I've read many books on the Tudor times, but haven't read much on Lady Jane. She was undoubtedly a victim of the politics and manipulations of her era. Crowned queen against her wishes, she was declared a Pretender to the Throne by her own cousin, Mary I, and executed aged just 17. She was a highly intelligent girl, fluent in several languages, and very passionate about her religion.
Dignified to the end, she has long been just a bit-player in all books on the Tudors. This brings Lady Jane Grey t...more
Dignified to the end, she has long been just a bit-player in all books on the Tudors. This brings Lady Jane Grey t...more
Lady Jane Grey: A Tudor Mystery, written by Eric Ives, is a tough book for me to review. Jane Grey, follows Eleanor of Aquitaine in my list of favorite Queens of England. And yet, when it comes to Jane Grey, little is mentioned of her in most books on the English Monarchy, and she is completely omitted from the pages of others. So, it was exciting to find this book on Jane.
Unlike many women of the 1550's, Jane was very well educated. She was taught by some of the leading scholars of her time. S...more
Unlike many women of the 1550's, Jane was very well educated. She was taught by some of the leading scholars of her time. S...more
A revisionist look at one of the least understood, often overlooked episodes in the tumultuous Tudor dynasty: the succession crisis of 1553 pitting Mary Tudor, Henry VIII's eldest daughter, against her 16 year old cousin Jane Grey. At Henry's death, he had reinstated his daughters Mary and Elizabeth into the succession,yet did not revoke their illegitimate status. The hope was that their younger half brother Edward, the only one of Henry's offspring whose legitimacy was never challenged, would p...more
After just one chapter, I have given up on this book. Don't get me wrong: it may be the best book ever, but I am not equipped to handle it. Lady Jane Grey: A Tudor Mystery rapidly introduces you to the Tudor world, then just throws you in, into the deep end. I simply don't know enough about that time or its main players to grasp what was going on.
Plus, it uses really long words.
So, maybe I'll tackle this book again after I watch The Tudors, read The Other Boleyn Girl... and improve my vocabulary...more
Plus, it uses really long words.
So, maybe I'll tackle this book again after I watch The Tudors, read The Other Boleyn Girl... and improve my vocabulary...more
Professor Ives makes a case against Mary Tudor for effecting a military coup against her cousin Jane, the rightful queen by decree of Edward VI shortly before his death. Part of the tragedy of Jane's story is that she was almost universally acknowledged by some of the most renowned scholars in Europe as a young girl of exceptional intelligence; one wonders what her intellect could have accomplished as queen. Instead, England got five years of the Marian Persecutions and embroiled in an expensive...more
This was a fascinating insight into the life of one of the most enigmatic members of Tudor England. It was well researched and was informative without being dry.
Because there is so little information that we have on Jane Grey, it was great that he added perspectives of what happened from Edward VI to Mary I to even the Seymours.
Because there is so little information that we have on Jane Grey, it was great that he added perspectives of what happened from Edward VI to Mary I to even the Seymours.
Full of facts and references, this book is not for someone looking for an easy read or "historical fiction", but it is very well-written and interesting. The author takes some shots (and backs them up) at a few of the popular myths that surround Jane Grey and her very short reign and Queen of England.
Lady Jane Grey, is one of the most elusive and tragic characters in English history.In July 1553 the death of the childless Edward VI threw the Tudor dynasty into crisis. On Edward's instructions his cousin Jane Grey was proclaimed queen, only to be ousted 13 days later by his illegitimate half sister Mary and later beheaded. In this radical reassessment, Eric Ives rejects traditional portraits of Jane both as hapless victim of political intrigue or Protestant martyr. Instead he presents her as...more
This is a historical account of the brief ascension to the throne and tragic end of Lady Jane Grey. It's a good read, not dry at all for a historical biography and I really enjoyed it. I did skim through it at the end because it had more detail than I was interested in reading.
One of the most thorough, well-rounded accounts of Lady Jane Grey that I have ever read. I was especially impressed with the depth of Ives' portrait of Northumberland. Most accounts paint him as the villain, but Ives portrays Dudley as a multi-dimensional human being and that made the duke much more sympathetic.
This is an essential book for anyone interested in Tudor history--and mystery! I'm using it to fill in blanks in my Tudor mystery series: http://sarahkennedybooks.wordpress.com
Dry, but that is to be expected. A very detailed accounting of the life, reign and death of Lady Jane Grey. It took me awhile to finish the text, but it was well worth the read.
This is a valuable addition to the Tudor canon and by concentrating on the main characters and their actions using primary sources where available, secondary sources and modern pyschological interpretations of their actions he offers up some valid and compelling alternative theories. Throughout, however, Jane Grey remains a lonely and abused figure apparently deserted by those who should always have had her best interests at heart. It would be nice to think that her mother did not abandon her to...more
I was primarily interested in Grey's education and personality. There were excellent chapters on these aspects of her life. Throughout, the book is very conscientious about the conclusions that can be drawn from the few available documents and from the traces left by this remarkable but short life. This care made for convincing arguments about why her reign so quickly crumbled under Mary's challenge. Sometimes this analysis offered more information than I was eager to have (my rating reflects my...more
Aug 04, 2011
Brittany
added it
A fantastic book! Ives can do no wrong.
Ives writing style is dry and seems jumpy. I have read better books on Lady Jane - in the end there is far less on her in this book than the title would lead one to believe.
The book took me to a particular era to live events and actions that happened in a place and between un-ordinary characters. To question the truth behind the royal family and to witness the evil and the deceit of people in power. Also to question history itself and to put the reader in a position of disbelief and even sometimes the reader find himself lost and confused between what he reads and what things are.
I was NOT a fan of Ives' writing style.
Not an easy read but it had some interesting facts in it.
So Jane Grey had a legitimate legal claim on the English throne, and given the chaos and succession uproar, might have actually held onto it. Okay, I don't know to whom in British history this is a "mystery", unless it is aimed at American viewers of the Tudors who can't figure out who she is.
Aug 03, 2012
Reilly McTaggart
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
tudor-regime,
books-i-read-in-2012
This book took me FOREVER to read! I really enjoyed it though. It seemed very well researched and was well written. I'm looking forward to reading Eric Ives's book about Anne Boleyn.
Horribly disappointing. Much too technical for my tastes. Some of the pages were one paragraph containing conflicting arguments put forth in tons of various accounts of unimportant points. Ugh. Love the subject, hate the book...
Scholarly analysis of the 13-day reign of Lady Jane Grey. Focus is biographical information and theorizing the motives of the major players: Jane Grey and her family, Mary Tudor, John Dudley, Edward VI, and the council.
May 28, 2010
Karen
added it
Just started it.
I wish there was more information about Jane herself and what she was like, but I understand that is because so few of her recorded thoughts survive. Overall, this was a good, solid read.
A really good reliable history of what is a confusing piece of history. I read 'Innocent Traitor' by Alison Weir first, then this, which helped my understanding no end.
Wow, long and boring. Written as if it actually was 1546ish. Difficult to understand because of this. Couldn't finish it.
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Historian of Tudor England. Studied under S. T. Bindoff. He taught at the universities of Liverpool and Birmingham and wrote on faction at the Tudor court, Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey.
More about Eric Ives...
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Sep 28, 2012 12:15pm