All the Queen's Men: The World of Elizabeth I

by Peter Brimacombe

Elizabeth I was the last English monarch truly to rule the nation; she inherited a weak and divided kingdom yet relentlessly fashioned it into a major world power, and decisively defeated the mightest invasion fleet ever to approach our shores. Her relationships with the key men in the kingdom, both in war and peace, were vital to the success of her reign. Her greatest attributes were a shrewd judgement of human nature coupled with the unerring ability to choose and motivate men. During a long and glorious reign, she surrounded herself with the ablest, most energetic and fearless minds in the kingdom. Her retinue was entirely male but the only man she did not choose was a husband, although there was certainly no shortage of suitors. Her charismatic reign produced brilliant scholars and creative talent, amongst then the world's foremost playwright. Elizabeth was devoutly religious but embraced the new learning with calculated discrimination. She inspired magnificent architecture, whilst her sea captains sailed great oceans to discover new shores and founded a mighty overseas empire. Centre stage in these heady days of new ideas and new horizons was the royal court, a colourful kaleidoscope of glittering courtiers and important foreign dignitaries, all trying to impress, all jostling for her favours - all the queen's men.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Tudor Period, Biography, British Literature, Elizabethan Period

200 pages, Paperback

First published July 7, 2000

Reviews

[Sallee]

This book was interesting, divided into sections such as the Seafarers, the Explorers, the Suitors, the Statesmen and so on. In each section the author discussed the men and their abilities and how they were of use to Queen Elizabeth's government and what they meant to her personal life. A English history buff will enjoy reading this book.

[Ubiquitousbastard]

I might be more inclined toward this book based on the fact that the book I read previously was so full of obvious bias that this was a relief. Overall, I thought the author did a pretty decent job of demonstrating any strong bias. I also liked how he tried to get the personalities of everyone across instead of representing them as an archetype. There were a few little errors, but I've found that's typical with Elizabethan history.

Still, it's a good overview of the men around Elizabeth and has some insights that a lot of other sources ignore.

[Brandon Baranowski]

This book covers a very general overview of the Tudor Era, then begins to break down the various types of Gentlemen that surrounded QE1 throughout her reign.

Unfortunately, the book feels very disjointed, rambling, and listless. There is repeated/redundant information, and a wordiness that inflates more common information, without providing anything new.

I ended up not finishing the book, because honestly, I could get better information, in a better format, from Wikipedia.

[Jennifer Rambo]

There was not a lot of new info and the presentation was rather dry. However, it was worth the time to see some of the portraits . Loved the portrait of Elizabeth I dancing.

[Cassy]

I LOVE Tudor and Elizabethian England. It's pretty much my favorite time period to read and I just love learning things about Henry VIII and Elizabeth. I like reading about his wives, him, the lifestyle, everything. The problem with reading so many books about that time period is that the information starts to get repetitive. I've read a lot of books that repeat a lot of things. However, I REALLY liked this book because I learned a lot of things I didn't know about the Elizabethian era and, with all the books I've read about it, that's impressive.

I liked that it didn't really concentrate that much on Elizabeth. It really focused on the men that surrounded her and how she interacted with them and their lives. Usually when I read non-fiction, everyone is pariferral but this one really focused on the men in her life.

I also like that it focused on the lesser known men in her life. Everyone knows about Robert Dudley. We are all aware of the myster an intrigue that surrounds him and Elizabeth. We all know about Cecil and how he was literally Elizabeth's right hand man almost entirely throughout her reign. She trusted him almost completely and he did so much for her. These are the men everyone knows about.

And Brimacombe did talk about them. But he also talked about the men who ran her navy, which was almost entirely comprised of privateers. He talked about the men who founded her colleges and made it so education was available to almost the most lowliest of peasants. Elizabeth believed heartily in education and so colleges were built up and expanded and great men were educated. They ran those universities and made places like Cambridge and Oxford the places they are today. Those colleges are what they are because Elizibeth took the time to cultivate them.

You learned about her foreign suitors, which was interesting, and learned about the men abroad who were actually just being pulled around by the strings and the men who genuinely had a chance with her.

I even learned things about her siblings that I never knew. Like her sister Mary, who had failed pregnancy after failed pregnacy, was probably never pregnant at all. They believe it was always a tumor in her stomach that was swelled up to appear as if she were pregnant.

Brimacombe wrote an interesting and fascinating book with just enough detail to hold your interest and educate you but not enough to bore you. He let me know the facts and the story but he didn't innodate me with details. If you enjoy the Elizabethian era, I strongly recommend it. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

[Dawn]

Something about the tone of the writing rubbed me the wrong way and I still haven't figured out what yet. Plus some historical errors (Jane Grey was the Nine Days Queen, not ten, and he mixes up his Blounts at the end--Lettice wed Christopher, not Charles, for example, and the two men had VERY different careers and endings) and makes some interesting suppositions about what people know (he references Drake picking up survivors of Roanoke. My 1st reaction was that there wasn't any, but after a quick dip into another history book, found out there had indeed been an earlier attempt a year or two previous--all men--on the island and that's who Drake rescued. But he doesn't explain!). It's jarring when you know something about the time! So overall, not a very enjoyable read (pleasure or research--I kept wondering how valid some of it was).

[Stefanie]

Let me begin by saying that I LOVE reading pretty much anything that has to do with Elizabeth or Tudor England, in general. So, there's my huge bias. That said, I felt that this book started off very strongly, but it lost me before the end. I think the fault was more mine than the book's, honestly. The chapters are arranged by subject, rather than chronologically. For example, there's a chapter entirely devoted to advisers, one to sailors, one to suitors, etc. The last couple of chapters really weren't gripping for me, but they were about the clergy, and about Cambridge, etc. The subject matter lost me more than the writing. Overall, I'd average it to be a solid 3.

[Jasmin]

This was an interesting, slim volume, however by breaking down Elizabeth's men and her reign by topic, it suffered from being somewhat repetitive. Drake for example appears in The Seafarers, The Explorers, and Men at War, largely covering the same ground, and this is true for many other character such as Robert Dudley, and the Earl of Essex. The lack of linear structure also meant that it was not always clear in which order some of the important events of the reign occurred which made it difficult to put some of these men in context of the others. That said, this was still an interesting read, but maybe more to dip into a chapter at a time rather than read through as a wider narrative.

[Elisabeth]

A quick look at the court of Elizabeth I, and the men closest to her. Divided into categories, such as Courtiers, Religion, Explorers, Artists, etc. it is certainly not an in depth look at the men she selected to assist her. Most of them have their own biographies elsewhere. William Cecil, Robert Dudley, Francis Drake, Walter Raleigh, even a brief appearance by Miguel Cervantes. This book can be used as a reference to select and then read further about the lives of many of these men.

[Danielle Reily]

I loved this book! It was a fascinating look into the Tudor Age and Queen Elizabeth's life. I really liked looking at her reign by examining the men in "the Virgin Queen's" life Who she trusted, who let her down, who she inspired, who she loved, and who she destroyed. It is an interesting look into Elizabeth's life, personal and regal.

[Marita]

A book to put one to sleep.