The Last Tudor King: A Study of Edward VI

by Hester W. Chapman

A Study of Edward VI (October 12th, 1537 - July 6th, 1553)

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Tudor Period

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1958

About the author

Hester Wolverstan Chapman (1899-1976) was one of the well-known authors and a specialist on the Tudors and Stuarts.

Reviews

[Shannon Duran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I wanted to cry at the end. God bless king Edward. It appears that he did a lot of good and would have been a magnificent king kind and good hearted. Great book though old I rank it 5 stars. If you love English history and biography it's a must read.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

The work that I went to in order to own a copy of this book - pre-Internet! That's a story all its own.

I was in high school. Actually, I was about the same age as Edward VI when he died. I was fascinated with the Tudors and with this Tudor in particular. He was my age. I was in love. (Not that he was much of a romantic figure, fyi.)

I looked it up in Books in Print at the library. Supposedly, in print. Went to the local bookstore (remember those?) and wanted them to order it for me. No luck. It was out of print. How could that be? It was in Books in Print! I fear I gave the lady bookseller some grief about this.

Then, a day or two later, I wandered back into the bookstore (yes, a real local bookstore). The lady bookseller didn't see me. She then proceeded to get into a discussion with her co-worker about some teenager wanting this book the other day and insisting it was in print and it wasn't in print and needless to say, she didn't paint a flattering picture of me.

I should have jumped up from behind the stacks and said "Boo!" But I didn't. Did I give her much of my business anymore? Probably not. (So there gossip monger!)

I went through the yellow pages and called booksellers in Denver specializing in antique and out of print books. Finally, someone found me a copy and I paid dearly for this. (I think $15.00 plus shipping but that's a lot for back in the day when you don't have a job.)

At that point, I had to love the book. I couldn't even be objective about it. I came down with bronchitis and a bad cold and I stayed up all night hacking and coughing and reading about this poor king with consumption and I was right there with him.

I still have this book. (I'd better!) I think I'm taking it my grave.

[Helene Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review - There don't seem to be many biographies of Edward VI - he is part of several works about the Tudor dynasty in general, but I think because his reign was so short and he never really lived up to his full potential because he was so young he is often passed over for the more famous Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. This is a mistake because his reign is one of the most important - it gave us the 9 Days Queen Jane Grey and the mid-Tudor crisis in religion. This study is now a little out of date and is a bit dry to read, but nevertheless raises some interesting points of discussion and contention, and is worth a read.

General Subject/s? - History / Biography / Edward VI / Tudors

Recommend? – Yes

Rating - 15/20

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written biography of a king whose impact is still felt today but who is seldom remembered. His suffering and dedication to duty should be studied by certain current members of the royal family. A very sad read but fascinating.

[Alex Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Touching and academically sound account of Edward VI, the boy king, and his six-year reign before his death at the age of 15, and of the principals figuring in the mighty changes in politics and religion that the king presided over. No king of England was ever more universally loved nor more blameless in the midst of violent intrigue.

[MAP · Rating 2 out of 5]

As you can tell from the chapter titles -- The Two Brothers, the Fall of the Lord high Admiral, The Protector, The Earl of Warwick, the Princess Mary's Mass -- much of this book doesn't directly deal with Edward VI. Many of the topics, such as the Seymour brothers' squabbles, Mary's struggle with religion, Dudley acting like a complete dick, are all things that can be found in many other books profiling many other people. There seemed to be very little in this book unique to Edward's story, or even much that shone a light on Edward and his personality at all.

I would say perhaps it's because not much is known, but this same author wrote a book on Lady Jane Grey, about whom even less is known, but it didn't feel to drag on about peripheral characters as much. Perhaps it's because it was a shorter book, I don't know.

anyhow, I had a hard time getting through this book. It seemed very dry, and almost a complete rehash of things I've already read in books about other people (Lady Jane Grey, Mary Tudor, etc.)