The Other Tudors

Everybody thinks they know the tale of King Henry VIIIs wives: divorced beheaded died; divorced beheaded survived. But behind this familiar story lies a far more complex truth.This book brings together for the first time the other women of King Henry VIII. When he first came to the throne Henry VIIIs mistresses were dalliances the playthings of a powerful and handsome man. However when Anne Boleyn disrupted that pattern ousting Katherine of Aragon to become Henrys wife a new status quo was established. Suddenly noble families fought to entangle the king with their sisters and daughters; if wives were to be beheaded or divorced so easily the mistress of the king was in an enviable position.While Henry VIII has frequently been portrayed as a womanizer author Philippa Jones reveals a new side to his character. Although he was never faithful Jones sees him as a serial monogamist: he spent his life in search of a perfect woman a search that continued even as he lay dying when he was considering divorcing Catherine Parr thus leaving him free to marry Katherine dEresby. Yet he loved each of his wives and mistresses he was a romantic who loved being in love but none of these loves ever fully satisfied him; all were ultimately replaced.The Other Tudors examines the extraordinary untold tales of the women who Henry loved but never married the mistresses who became queens and of his many children both acknowledged and unacknowledged. Philippa Jones takes us deep into the web of secrets and deception at the Tudor Court and explores another often unmentioned side to the Kings character.