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The House of Beaufort
- The Bastard Line That Captured the Crown
- Narrated by: Graham Mack
- Length: 16 hrs and 52 mins
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The House of Beaufort
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Publisher's summary
The Wars of the Roses were a tumultuous period in English history, with family fighting family over the greatest prize in the kingdom—the throne of England. But what gave the eventual victor of these brutal and complex wars, Henry Tudor, the right to claim the crown? What made his Beaufort mother the great heiress of medieval England, and how exactly did an illegitimate line come to challenge the English monarchy?
While the Houses of York and Lancaster fought brutally for the crown, other noble families of the kingdom also played integral roles in the wars, but none symbolized the volatile nature of the period quite like the House of Beaufort. Their rise, fall, and rise again is the story of England during the fifteenth century, a dramatic century of war, intrigue, and scandal both at home and abroad.
This book uncovers the rise of the Beauforts and tracks their fall during the 1460s and 1470s. The hopes and fortunes of the family gradually came to rest upon the shoulders of a teenage widow named Margaret Beaufort and her young son Henry. From Margaret would rise the House of Tudor, the most famous of all England's royal houses and a dynasty that owed its crown to the blood of its forebears, the House of Beaufort. From bastards to princes, the Beauforts are medieval England's most captivating family.
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 213
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 212
By 1120, Henry was perhaps the most formidable ruler in Europe, with an enviable record on the battlefield, immense lands and wealth and unprecedented authority in his kingdoms. Everything he had worked so hard for was finally achieved, and he was ready to hand it on to his beloved son and heir, William Ætheling. Henry I and his retinue set out first. The White Ship - considered the fastest afloat - would follow, carrying the young prince. Spoilt and arrogant, William had plied his comrades and crew with drink from the minute he stepped aboard....
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5 out of 5 stars
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Brilliant and concise
- By Kindle Customer on 11-28-20
By: Charles Spencer
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The Red Prince
- The Life of John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster
- By: Helen Carr
- Narrated by: Helen Carr
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 446
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 394
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 395
John Gaunt was the son of Edward III, brother to the Black Prince, father to Henry IV, and the sire of all those Tudors. He has had pretty bad press: supposed usurper of Richard II’s crown and the focus of hatred in the Peasants’ Revolt, as they torched his home, the Savoy Palace. Helen Carr paints a complex portrait of a man who held the levers of power on the English and European stage, passionately upheld chivalric values, pressed for the Bible to be translated into English, and patronized the arts.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent historical reference
- By Virginia Robertshaw on 06-10-21
By: Helen Carr
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Brothers York
- A Royal Tragedy
- By: Thomas Penn
- Narrated by: Roy McMillan
- Length: 23 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 228
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 198
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Story5 out of 5 stars 196
The Brothers York is the story of three remarkable brothers, two of whom were crowned kings of England and the other an heir presumptive, whose antagonism was fueled by the mistrust and vendettas of the age that brought their family to power. The house of York should have been the dynasty that the Tudors became. Its tragedy was that it devoured itself.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Absorbing detail
- By Tad Davis on 08-06-20
By: Thomas Penn
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Royal Witches
- Witchcraft and the Nobility in Fifteenth-Century England
- By: Gemma Hollman
- Narrated by: Heather Wilds
- Length: 10 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 191
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 164
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 162
Until the mass hysteria of the seventeenth century, accusations of witchcraft in England were rare. However, four royal women, related in family and in court ties - Joan of Navarre, Eleanor Cobham, Jacquetta of Luxembourg, and Elizabeth Woodville - were accused of practicing witchcraft in order to kill or influence the king. In Royal Witches, Gemma Hollman explores the lives and the cases of these so-called witches, placing them in the historical context of 15th-century England, a setting rife with political upheaval and war.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Hard to listen to
- By donna bahr on 12-10-20
By: Gemma Hollman
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The Borgias
- Power and Depravity in Renaissance Italy
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 125
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 109
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
The Borgia family have become a byword for evil. Corruption, incest, ruthless megalomania, avarice, and vicious cruelty - all have been associated with their name. And yet, paradoxically, this family lived when the Renaissance was coming into its full flowering in Italy. Examples of infamy flourished alongside some of the finest art produced in western history.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Gossip
- By Amazon Customer on 10-02-19
By: Paul Strathern
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Queens of the Crusades: Eleanor of Aquitaine and Her Successors
- By: Alison Weir
- Narrated by: Esther Wane
- Length: 17 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 97
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 95
The Plantagenet queens of England played a role in some of the most dramatic events in our history. Crusading queens, queens in rebellion against their king, queen seductresses, learned queens, queens in battle, queens who enlivened England with the romantic culture of southern Europe - these determined women often broke through medieval constraints to exercise power and influence, for good and sometimes for ill.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A real Masterpiece!
- By Amazon Customer on 03-30-21
By: Alison Weir
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Emperor
- A New Life of Charles V
- By: Geoffrey Parker
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 26 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 235
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 197
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 196
The life of Emperor Charles V (1500-1558), ruler of Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, and much of Italy and Central and South America, has long intrigued biographers. But the elusive nature of the man (despite an abundance of documentation), his relentless travel and the control of his own image, together with the complexity of governing the world's first transatlantic empire, complicate the task.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Amazing.
- By bigdjunta on 10-21-19
By: Geoffrey Parker
-
A History of France
- By: John Julius Norwich
- Narrated by: John Julius Norwich
- Length: 15 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 362
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 320
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 318
John Julius Norwich - called a "true master of narrative history" by Simon Sebag Montefiore - returns with the book he has spent his distinguished career wanting to write, A History of France, a portrait of the past two centuries of the country he loves best. Beginning with Julius Caesar's conquest of Gaul in the first century BC, this study of French history comprises a cast of legendary characters - Charlemagne, Louis XIV, Napoleon, Joan of Arc, and Marie Antionette, to name a few - as Norwich chronicles France's often violent, always fascinating history.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Kings and Wars
- By Awake Tex on 08-22-19
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Scourge of Henry VIII
- The Life of Marie de Guise
- By: Melanie Clegg
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 7 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 35
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 34
Mary, Queen of Scots continues to intrigue both historians and the general public - but the story of her mother, Marie de Guise, is much less well known. A political power in her own right, she was born into the powerful and ambitious Lorraine family, spending her formative years at the dazzling, licentious court of François I. Although briefly courted by Henry VIII, she instead married his nephew, James V of Scotland, in 1538.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Find a Better Bio
- By Amazon Customer on 04-14-20
By: Melanie Clegg
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The Wars of the Roses
- The Fall of the Plantagenets and the Rise of the Tudors
- By: Dan Jones
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,320
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,917
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,900
The 15th century saw the longest and bloodiest series of civil wars in British history. The crown of England changed hands five times as two branches of the Plantagenet dynasty fought to the death for the right to rule. Now, celebrated historian Dan Jones describes how the longest reigning British royal family tore itself apart until it was finally replaced by the Tudors. Some of the greatest heroes and villains in history were thrown together in these turbulent times.
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5 out of 5 stars
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No Need for a Score Card
- By Troy on 01-16-15
By: Dan Jones
-
The Women of the Cousins' War
- The Duchess, the Queen and the King's Mother
- By: Philippa Gregory, David Baldwin, Michael Jones
- Narrated by: Bianca Amato
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 495
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 449
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 450
In her essay on Jacquetta, Philippa Gregory uses original documents, archaeology and histories of myth and witchcraft to create the first-ever biography of the young duchess who was to survive two reigns and two wars to become the first lady at two rival courts. David Baldwin, established author on the Wars of the Roses, tells the story of Elizabeth Woodville, the first commoner to marry a king of England for love, and Michael Jones, fellow of the Royal Historical Society, writes of Margaret Beaufort, the almost-unknown matriarch of the House of Tudor. The Women of the Cousins’ War will appeal to all.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Great book
- By Stacey Wallace on 11-14-11
By: Philippa Gregory, and others
-
Crown & Sceptre
- A New History of the British Monarchy, from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth II
- By: Tracy Borman
- Narrated by: Tracy Borman
- Length: 20 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 133
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 119
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 118
Since William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, crossed the English Channel in 1066 to defeat King Harold II and unite England’s various kingdoms, 41 kings and queens have sat on Britain’s throne. “Shining examples of royal power and majesty alongside a rogue’s gallery of weak, lazy, or evil monarchs,” as Tracy Borman describes them in her sparkling chronicle, Crown & Sceptre.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great book for those new to the monarchy
- By Chris Corsini on 04-05-22
By: Tracy Borman
-
Matilda
- Empress, Queen, Warrior
- By: Catherine Hanley
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 12 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 180
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 165
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 163
A life of Matilda - empress, skilled military leader, and one of the greatest figures of the English Middle Ages.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Both entertaining and scholarly
- By Anonymous User on 09-10-19
By: Catherine Hanley
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The Lady Queen
- The Notorious Reign of Joanna I, Queen of Naples, Jerusalem, and Sicily
- By: Nancy Goldstone
- Narrated by: Christine Lakin
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 68
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 56
The riveting history of a beautiful queen, a shocking murder, a papal trial - and a reign as triumphant as any in the Middle Ages. On March 15, 1348, 22-year-old Joanna I, queen of Naples, stood trial for the murder of her husband before the pope and his court in Avignon. Determined to defend herself, Joanna won her acquittal against overwhelming odds. Victorious, she returned to Naples and ruled over one of Europe's most prestigious courts for the next three decades - until she herself was killed.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Terrible mispronunciation of words
- By Amelie on 12-03-18
By: Nancy Goldstone
-
Medieval England
- A Captivating Guide to English History in the Middle Ages, Including Events Such as the Norman Conquest, Black Death, and Hundred Years' War
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Colin Fluxman
- Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 21
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 21
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 21
Medieval England’s history starts with the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century. In the 11th century, the Anglo-Saxon elite was completely replaced by the invading Normans. William the Conqueror and his successors brought novelties to England such as castles and cavalry. The last phase of Medieval England started with the great Famine and Black Death in the 14th century, when millions of lives were lost, resulting in England losing half of its population. In this book, you'll get insights into all of the above events and many more.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
With these two work in the bundle...
- By Fannie Marshall on 06-07-20
-
Lancaster and York
- The Wars of the Roses
- By: Alison Weir
- Narrated by: Maggie Mash
- Length: 22 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 439
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 375
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 375
Lancater and York is a riveting account of the Wars of the Roses, from beloved historian Alison Weir. The war between the houses of Lancaster and York was characterised by treachery, deceit, and bloody battles. Alison Weir's lucid and gripping account focuses on the human side of history. At the centre of the book stands Henry VI, the pious king whose mental instability led to political chaos, and his wife Margaret of Anjou, who took up her arms in her husband's cause and battled in a violent man's world.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Dense, fascinating history...questionable delivery
- By kbreezy on 10-04-17
By: Alison Weir
-
The Conquering Family
- By: Thomas B. Costain
- Narrated by: David Case
- Length: 13 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 216
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 155
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 148
Thomas B. Costain's four-volume history of the Plantagenets begins with The Conquering Family and the conquest of England by William the Conqueror in 1066, closing with the reign of John in 1216. The troubled period after the Norman Conquest, when the foundations of government were hammered out between monarch and people, comes to life through Costain's storytelling skill and historical imagination.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
An Entrancing History of the Early Plantegenets
- By Peter on 01-20-09
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- A New History of Tudor England
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Each Tudor monarch made their name with a Dudley by their side—or by crushing one beneath their feet. The Dudleys thrived at the court of Henry VII but were sacrificed to the popularity of Henry VIII. Rising to prominence in the reign of Edward VI, the Dudleys lost it all by advancing Jane Grey to the throne over Mary I. That was until the reign of Elizabeth I, when the family was once again at the center of power and would do anything to remain there . . . With three generations of felled favorites, what was it that caused this family to keep rising so high and falling so low?
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The twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a time of personal monarchy, when the close friendship or petty feuding between kings and queens could determine the course of history. The Capetians of France and the Angevins of England waged war, made peace, and intermarried. In this lively history, Catherine Hanley traces the great clashes, and occasional friendships, of the two dynasties. Along the way, she emphasizes the fascinating and influential women of the houses—including Eleanor of Aquitaine—and shows how personalities and familial bonds shaped the fate of two countries.
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4 out of 5 stars
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The Princes in the Tower
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Philippa Langley reveals the findings of a remarkable new research initiative: ‘The Missing Princes Project'. In the summer of 1483, Edward V (aged 12) and his brother Richard Duke of York (aged 9), disappeared from the Tower of London. For over 500 years, history has judged that they were murdered on the orders of their uncle Richard III. Following years of intensive research in UK, American and European archives, astonishing new archival discoveries have been uncovered that change what we know about the fate of the Princes in the Tower.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Daughters of Chivalry
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Virginal, chaste, humble, patiently waiting for rescue by brave knights and handsome princes: this idealized—and largely mythical—notion of the medieval noblewoman still lingers. Yet the reality was very different, as Kelcey Wilson-Lee shows in this vibrant account of the five daughters of Edward I, often known as Longshanks. The lives of these sisters—Eleanora, Joanna, Margaret, Mary, and Elizabeth—ran the gamut of experiences open to royal women in the Middle Ages.
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5 out of 5 stars
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fascinating!
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Blood, Fire & Gold
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Sixteenth-century Europe was a hostile world dominated by court politics and patriarchal structures, and yet against all odds, two women rose to power: Elizabeth I and Catherine de Medici. One a young Virgin Queen who ruled her kingdom alone, and the other a more experienced and clandestine leader who used her children to shape the dynasties of Europe, much has been written about these shrewd and strategic sovereigns. But though their individual legacies have been heavily scrutinized, nothing has been said of their complicated relationship.
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The Burgundians
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At the end of the fifteenth century, Burgundy was extinguished as an independent state. It had been a fabulously wealthy, turbulent region situated between France and Germany, with close links to the English kingdom. Torn apart by the dynastic struggles of early modern Europe, this extraordinary realm vanished from the map. But it became the cradle of what we now know as the Low Countries, modern Belgium and the Netherlands. This is the story of a thousand years, a must-listen narrative history of ambitious aristocrats, family dysfunction, treachery, savage battles, luxury, and madness.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Extraordinary story, expertly told and skillfully narrated
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Each Tudor monarch made their name with a Dudley by their side—or by crushing one beneath their feet. The Dudleys thrived at the court of Henry VII but were sacrificed to the popularity of Henry VIII. Rising to prominence in the reign of Edward VI, the Dudleys lost it all by advancing Jane Grey to the throne over Mary I. That was until the reign of Elizabeth I, when the family was once again at the center of power and would do anything to remain there . . . With three generations of felled favorites, what was it that caused this family to keep rising so high and falling so low?
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Philippa Langley reveals the findings of a remarkable new research initiative: ‘The Missing Princes Project'. In the summer of 1483, Edward V (aged 12) and his brother Richard Duke of York (aged 9), disappeared from the Tower of London. For over 500 years, history has judged that they were murdered on the orders of their uncle Richard III. Following years of intensive research in UK, American and European archives, astonishing new archival discoveries have been uncovered that change what we know about the fate of the Princes in the Tower.
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At the end of the fifteenth century, Burgundy was extinguished as an independent state. It had been a fabulously wealthy, turbulent region situated between France and Germany, with close links to the English kingdom. Torn apart by the dynastic struggles of early modern Europe, this extraordinary realm vanished from the map. But it became the cradle of what we now know as the Low Countries, modern Belgium and the Netherlands. This is the story of a thousand years, a must-listen narrative history of ambitious aristocrats, family dysfunction, treachery, savage battles, luxury, and madness.
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Brunhild was a foreign princess, raised to be married off for the sake of alliance-building. Her sister-in-law Fredegund started out as a lowly palace slave. And yet - in sixth-century Merovingian France, where women were excluded from noble succession and royal politics was a blood sport - these two iron-willed strategists reigned over vast realms, changing the face of Europe.
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Until the mass hysteria of the seventeenth century, accusations of witchcraft in England were rare. However, four royal women, related in family and in court ties - Joan of Navarre, Eleanor Cobham, Jacquetta of Luxembourg, and Elizabeth Woodville - were accused of practicing witchcraft in order to kill or influence the king. In Royal Witches, Gemma Hollman explores the lives and the cases of these so-called witches, placing them in the historical context of 15th-century England, a setting rife with political upheaval and war.
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Hard to listen to
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The White Ship
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 213
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By 1120, Henry was perhaps the most formidable ruler in Europe, with an enviable record on the battlefield, immense lands and wealth and unprecedented authority in his kingdoms. Everything he had worked so hard for was finally achieved, and he was ready to hand it on to his beloved son and heir, William Ætheling. Henry I and his retinue set out first. The White Ship - considered the fastest afloat - would follow, carrying the young prince. Spoilt and arrogant, William had plied his comrades and crew with drink from the minute he stepped aboard....
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Brilliant and concise
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The Brothers York is the story of three remarkable brothers, two of whom were crowned kings of England and the other an heir presumptive, whose antagonism was fueled by the mistrust and vendettas of the age that brought their family to power. The house of York should have been the dynasty that the Tudors became. Its tragedy was that it devoured itself.
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Absorbing detail
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 41
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
Orphaned from infancy, Catherine de’ Medici endured a tumultuous childhood. Married to the French king, she was widowed by forty, only to become the power behind the French throne during a period of intense civil strife. In 1546, Catherine gave birth to a daughter, Elisabeth de Valois, who would become Queen of Spain. Two years later, Catherine welcomed to her nursery the beguiling young Mary Queen of Scots, who would later become her daughter-in-law. Together, Catherine, Elisabeth, and Mary lived through the sea changes that transformed sixteenth-century Europe.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent writing, engaging narration
- By WEHOcloset on 09-22-23
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Daughters of the Winter Queen
- Four Remarkable Sisters, the Crown of Bohemia, and the Enduring Legacy of Mary, Queen of Scots
- By: Nancy Goldstone
- Narrated by: Laura Kirman
- Length: 13 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 333
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 287
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 287
Young Elizabeth Stuart was thrust into a life of wealth and splendor when her godmother, Queen Elizabeth I, died and her father, James I, ascended to the illustrious throne of England. At 16 she was married to a dashing German count far below her rank, with the understanding that James would help her husband achieve the crown of Bohemia. Her father's terrible betrayal of this promise would ruin "the Winter Queen", as Elizabeth would forever be known, imperil the lives of those she loved, and launch a war that would last for 30 years.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Misnamed but Wonderful
- By Anonymous User on 05-16-18
By: Nancy Goldstone
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Margaret Beaufort
- Mother of the Tudor Dynasty
- By: Elizabeth Norton
- Narrated by: Debra Burton
- Length: 5 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 50
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Performance3 out of 5 stars 46
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Story4 out of 5 stars 45
Born in the midst of the Wars of the Roses, Margaret Beaufort became the greatest heiress of her time. She survived a turbulent life, marrying four times and enduring imprisonment before passing her claim to the crown of England to her son, Henry VII, the first of the Tudor monarchs.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Awful Recording
- By Beck110118 on 09-10-17
By: Elizabeth Norton
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She-Wolves
- The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth
- By: Helen Castor
- Narrated by: Esther Wane
- Length: 16 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 115
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 102
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 100
In the tradition of Antonia Fraser and Alison Weir, prize-winning historian Helen Castor delivers a compelling, eye-opening examination of women and power in England, witnessed through the lives of six women who exercised power against all odds - and one who never got the chance. Exploring the narratives of the Empress Matilda, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Isabella of France, Margaret of Anjou, and other "she-wolves," as well as that of the Nine Days' Queen, Lady Jane Grey, Castor invokes a magisterial discussion of how much - and how little - has changed through the centuries.
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2 out of 5 stars
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STORY TELLING IS ERRATIC
- By The Louligan on 07-22-20
By: Helen Castor
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The Red Prince
- The Life of John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster
- By: Helen Carr
- Narrated by: Helen Carr
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 446
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 394
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 395
John Gaunt was the son of Edward III, brother to the Black Prince, father to Henry IV, and the sire of all those Tudors. He has had pretty bad press: supposed usurper of Richard II’s crown and the focus of hatred in the Peasants’ Revolt, as they torched his home, the Savoy Palace. Helen Carr paints a complex portrait of a man who held the levers of power on the English and European stage, passionately upheld chivalric values, pressed for the Bible to be translated into English, and patronized the arts.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent historical reference
- By Virginia Robertshaw on 06-10-21
By: Helen Carr
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Sister Queens
- The Noble, Tragic Lives of Katherine of Aragon and Juana, Queen of Castile
- By: Julia Fox
- Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
- Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 216
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 193
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 190
The history books have cast Katherine of Aragon, the first queen of King Henry VIII of England, as the ultimate symbol of the Betrayed Woman, cruelly tossed aside in favor of her husband’s seductive mistress, Anne Boleyn. Katherine’s sister, Juana of Castile, wife of Philip of Burgundy and mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, is portrayed as “Juana the Mad,” whose erratic behavior included keeping her beloved late husband’s coffin beside her for years.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Sad but Fascinating Lives
- By Cariola on 06-29-12
By: Julia Fox
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Edward II
- The Unconventional King
- By: Kathryn Warner
- Narrated by: Danielle Cohen
- Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 15
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 14
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 14
He is one of the most reviled English kings in history. He drove his kingdom to the brink of civil war a dozen times in less than twenty years. He allowed his male lovers to rule the kingdom. He led a great army to the most ignominious military defeat in English history. He was Edward II, and this book tells his story. Kathryn Warner strips away the myths which have been created about him over the centuries, and provides a far more accurate and vivid picture of him than has previously been seen.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Not bad, but most definitely biased
- By Ashley Waldron on 01-20-24
By: Kathryn Warner
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The Final Year of Anne Boleyn
- By: Natalie Grueninger
- Narrated by: Polly Lee
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 12
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 10
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Story5 out of 5 stars 10
There are few women in English history more famous or controversial than Queen Anne Boleyn. In this vivid and engaging account of the triumphant and harrowing final year of Queen Anne Boleyn's life, the author reveals a very human portrait of a brilliant, passionate, and complex woman.
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5 out of 5 stars
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About time
- By Naomi on 03-31-24
What listeners say about The House of Beaufort
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Christine
- 04-03-24
Fabulous audiobook
I’ve been reading a great amount of books that have to do with English history, especially medieval. For me, there was a gap of information, and this book definitely filled in those gaps in the English medieval history. There’s a ton of information and it’s very well read.  I enjoyed it so much. I am sure this is one of the books that I will reread again.!!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Vicki Patterson
- 12-11-23
Too many "ashumptions" for me...
A lot of speculation on feelings and motivations cloud this history for me. The preformer's mispronunciations of historically important people's names and titles get tiring along with his pronunciation (blame the author for overusing) of the words assumably and presumably. Not bad overall, but a bit grating.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Aubree Koscielski
- 06-15-23
Fascinating read!
Really loved this novel, and it was such a fascinating analysis of this family and their role in one of my favorite eras of history. Can’t wait to read more from this author!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- kerrie
- 11-21-23
very informative
I really enjoyed this book especially the fact that it takes Edmund Duke of Somerset and take some out of the shadow of Margaret and put some as his player in the game that he actually was
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Austin H
- 12-15-23
Shameless Lancastrian bootlicking
Reader mispronounces many French places and names but it’s mostly ok. As for the author, there was lots of good info on early Beauforts, which was cool. However, it’ became ridiculous once he got to Edmund, 2nd Duke. He describes him as if he were wronged by York and wasn’t a totally vicious fool who deserved what came to him and his sons
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stella
- 07-30-23
Great story, odd performance
This was very well written. Narration was odd with a different voice popping in, sometimes midsentence during the last several chapters.
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