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"Henry: Virtuous Prince" by David Starkey

annis
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"Henry: Virtuous Prince" by David Starkey

Post by annis » Thu March 19th, 2009, 6:21 am

Has anyone read this recent biography about the first half of Henry VIII's life ? (Apparently it will be followed by another book later covering the latter part of Henry's reign) The reviews seem to range wildly from "brilliant" to "dull, dull, dull" !

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sweetpotatoboy
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Post by sweetpotatoboy » Thu March 19th, 2009, 10:20 am

Reminds me: did anyone else read this widely reported news story in which Starkey was quoted? Apparently, Henry VIII's handwriting was so similar to his mother's that that means he was a "mummy's boy".
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/incomi ... 908506.ece

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boswellbaxter
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Post by boswellbaxter » Thu March 19th, 2009, 1:15 pm

I read the biography and enjoyed it, though I can't say that I gained any profound insights from it.
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annis
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Post by annis » Thu March 19th, 2009, 6:22 pm

Intriguing article, Sweetpotatoboy. I wonder if Starkey is reading too much into it, though? Your writing style inevitably reflects the way you were taught to write, and I certainly don't feel any emotional dependence on the dimly remembered teacher at primary school who taught me to write! It might be that Henry's style never changed, which could be interesting. Over the years most of us develop a quite distinctive individual handwriting style, even if it has its root in the way we were taught to write as children.

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Melisende
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Post by Melisende » Thu March 19th, 2009, 10:12 pm

Did you notice that the "expert" said that Henry was raised by his mother following the death of his father ????

Maybe that should have read: he was raised by his mother's ghost considering his mother died 6 six before his father!!!

What a mistake for an "expert" to make!
"For my part, I adhere to the maxim of antiquity: The throne is a glorious sepulchre."

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annis
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Post by annis » Fri March 20th, 2009, 5:45 am

Oops! He must have been having an off day there!

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Susan
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Post by Susan » Fri March 20th, 2009, 9:22 am

[quote=""Melisende""]Did you notice that the "expert" said that Henry was raised by his mother following the death of his father ????

Maybe that should have read: he was raised by his mother's ghost considering his mother died 6 six before his father!!!

What a mistake for an "expert" to make![/quote]

Could Starkey have meant Henry VII? His father died of the plague two months before he was born. His mother Margaret Beaufort was 13, widowed, and seven months pregnant.
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Post by annis » Fri March 20th, 2009, 7:11 pm

Slightly off track, but I sometimes have wondered about Henry's insistence on extensive education for his daughters, especially Elizabeth, and discovered that it may be attributable to Margaret Beaufort.

"The interest of Henry VIII’s family in education included the females and is
traceable to his paternal grandmother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, and further, certainly before humanism had caught on in England.
There was already a tradition of the "higher education" of women among
the Beauforts, for Margaret's great-aunts are believed to have been the first
ladies in England who learned to write. She herself has been considered
one of the best letter-writers of her time; she had a very good knowledge
of French, and a 'lytell perceyvynge' of Latin; above all she was taught to
be a good Christian and a devoted daughter of the Church."

Full article here- the subject is the education of Princess Mary Tudor, the future Mary 1 of England.

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Melisende
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Post by Melisende » Sat March 21st, 2009, 7:42 am

Susan,

Its quite possible and that sounds much more accurate - to a point.
"For my part, I adhere to the maxim of antiquity: The throne is a glorious sepulchre."

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sweetpotatoboy
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Post by sweetpotatoboy » Tue March 31st, 2009, 3:33 pm

Here's a recent article written by Starkey trailing the upcoming exhibition on Henry at the British Library:

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/ ... 986421.ece

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