Constance E. (constance2u) reviewed Mistress of the Monarchy: The Life of Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster on + 20 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Very thorough, albeit a trifle dry, exploration of the small amount actually known about Katherine Swynford. Alison Weir manages to eke out the outline of a romantic story from exceptionally meager sources and does it very well. One of the most remarkable things known about this apparently reclusive woman is that her children by John, the Beauforts, would become the direct forebears of the Royal Houses of York, Tudor, and Stuart, and of every British sovereign since 1461 in addition to four (some say five -- including George W. Bush) U.S. presidents.
Harriet B. reviewed Mistress of the Monarchy: The Life of Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster on + 6 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Another good history by Alison Weir. Overall there is very little known about Katherine so a lot of the book is about the environment of the times in which she lived. I feel like it gave me a very good understanding of the times and possible motivations behind the central figures. It focuses much on John of Gaunt probably just because there is so much more information there than on Katherine, who seems to have lived mostly as a private person.
I did however find Weir's attempts to bring the story to life sometimes annoying, like she asks how Katherine must have felt, or said things like Katherine may have been somewhere, and various might haves and possibly did/thought/believe but there's no just not much evidence about Katherine in private and even huge chunks of her life at all. I do understand that there is so little actual evidence to work with, so it must have been a difficult job to bring the story together at all.
Weir points out what sources there are and what biases there were in these sources.I felt it was a solid history if you are interested in the overall history of the period and it's key figures, how they related to Katherine's life, opinions about her at the time, and her legacy.
I did however find Weir's attempts to bring the story to life sometimes annoying, like she asks how Katherine must have felt, or said things like Katherine may have been somewhere, and various might haves and possibly did/thought/believe but there's no just not much evidence about Katherine in private and even huge chunks of her life at all. I do understand that there is so little actual evidence to work with, so it must have been a difficult job to bring the story together at all.
Weir points out what sources there are and what biases there were in these sources.I felt it was a solid history if you are interested in the overall history of the period and it's key figures, how they related to Katherine's life, opinions about her at the time, and her legacy.
