Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Forever Changed British History

Really enjoyed this book as I have with all Tracy Borman works. Engaging, easy to read and hard to put down. A must for every Tudor enjoyer.

I heard Tracy's interview on my favorite podcast, Noble Blood. A disclaimer: I'm a Tudor enthusiast. That being said, my already-excited ears perked up even more when I heard both Anne and Elizabeth I were the subjects. What a brilliant idea to intertwine their stories, and perfectly executed. I couldn't put it down. While I am no scholar, I really thought I'd heard it all about both women, but I found several lovely nuggets of new [to me] information, and I really enjoyed reading about the bits I already knew. Bravo. My favorite part was how Anne's GOOD traits were highlighted, alongside the bad. Really well done.

Ms. Borman's new book is a super- condensed joint biography of Queen Consort Anne Boleyn, and her daughter, Elizabeth 1. While there is some new information here, most rehashes every other Anne/Elizabeth biography. I am a fan of Ms. Borman; generally, even suggesting that she write concerning all of spare Henry the Eighth 's mistresses. IF I were a high school kid writing a paper on Anne and Elizabeth: this would be a go-to source.

If you're interested in Anne Boleyn or Elizabeth I, this is the book for you. Tracy Borman reveals research that even the most obsessed Tudor fan will not have known before. It's also the book I would recommend to non-Tudor lovers as a first foray into non-fiction. It's an easy and pleasurable read. It's fairly short so it's not daunting. Borman is at the top of her field and one of the foremost experts on Tudor England and there's no one better to tell this complex story. Despite Anne being executed when Elizabeth was a young child, there is a bond between them that lives on to this day. Most people think that Elizabeth had to completely deny that there was any connection between her and Anne beyond their biological connection- but Borman details the many ways that Elizabeth kept Anne's memory alive. A truly excellent book that I'll come back to again and again.

As a lifelong Tudor buff , I can cay that this book was informative. Tracy Borman outdid herself. Excellent read.

Many know of my personal fascination with Elizabeth 1 and her mother Anne Boleyn. This book has lived up its "advertisement" and is the best treatment of Queen Anne I have ever read.I wish that when I wrote my major paper on Elizabeth as the "Supreme Head of the Church" that such information had been available. Highly Recommended 5/5

I doubt that anyone could read of the execution of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII, without feeling sympathy for her two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, demoted in one fell swoop, as she herself noticed even at that young age, from Princess Elizabeth, heir to the English throne, to Lady Elizabeth, the king’s bastard daughter by a disgraced mother.Often, books about Elizabeth gloss over the effect of this double loss on her, noting that she rarely spoke about her mother even after she ascended to the throne, briefly mentioning a ring she owned with portraits of herself and another woman who may have been Anne, or speculating that her mother’s fate might have contributed to her own antipathy toward marriage. In Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I, however, Tracy Borman digs more deeply into the relationship between the two (brief as it was in life) and Elizabeth’s later life to show that a strong influence did exist, and that there is enough evidence to show that Elizabeth did indeed honor and revere her mother’s memoryWhile many hated and despised Anne Boleyn, few seem to have disputed her pride in her daughter, despite the disappointment (to her father, at least) of her gender, or her active involvement in Elizabeth’s early upbringing within the constraints of her position. (Queens did not nurse their own children, and royal offspring were given their own households early on.) Even as she faced death, one of her main concerns was for her daughter.As Elizabeth grew up she no doubt heard little good about Anne from most people, but Borman believes that there is evidence that an alternative, positive view was also provided to her, most notably by her relatives on her mother’s side, including her governess, Kat Ashley. When she became queen, she notably kept these relatives close to her and actively promoted many of them, as Borman documents, as well as pointing to the presence of her mother’s emblems (notably the falcon) in her palaces and portraits. Also, while she never, unlike her sister Mary, reinstated Anne’s marriage to her father by an act of Parliament, it appears to have been well known that praise of Anne’s virtues was a way to gain her favor. The psychological influences are also examined in some detail, from the effect on her refusal to marry (no doubt exacerbated by the execution of her father’s fifth wife, and Anne Boleyn’s first cousin, Katherine Howard, when Elizabeth was only 8, as well as the unhappy marriage of her sister Mary) to her use of her charm on men as queen.On the whole, even with my considerable (though not extensive) knowledge of the period, I found Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I to be an informative and eye-opening look at the relationship between these two fascinating women.

I adored this book and I love how it clearly outlined ways Queen Elizabeth honored her mother.

I love Tracy Borman's work. She is my favourite Tudor historian because she combines serious research with a lively writing style. Sad that it will probably be another year before she publishes again. I would love to attend one of her lectures. Saw a few on Zoom during COVID and really enjoyed them. This is the kind of book that converts those who hated history in school because it seemed dull. It isn't!

As with all Traceys books this is so well researched and written. I am constantly surprised by the records and information that has survived time.

I didn’t think the book would be good quality, just because of the price, but it’s great quality! And it’s a lot of pages which i think is good. Totally worth the money!! There’s even some pictures in it! I recommend !!

This book is full of little known facts. If you enjoy history this is a must read.

This is an excellent account of the joint histories of Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I, who barely knew her mother but was profoundly influenced by her character and circumstances, and by the treatment she received at the hands of Henry VIII. The book is well researched, but is also highly readable. I was taken by surprise reading the Kindle version when it appeared to stop suddenly when it was only about 60% read, due to the extensive notes that formed the rest of the book. But it is a testament to the enjoyability of the text that I wanted it to continue even after the history was concluded! Strongly recommended for anyone with an interest in these two important women in English history and the circumstances that influenced them both.