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Historical fiction
Elizabeth of York: The Last White Rose
Headline, £20, hardback, 544 pages
The eldest daughter of the royal House of York, Elizabeth dreams of a crown to call her own. But when her father dies suddenly, her destiny is rewritten. Soon, her two young brothers have disappeared, and her uncle has seized power – vowing to make Elizabeth his queen. But when the upstart son of the rival House of Lancaster seeks the throne, there is a chance to unite England’s two warring dynasties and change everything. Elizabeth must choose her allies – and husband – wisely, and fight for her right to rule.
•••• Excerpt ••••
A four-year-old Elizabeth of York wonders where her beloved father has gone, and whether he will come back home to sit on the throne again
She had known she was important for as long as she could remember. She was nearly five years old and the eldest daughter of a golden king and a beautiful queen, and she lived in wondrous glittering palaces, just like a princess in a fable. She had been called Elizabeth after her mother, who often wore the jewelled brooch that Father had given her to mark her birth. In normal circumstances, Mother was a remote figure to her daughters, an elegant, graceful goddess who sat on a throne and sometimes descended on the nursery in a cloud of floral perfume, swishing her fabulous damask skirts, her neck like a swan’s under the shaven hairline and the gauze-covered hennin.
Mother was remote and regal, but Father was fun, a towering, boisterous figure with a twinkling eye and a merry laugh that belied his narrow, watchful eyes. He was the handsomest man in the world, and everyone adored him, especially his children. His court was famed far and wide for its grandeur; it bustled with great lords and ladies and visitors from all four corners of the earth.
Elizabeth had often felt fit to burst with pride, having such a strong and splendid father. Now she wondered if he would ever come back to sit on his throne. Would she even see him again? Where was he?
Q&A
Alison Weir
Alison Weir is Britain’s top-selling female historian. Her works include the Six Tudor Queens series of novels, as well as the recent non-fiction book Queens of the Crusades. Her latest novel, Elizabeth of York: The Last White Rose, is the first instalment of Alison’s new Tudor Rose trilogy.
What made you want to explore the life of Elizabeth of York for your new novel?
I love that transitory late 15th-century period, which witnessed a dramatic change of dynasty, and the fact that Elizabeth’s life is surrounded by mysteries – notably the fate of her younger brothers, the Princes in the Tower, and her relations with her uncle, Richard III. I wanted to explore those aspects in fiction.
How important was Elizabeth’s marriage to Henry Tudor in uniting the two warring houses of York and Lancaster?
She was the crucial link, the channel through whom the royal bloodline was transmitted. In fact, she was the true Queen of England. In a later age, she would have reigned as such.
How much of an influence did Elizabeth have on her son, Henry VIII?
She had a considerable impact on him, I believe. Henry lost his mother when he was 11, too young to see her as less than perfect. She fitted the medieval ideal of a queen, which he probably expected his wives to emulate.
Was it easier to tell Elizabeth’s story compared to those of the wives of Henry VIII, who are already familiar figures to most readers?
No, because there are far fewer sources relating to Elizabeth, and I had to make some difficult decisions. Although I had previously researched Elizabeth for a biography and there are some good records, such as her privy purse accounts, I also used some controversial sources. These included an account of a letter that she wrote pushing for her marriage to Richard III, and ‘The Song of Lady Bessy’, a contemporary ballad that tells of her energetic efforts to raise support for Richard’s rival, Henry Tudor.
Could you tell us more about the other two books you have planned for the Tudor Rose trilogy?
The remaining books in the series will cover the lives of Henry VIII and Mary I, as related from their points of view. I’m writing about Henry right now – no pressure there! The trilogy spans three generations of the same family and is a companion piece to my earlier Six Tudor Queens series of novels about the wives of Henry VIII. Now it’s time for Henry to have his say!