Monday, July 27, 2009

The Kingmaker's Sisters by David Baldwin

The Kingmaker's Sisters: Six Powerful Women in the Wars of the Roses, a new book by David Baldwin, traces the lives of Joan Neville, married to William Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel; Cecily, married to the short-lived Henry Beauchamp, Duke of Warwick, and the notorious John Tiptoft, Earl of Worcester; Eleanor, married to Thomas, Lord Stanley; Alice, married to Henry, Lord Fitzhugh; Katherine, married to William, Lord Harrington, and William, Lord Hastings; and Margaret, married to John de Vere, the long-imprisoned Earl of Oxford. Through their husbands, the sisters often found themselves on opposing sides during the Wars of the Roses, and several experienced individual tragedies because of this.

As is typical of medieval women, little is known about the sisters' personalities and day-to-day lives, but Baldwin has unearthed what traces do exist through examining the sisters' letters, their dealings with others, and in one case (Katherine's) a will. There are nice color illustrations and a handy chronology. Baldwin also transcribes three previously unpublished letters from Eleanor and Katherine.

Baldwin makes note of a rather unsavory episode involving Richard III's ally Francis, Viscount Lovel, whose loyalty to Richard III means that he's generally portrayed by Ricardians as being only a shade or two less saintly than the king. Though Lovel had quitclaimed his interest in the Hastings manor of Ashby, Lovel's father had sold his manor of Bagworth to the Hastings family, and Francis's uncle William Beaumont had been attainted, Lovell nonetheless claimed that the Beaumont properties and those of Ashby and Bagworth, left in the hands of Katherine after the execution of her husband, belonged to him. In order to settle matters with the acquisitive Lovel, Katherine was forced during Richard III's reign to give him 200 marks in cash and to grant him lands totaling a maximum of 200 marks per annum. In return, she was granted the peaceful enjoyment of Ashby, Bagworth, and the rest of the Beaumont inheritance. Richard III, who's often praised by Ricardians for his chivalry toward women, seems to have done nothing to protect Katherine against Lovel, though he had specifically sworn to uphold the interests of Katherine and her children in their lands and goods. Ominously, Francis in his settlement with Katherine indicated that the matter could not "finally be appeased" during the minority of Katherine's son Edward, which suggests, as Baldwin states, that Francis might have driven even a harder bargain once Edward did come of age. Fortunately, the Battle of Bosworth meant that Francis never got the chance. Edward Hastings went on to fight for Henry VII against Lovel at the Battle of Stoke.

I saw one error that made me growl: Richard Woodville is described as "the fifth and last of Queen Elizabeth's brothers." This is not the case; had Richard been the youngest Woodville, his brother Edward, rather than Richard, would have succeeded Anthony as Earl Rivers in 1485. Moreover, although this book is about the sisters, I would have liked a bit more about their husbands' lives in order to better put the sisters' lives in context. Aside from this, though, I found this a very useful and informative book, one that puts a human face on the ever-revolving wheel of fortune during the Wars of the Roses.

7 comments:

Sarah Johnson said...

Thanks for the review! I've been curious about this one.

Su_H said...

Interesting isn't it? Yes I agree I would have liked a bit more husband stuff too. I'm part way through this atm - a lovely birthday pressie from my hubby - he knows me so well! :-)

Joansz said...

Another book that I'll have to add to my teetering TBR stack.

BurtonReview said...

Sounds right up my ally for my Wars of the Roses reada, I hope to add it to my collection someday. Baldwin did a good job on describing the Wars of The Roses in his Elizabeth Woodville book, and that was a quick read. I would love to read more of his interpretation. Thank you so much for the review!

Susan Higginbotham said...

Glad to add to everyone's TBR list! Su, sounds as if you've got hubby well trained!

trish wilson said...

Like Isolde Wigram I started out by way of Tey. So how have I ended up becoming Counsel for the Prosecution?

trish wilson said...

I've another interesting story about Francis Lovell which shows what a real rollercoaster Fortune was during this period. If his step grandfather, Ralph Boteler whose second wife was Alice Lovell had not been a stalwart Lancastrian who had already got up Edward IV's nose then he might well have obtained the wardship of FL (equivalent to a guardian today)much sought after by ambitious aristocrats both for pecuniary and poitical benefits but none more so than Raplh Neville, grandather of Warwick. In rapid succession Ralph obtained an Earldom, the first Neville to rise above being a mere Baron, which he got for kick-assing the Percys which led to a bitter feud, a royal bride and last but not least the wardship of the rival claimant to the throne Richard of York to whom he betrothed his daughter Cecily once obtained. Doesn't take a degree in rocket science to work out what he had in mind! More on the really greedy grasping pushy on the up eye on the main chance family who got where they were by doing exactly what they were later to accuse the Wydevilles of doing in due course

Anyone else aware that not only was Warwick done for piracy but the guy commissioned to investigate was none other than Sir Richard Wydeville or that his daughter, Elizabeth and her siblings were of royal blue blood after all, Plantagenet rather than born the wrong side of the blanket Beaufort like Warwick.

And who was this other Ralph Boteler something of a Neville clone? Only the father-in-law of Lady Eleanor aka Alianore Bottiller - not Butler that was the family name of the Earls of Ormonde, Irish aristocrats - but that's another story.