Praise for Gemma Hollman and Royal Witches
The Queen and the Mistress
The Women of Edward III
Description
The riveting story of two women whose divergent personalities and positions impacted the court of Edward III, one of medieval England's greatest kings.
There were two women in Edward III's life: Philippa of Hainault, his wife of forty years and bearer of twelve children, and his mistress, Alice Perrers, the twenty-year-old who took the king's fancy as his ageing wife grew sick. After Philippa's death Alice began to dominate court, amassing a fortune and persuading the elderly Edward to promote her friends and punish her enemies.
In The Queen and the Mistress, Gemma Hollman brings the story of these two women to life and contrasts the "perfect" medieval queen—the pious, unpolitical, steady Philippa—with the impertinent youth—the wily, charismatic, manipulative Alice. One died a royal, adored, while the full force of the English court united against Alice, wresting both money and power from her and leaving her with nothing but a mission to try to reclaim all that was lost.
Both women had wealth and power but used vitally different methods to dispense it. In The Queen and the Mistress, Hollman brings to the fore their differences and similarities in a unique look at women and power in the Middle Ages.
Reviews
"An important and timely book looking at royal women who faced envy and political attack in the guise of accusations of witchcraft."
“Hollman, who has a master’s degree in medieval history, provides an in-depth account of each woman’s rise to power and then chronicles the events of the time. A meticulous historical analysis.”
"The way Hollman deftly untangles royal lineages and courtly machinations to bring sky to the stories of these women makes me want to accuse her of witchcraft. Well done."