Carolly Erickson

The courageous, spirited Mary Queen of Scots tells her own story--from her youth as a young girl married to the invalid young King of France to her short reign as Queen of Scotland and her tragic imprisonment by her ruthless, merciless cousin Queen Elizabeth.

Awaiting her execution, Marie Antoinette writes the story of her life, describing her privileged childhood as an Austrian archduchess, years as the glamorous mistress of Versailles, and imprisonment during the French Revolution.

With her customary deft mastery of historical narrative, Carolly Erickson reveals the inner contradictions of the resolute, highminded, often cantankerous woman who became queen at the age of eighteen and reigned until her death sixty-four years later. The short, stout Victoria, diminutive in form yet dominating in spirit, emerged as the defining symbol of her age. Seeing herself as a soldier's daughter first and foremost, Victoria stood her ground, armed with her own fortitude, while the forces of social, economic, and religious change swirled about her. In a time when women were becoming redefined as weak and inferior creatures, unfit even to govern themselves and in need of male rule and protection, the sturdy queen convinced herself that she too was in desperate need of a strong man. She found him in Albert, her handsome, well-intentioned, dutiful prince consort. Following the conventions of the time, Victoria stepped back and let Albert appear to be in charge - yet she never let the reins of power fall from her own hands, and after Albert's early death, his grieving widow discovered, much to her surprise, that she had been the stronger one all along. Victoria's emotional ordeal after Albert's death was the worst crisis of her life, and a crucible of self-discovery. Thrown back on her own emotional resources, Victoria faltered, then resurged as her empire grew and Britain's global influence enlarged. Queen, empress, elder stateswoman, matriarch of Europe, Victoria lived on and on, decade after decade, until she came to seem an immemorial presence on the world stage.

From the moment the fourteen-year-old Princess Sophia of Anhalt-Zerbst agreed to marry the heir to the Russian throne, she was mired in a quicksand of intrigue. Precociously intelligent, self-confident, and attractive but with a stubborn, wayward streak, Sophia withstood a degree of emotional battering that would have broken a weaker spirit until at last she emerged, triumphant over her many enemies, as Empress Catherine II of Russia. Her achievements as empress were prodigious. She brought vast new lands under Russian rule. She raised the prestige of Russia in Europe. She began the process of imposing legal and political order on the chaos she inherited from her predecessors. Yet few historical figures have been so enthusiastically vilified as Catherine the Great. Whispers that she had ordered her husband's murder grew to murmurs that she was an immoral woman and finally to shouts that she was a depraved, lust-crazed nymphomaniac. With deft mastery of historical narrative and an unsurpassed ability to make the past live again, Carolly Erickson uncovers the real woman behind the tarnished image—an indomitable, feisty, often visionary ruler who, in an age of caveats and constraints, blithely went her own way. Great Catherine reveals the complexities of this great ruler's nature, her craving for love, her insecurities, the inevitable sorrows and disappointments of a strong empress who dared not share her power with any man yet longed to be led and guided by a loving consort. Great Catherine is a fresh portrait of an infamous historical figure, one that reveals how Catherine's flawed triumph guaranteed her posthumous fame and enhanced the might and renown of Russia for generations to come. From Publishers Weekly Erickson's account details Catherine the Great's early years surrounded by court intrigue and rumor and her rise to become one of the most important rulers in the history of Russia. Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. Review "One of the most accomplished and successful historical biographers writing in English."--Times Literary Supplement

One of history's most misunderstood figures, Marie Antoinette represents the extravagance and the decadence of pre-Revolution France. Yet there was an innocence about Antoinette, thrust as a child into the chillingly formal French court. Married to the maladroit, ill-mannered Dauphin, Antoinette found pleasure in costly entertainments and garments. She spent lavishly while her overtaxed and increasingly hostile subjects blamed her for France's plight. In time Antoinette matured into a courageous Queen, and when their enemies finally closed in, Antoinette followed her inept husband to the guillotine in one last act of bravery.

A portrait of the Tudor queen and her times attempts to give an accurate portrayal of Elizabeth's complex personality

Recreates the extravagant life and times of Henry VIII, following his progression from the radiant heroprince, to the harried ruler fearful of divine vengeance, to the fearsome, murderous king.

Lively narrative and vivid style captures and sustains high student interest in this exciting, highly readable, and beautifully illustrated introduction to western history. European history outlines- the Renaissance, Reformation, Religious Wars, Balance of Power in 18th Century Europe, The French Revolution, Experiences of Life in Early Modern Europe(1500-1600). Would make a wonderful book for home schooling.

From New York Times bestselling author of The Last Wife of Henry VIII, a novel about Catherine Howard, wife of Henry's later years Amid the turbulent, faction-ridden late reign of the fearsome Henry, eager high-spirited Catherine Howard caught the king's eye{u2014}but not before she had been the sensual plaything of at least three other men. Ignorant of her past, seeing only her youthful exuberance and believing that she could make him happy, he married her{u2014}only to discover, too late, that her heart belonged to his gentleman usher Tom Culpeper. As the net of court intrigue tightens around her, and with the Tudor succession yet again in peril because of Prince Edward's severe illness, Queen Catherine struggles to give the angry, bloated and impotent king a son. But when her relations turn against her, she finds herself doomed, just as her cousin Anne Boleyn was, to face the executioner. The Unfaithful Queen lays bare the dark underbelly of the Tudor court, with its sugared rivalries and bitter struggles for power, where a girl of noble family could find herself sent to labor among the turnspits in the kitchens or{u2014}should fortune favor her{u2014}be exalted to the throne.

A tale inspired by the life of Jane Seymour follows her dedicated service as a Maid of Honor to Catherine of Aragon until a scheming Anne Boleyn throws the court into turmoil, a situation that culminates in Jane's dangerous relationship with Henry VIII.

From Publishers Weekly In this chronicle of Regency England (18101820), popular historian Erickson shows that her considerable skills aren't limited to the depiction of Tudor monarchs (Bloody Mary, Great Harry, etc.). The change in period has been beneficial: her recent 16th century biography, Mistress Anne, had a desultory quality that has been avoided in this colorful, entertaining portrait of a turbulent time. In 1810, when George III was declared mentally incapable of governing, his eldest and least favorite son, later George IV, became Regent. He was a fitting figurehead for a gaudy, self-indulgent age, when aristocrats drank, dined and gambled until dawn while an increasingly restless populace chafed under miserable living conditions and an economic crisis created by a century of near-constant warfare. The battle of Waterloo in 1815 ended the Napoleonic Wars, but only made the situation in England more volatile, as thousands of soliders returned home to unemployment and poverty. Erickson vividly recreates an unsettled, intriguing era, focusing on a few key events and personalities to give readers a sense of the Regency's flavor. [Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.] From Library Journal This is a fine portrait of a fascinating age the Regency period in English history. The author, who has biographies of several English monarchs to her credit, leads her reader through the complex personalities and events of the decade (George III was insane throughout the period and his son ruled as Regent) with considerable dexterity. The result is an entertaining and generally solid essay in the often difficult field of social history. One might wish for a bit more on the impact of the Industrial Revolution and Wesleyanism, but on the whole the book exemplifies what popular history should be. It is instructive, solidly researched and written, and of a quality to appeal to the novice and specialist alike. Recommended. James A. Casada, History Dept., Winthrop Coll., Rock Hill, S.C. [Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.]