The Life of Edward Seymour
The Life of Edward Seymour

Author: Margaret Scard

Publisher: The History Press

Published: 2016-10-06

Total Pages: 382

ISBN-13: 0750969687

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In January 1547 Henry VIII lay dying. His heir was just 9 years old and all England waited expectantly to see who would hold the reins of power until Edward VI came of age. Within days of Henry's death, the privy council overturned the terms of his will and Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset was named Lord Protector. It was a decision that the men in power would come to regret. For nearly three years, Somerset was 'king in all but name', the most powerful man in England. But though he was a skilled soldier and leader on the battlefield, Somerset's political skills were not so well-honed. His single-mindedness and his overbearing attitude towards the privy Councillors alienated the very men whose support he most needed. When they lost patience with him, the scene was set for conflict. Despite energetic opposition, his religious reform was his greatest success and the establishment of the Book of Common Prayer, which laid the foundation of the Anglican Church, was to be his most enduring achievement. However, his efforts to lessen the authoritarian rule imposed by Henry VIII and to improve the well-being of the common folk led to widespread rebellion, and as his attempt to subdue the Scots failed, England faced war with France. To the people Edward Seymour was the 'Good Duke'. To his fellow Councillors he was a traitor. This is a story of Tudor ambition, power and the ultimate price of failure.

MY LORD PROTECTOR
MY LORD PROTECTOR

Author: Deborah M.Hale

Publisher: Harlequin / SB Creative

Published: 2020-04-29

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 4596072469

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Julianna had lost everything—her father to illness, her belongings to bankruptcy, her beloved sweetheart to a voyage to the South Seas. Thrown into marriage by her vile stepbrother, she meets her husband-to-be on their wedding day. Sir Edmund is cold, distant and twenty years her senior! “Is this what my life has come to?” Strangely enough, he suggests that they keep their relationship chaste. He is hard to read and full of mystery, but as Julianna learns more about him, she can’t help but feel drawn to the kindness she discovers. Could her heart, promised to her beloved Crispin, possibly be swayed?

The Death of Oliver Cromwell
The Death of Oliver Cromwell

Author: H.F. McMains

Publisher: University Press of Kentucky

Published: 2014-10-17

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 0813159105

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For centuries, rumors have circulated in England that Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell did not die of natural causes. Now, in a fascinating book that reads like a historical whodunit, we have a motive, a means, a murderer (complete with his own deathbed confession), and a supporting cast that includes John Milton and Andrew Marvell. Almost from the moment of Cromwell's death in 1658, writers and biographers have dismissed suspicions of foul play as little more than the result of a powerful person's unexpected demise. They have assumed that at age fifty-nine Cromwell was in generally poor health and that his government's collapse was inevitable. But his family was generally long-lived and, contrary to royalist wishes, his government was becoming established. As the crucial first step toward the restoration of the Stuart monarchy in 1660, his death proved to be a turning point in British history. In a wide-ranging investigation that draws upon the fields of history, toxicology, medical forensics, and literature, H.F. McMains offers a fresh reading of evidence that has sat quietly in libraries and archives for more than two centuries. He examines the development of Cromwell's illness in 1658, analyzes his symptoms, and evaluates persons with motive, method, and opportunity to do him harm. The result is a reassessment of Cromwell's relationship with the English people and their government and a convincing investigation of his mysterious death.