The Tudor Rose by Margaret Campbell Barnes
Originally published 1953
Reprint/Re-Release October 2009
Historical Fiction, 336 pages
Sourcebooks Landmark
An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc.

Review copy courtesy of Sourcebooks Landmark

 Elizabeth of York, the only living descendent of Edward IV, possesses the most precious thing in all of England – a legitimate claim to the crown. Two princes vie to have Britain’s most rightful heir as his bride. On one side, her uncle, whom she fears murdered her two brothers. On the other, Henry Tudor, who lives in exile. Can Henry save her from a horrifying marriage to a cutthroat ruler?

It is because of the Tudor dynasty I initially became aware of, and eventually fell in love with, historical fiction. I owe this primarily to Margaret George and Alison Weir in introducing me to a new way to appreciate history, even though fictionalized for entertainment’s sake.

However long before these two authors, there were others including Margaret Campbell Barnes. Between 1944 and 1962, she wrote ten historical novels. Many of these were bestsellers, book club selections, and translated into foreign editions. (Information courtesy of the “About the Author” section located in the edition I am reviewing here.)

When one hears the word “Tudor” they immediately think of its most famous member, Henry VIII and/or his daughter Elizabeth I. This story is about his mother, Elizabeth of York, a woman like any other except for one fact. She holds something very dear: a rightful claim to rule. However, in the times in which she lived, men ruled not only in government, but in all things.

No matter her perceived power, in reality, she was no more than a pawn in an elaborate chess game where survivability hinged on one’s ability to read the winds of change well, and out maneuver your opponents at every turn.

Elizabeth proves quite capable in doing all these things, but this story isn’t so much about her navigating the dangerous waters of intrigue, but of love and life itself. Although privileged, she lacks the one fundamental thing to achieving and maintain true happiness – choice.

The author begins the story by allowing us to see Elizabeth as a young woman, excitedly preparing for a marriage arranged by her father, the King. Disappointment and revelation soon follow as she learns how she is merely a commodity, a political tool as well as pawn. From this she learns to face her future with a more jaded view.

Elizabeth felt as if someone had hit her a stinging blow across the face. She had been humiliated in public, so that the whole palace, the whole world, seemed full of mockery and belittling laughter . . . And in those searing moments, she ceased to be the high-spirited child who ran singing through her father’s palace, and became a woman. A woman aware of the ambitious cruelties of men.

Yet she remains human, sensitive, intelligent – a survivor. It is through the author’s development and focus of this side of Elizabeth’s character that we feel empathetic and grow to care about her. She also excels in allowing the reader to see the multiple sides of a charismatic and controversial person in Elizabeth’s uncle Richard. The man rumored to have ordered the deaths of the two princes in the tower: Elizabeth’s beloved brothers.

Henry Tudor though, is not so well developed. But this actually works well, for if the author wanted him to come off cold, calculating, and perhaps not so well understood, she succeeds.

Elizabeth tried not to hate him for his calculating coldness. Probably when a man is cast out of his inheritances and forced to accept hospitality from foreign princes who would sell him at any moment that it suited them . . . the one thing he needs to acquire is calculating coldness.

The style is elegant, but not off-putting. And even though historical fiction, I found that the detailed information provided was not so much as to take away from the story-telling. I enjoyed it immensely.

If you like historical fiction as much as I do, and are especially interested in this time in English history, I recommend this highly.