In the Shadow of the Crown - By Jean Plaidy Page 0,229

England

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JEAN PLAIDY is the pen name of the late English author E. A. Hibbert, who also wrote under the names Philippa Carr and Victoria Holt. Born in London in 1906, Hibbert began writing in 1947 and eventually published over two hundred novels under her three pseudonyms. The Jean Plaidy books—ninety in all—are works of historical fiction about the famous and infamous women of English and European history, from medieval times to the Victorian era. Hibbert died in 1993.

WRITTEN BY ONE OF THE GRANDES DAMES OF HISTORICAL fiction, In the Shadow of the Crown is the richly compelling story of Mary Tudor, the oldest child of Henry VIII. Though born a royal princess, her life is far from easy, and her first-person account is a spellbinding storm of danger, intrigue, and dashed romantic dreams. As a mere female, Mary is caught—in the politics of succession, as Henry tosses aside countless wives in a dire quest for a son, each time endangering Mary's life from those who would claim the throne themselves; in the constantly shifting politics of Europe, as Henry repeatedly betroths Mary to the scion of his latest ally, only to call it off before any wedding takes place; and in the politics of religion, as her refusal to accept her father's new Church of England has disastrous repercussions in her own five-year reign, leaving her forever known as “Bloody Mary.” Through her eyes, we see all the telling details—the majesty, the magnificence, and the machinations—of one of England's most turbulent eras.

Questions For Discussion

1♦ Mary's motto is, “Time unveils Truth.” Why does she believe that? Does it prove to be an accurate statement? How does it become a recurring theme of the novel?

2♦ Love—for her mother, her betrothed, her siblings, her handmaids—is an enduring motif in Mary's story. Do you think she understands what love is? Does she find true love in any form?

3♦ Mary portrays her father at various times as a cruel tyrant, an incorrigible dissembler, and “a god, all-powerful and gloriously benign.” Do you think she believes each one at the time? What do you think of Henry—how he treats his daughter, his wives, and women in general? Is he a good king, even if he's not the best father? If he were ruling a country today, how might he be perceived by the world?

4 After her betrothal to the Emperor is rescinded, Mary says, “I must thrust aside sentimentality. I must cease to dream of chivalry and romance. That was not for such as I was, and oddly enough I did not wish it to be different.” Does she succeed in this effort? Why or why not? Does she really want to?

5♦ Mary says, “My heart was filled with anger—not toward him so much as toward [Anne Boleyn], the goggle-eyed whore, the woman who was his evil genius. I blamed her for all the trials which had befallen us.” Why does she lay the blame at Anne's feet instead of her father's? In doing so is she betraying her gender, or rationalizing as any child of a broken home might do?

6♦ Over and over, Mary criticizes her father for his malleable conscience, but it often seems hers is equally compliant. As she says on page 133, “I began to believe fervently that what I had done—however much it had been against my principles—was the only way in which I could have acted.” When does that cease