Margaret Tudor: The Life of Henry VIII's Sister

Margaret Tudor was born into a world of promise and wealth. As the oldest daughter of the reigning King of England, her prospects were very bright indeed. As she grew, she became a bargaining chip on the marriage market. During her youth, she would have been given some education, but women were not as highly educated as men - which was to come back to haunt her in later years.
After her marriage to King James of Scotland, she envisioned a long life as the reigning queen of Scotland. But after her husband's death on the battlefield at Flodden, she was the regent for her infant son, with a stipulation in his will that should she remarry, she would no longer be the regent. What happened next, were years of strife and insecurity for the young widowed queen. She remarried in secret, to a man who was despised among many in Scotland. After her sons were taken from her, and the discovery of the infidelity of her second husband, she pleaded with her brother continually for help, but it was slow in coming. After divorcing her second husband, and taking a third - the decline in her life continued. None of her husbands were faithful, but the last two were interested only in what they could take from her, and what material benefits were in it for them.
Margaret was born with a lot of promise, but her life was full of sadness and much of it spent in relative poverty.
I enjoyed this book. While much of what we know about medieval women come from the accounts of their husbands, fathers, and brothers, it is possible to get a glimpse into their lives, especially with the insistence of Margaret Beaufort to record and document practices and “regulations” for the royal family. Well worth the read! One of the best historical books I have read in a while.