Elizabeth I
by Helen Castor
Buy on AmazonIn the popular imagination, as in her portraits, Elizabeth I is the image of monarchical power. The Virgin Queen ruled over a Golden Age: the Spanish Armada was defeated; English explorers reached the ends of the earth; a new Church of England rose from the ashes of past conflict; the English Renaissance bloomed in the genius of Shakespeare, Spenser and Sidney. But the image is also armour. In this illuminating new account of Elizabeth's reign, Helen Castor shows how England's iconic queen was shaped by profound and enduring insecurity-an insecurity which was both a matter of practical political reality and personal psychology.…
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"This is a light little book, perfect for holiday reading. Yet despite its short length, it provides a wonderfully rich evocation of Elizabeth I ‘s reign, in gorgeously turned phrases. Quite simply, a little gem of a book."
The Best History Books to Take on Holiday · fivebooks.com