The Young Elizabeth

Alison Plowden's captivating portrait of the young Elizabeth Tudor, bringing to life her many identities as ruler, woman, and politician, is a triumph of narrative history. Elizabeth I is perhaps England's most famous monarch. She was born in 1533, the product of the doomed marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Her mother was condemned as a witch and after her death, Elizabeth was disinherited and finally imprisoned by her jealous half-sister, Mary. Her childhood was one of fear and danger, as she was aware from the outset that the eyes of the world were upon her and that to survive she would have to rely on her own judgment and strength of character. Many tried to use her for their own ends, however she rose out of the shadows and on the death of her sister, she became Gloriana—England's most iconic queen.