The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers

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Authors: Margaret George

IV

 
PRAISE FOR MARGARET GEORGE
The Autobiography of Henry
VIII
 
 
“I have read The
Autobiography
of Henry
VIII with great interest and found it quite an impressive work. The author has obviously researched her subject thoroughly.... I would say that anyone interested in Henry and his times would want to read this book.”
—Vi Ms. George contributes intriguing material to the popular mythology....”
 
 
—The NewYork Times Book Review
 
 
“A feat of imaginary research...The writing is smooth and stylish.”
 
—Washington Post Book World
 
 
“...an extraordinarily well-researched novel which always catches the flavor and color of the era it celebrates.... Margaret George is able to interpret... happenings freshly...a real triumph of imagination.
The Autobio
graphy of Henry VIII
is... immensely readable.”
 
 
—
Cleveland
Plain Dealer
 
“Beautifully and lyrically written. And unlike so many fictionalized autobiographies, it not only narrates historical events but gives its subject his own dramatic voice.”
—
Baltimore
Sun
 
 
“If your taste runs to huge novels with detailed descriptions of ceremony, pageantry, music recitals, feats, explicit sex-scenes, and the idea of Henry VIII as both self-doubting hero and royal showman, then this is your book.”
 
—
Minneapolis Star and Tribune
“A highly readable, entertaining novel that provides a wealth of easily discernible history of Tudor England.... George gives us the character Will Somers, ‘his fool,’ whose timely and humorous interjections help give Henry’s tale some balance.”
—
Philadelphia Daily News
 
“The author has done a brilliant job and readers will find this book enlightening as well as enjoyable.”
—Library Journal
 
 
 
The Memoirs of Cleopatra
 
 
“A thrilling story...Her ‘memoirs’ are vivid and enthralling. Read them.”
 
 
—
Washington Post Book World
 
 
“In nearly a thousand pages, [George] creates countless memorable moments.... Readers looking to be transported to another time and place will find their magic carpet here.”
 
 
—
Publishers
Weekly (starred review)
 
 
“A 976-page time machine...The first page transports you to the aquamarine waters of the Mediterranean.... Throughout the novel, Ms. George gives a sweeping, lush interpretation of the life lived by one of history’s most mysterious and misunderstood women It’s as if you lived there, walked the streets and counseled the Queen through her turbulent life.... Here again, Ms. Georfont size="3">
Mary Queen of Scotland and the Isles
 
 
“An historical novel of exceptional quality, and one that is completely mesmerizing. The world of Mary Queen of Scots is brought vividly to life by Margaret George, and the heroine is captivating—beautiful, emotional, learned, rash, impulsive, always courageous, but inevitably flawed in her judgement.... A wholly engrossing book and a rare treat.”
 
—Barbara Taylor Bradford
 
 
“A triumph of historical fiction.”
—
Houston Chronicle
 
 
“George delivers a gorgeously detailed novel...the best kind of historical novel, one the reader can’t wait to get lost in.”
 
 
—
San Francisco Chronicle
ALSO BY MARGARET GEORGE
The Memoirs of Cleopatra Mary Queen of Scotland and the Isles
THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF HENRY VIII. Copyright © 1986 by Margaret George. Afterword copyright © 1987 by Margaret George. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
 
“The Triads” on page 735 are translations from the Irish by Thomas Kinsella:
Thirty Three Triads, published by Dolmen Press,
Dublin, 1955;Atheneum,
New York,
1961. Reprinted by permission.
 
The translation from the Irish of “Cathleen” is reprinted . by permission of Tom McIntyre.
 
“The Hag of Beare” from
The Book of Irish Verse,
1974, by John Montague, is reprinted by permission of Harold Matson Company, Inc.
 
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
George, Margaret.
The autobiography of Henry VII.
1. Henry VII. King ofEnglian, 1491-1547—Fiction. I. Somers,William, d. 1560. II. Title.
PS3557.E49A96 1986 813’.54 86-11871
ISBN 0-312-19439-0
 
 
 
 
 
10987654
For Alison and Paul
did long for martyrdom and went to ... heroic? ... lengths to achieve it. He literally forced the King to kill him. And got that so-called heavenly crown he lusted after as old Harry had lusted after Anne Boleyn. Harry found the object of his lust not as palatable as he had imagined; let us hope More was not similarly disillusioned once he attained his desire.
I forget. I must not make such jests with you. You believe in that Place too. Believers are all alike. They seek—what was More’s book title?
—Utopia.
It means No Place, you know.
As I said, I live quietly here in my sister’s household in Kent, along with my niece and her husband. They have a small cottage, and Edward is ... I hesitate to write it ... a gravedigger and tombstone carver. He makes a good living at it. (Just such puns used to be
my
living.) But he tends his garden as others do (we had wonderful roses last year), plays with his children, enjoys his meals. There is nothing the least death-like about him; perhaps only that sort can stomach such a profession. Although I think being a jester is equally bound up with death. Or providing a scent to cover it, anyway.
I came here before Edward had his coronation. The boy-King and his pious advisers had no need of a jester, and I would have stood about like a loose sail luffing in the wind. Neither is Queen Mary’s court the sort of place where one makes jokes.
Do you remember, Catherine, that summer when you and I and all your Boleyn family and the King gathered at Hever? You and your brother Henry were brought to see your Boleyn grandparents. Hever is delightful in the summer. It was always so green, so cool. And the gardens had truly the best musk-roses in England. (Do you perchance remember the name of your grandparents’ gardener? I am not far from Hever now, and perhaps could consult with him... assuming he is still living.) And it was an easy day’s ride from London. Do you remember how the King used to stand on that hill, the first one from which you could glimpse Hever, and blow his hunting horn? You used to wait for that sound, and then go running to meet him. He always brought you something, too. You were the first Boleyn grandchild.
Remember your uncle George that summer? He was trying so hard to be the gentil parfit knight. He practised riding about in his armour, ran lists against trees, and fell in love with that sloppy girl at The White Hart. She gave her favours to every man who frequented the tavern, except George, I think. She knew that to do so would stop the flow of sonnets he wrote exalting her purity and beauty, and she enjoyed laughing at them.

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