Henrietta Maria: Charles I's Indomitable Queen

Not much have been written about the uncrowned queen of Charles I of England. That make this very readable biography on Henrietta Maria a welcome addition to any library on English history. The book appears to be well researched, well written and it don't burden you down with overwhelming amount of information. It was nevertheless, quite informative and interesting. Many aspects of Henrietta Maria and her marriage to Charles I came to light. This marriage proves to be work of gradual evolution for Henrietta Maria as she tries to adapt and adjust ever so slowly as a role of wife, friend and queen. The author made this the key element of the book as it was the key element of Henrietta Maria's life. The book appears to be geared toward the novice to intermediate level reader of English history. It may be a relief that this book wasn't covered with footnotes, annotated sources and all that. Alison Plowden who happened to have many biographies under her belt, wrote a very readable book about someone not well known by the reading public. As previously noted, the book doesn't sway far from the subject. It centered strongly around Henrietta Maria and her activities. All elements outside of her sphere remains outside the areas of this book. Even the English Civil War and trial of her husband which resulted in his beheading got a superficial treatment. This proves to be both the strength and the weakness of the book itself. Thus the book come highly recommended.

Henrietta Maria, Princess of France, is known to history as the very Catholic Queen of Charles 1st of England. She came to England as a teenager and married a man dominated by his favourite, the Duke of Buckingham. It looked like a marriage doomed to years of unhappiness. However, that all changed when the Duke was killed and Charles transferred his affections to his wife. They formed a bond of friendship and love that was to last the rest of their lives. In a fairy tale this would be the "happily ever after" scenario.However, reality took a turn of the worse eventually and Henrietta's staunch and very public Catholicism in a deeply Protestant country was to cause the royal couple much anguish in the years to come as England descended into a civil war where Henrietta lost nearly everything she loved. This book chronicles a life of great changes and a watershed in English history. At times the snippets of letters quoted between Charles and Henrietta are strangely reminiscent of those of Nicholas and Alexandra in the Russian Revolution. Plowden has produced a biography that is easy to read, but not especially academic in tone. It sticks to the subject of Henrietta and does not get diverted into other lives except as they impacted on hers. If you are after an accessible, modern history of Henrietta's life then this is probably the book you are after. However, if you are after an academic book quoted entirely from sources within Henrietta's lifetime you will probably be disappointed.