Financing Queenship in Late Fifteenth Century England - by Michele L C Seah (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

"Seah's important book richly documents and deftly analyzes the complex household economies of three fifteenth-century queens consort of England who lived during a period of political and economic upheaval. This book, based on impressive meticulous research, is more than just a much-needed methodological model for studying queenly finances that fills a gap in the historiography of queenship. It is a powerful study of the intrinsic worth of a queen." Theresa Earenfight, Professor Emerita of History, Seattle University.

Late medieval queens required considerable economic and financial resources, to enable them to dispense patronage, exercise power and influence, and establish and maintain political and social networks. This book examines the nature and usage of these resources, via an in-depth study of the reigns of three queens consort from the second half of the fifteenth century in England - Margaret of Anjou, Elizabeth Woodville and Elizabeth of York - considering how the queens were supported in material terms, and their impact on the economic landscape of the period. It surveys in detail the economic assets available to these queens, including dower lands, monetary and non-monetary grants, and queens' gold, before moving on to a discussion of two major entities - households and affinities - which they needed to maintain. It both sheds light on individual queens and on broader questions of authority and agency in late-medieval English queenship.

Review Quotes

Seah's important book richly documents and deftly analyzes the complex household economies of four fifteenth-century queens consort of England who lived during a period of political and economic upheaval. This book, based on impressive meticulous research, is more than just a much-needed methodological model for studying queenly finances that fills a gap in the historiography of queenship. It is a powerful study of the intrinsic worth of a queen.--Theresa Eahrenfight, Professor Emerita of History, Seattle University