The Stolen Crown

 

The Stolen Crown: Treachery, Deceit & the Death of the Tudor Dynasty- Tracy Borman

Hodder & Stoughton

Release Date: November 4, 2025

Rating: 📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: In March 1603, Queen Elizabeth I, the last Tudor monarch, lies dying at Richmond Palace. The queen's ministers cluster round her bedside, urging her to name her successor - something she has stubbornly resisted throughout her reign. Almost with her last breath she whispers that James VI of Scotland should succeed her. She dies shortly afterwards and the throne of England passes peacefully from Tudor to Stuart.

Or so we've been led to believe . . .

But, as enthralling new research shows, this is not what happened. In the years that followed, history was literally re-written on the orders of James VI to hide the Elizabeth went to her grave without formally naming an heir. The notion of an approved succession from Tudors to Stuarts is little more than an elaborately constructed fiction.
And so James's rule in England began with a lie - a lie that went on to have devastating consequences. The Stuart regime rapidly descended into turbulence and uncertainty, conspiracy and persecution, witchcraft and gunpowder - culminating in the destruction of the monarchy in the English Civil War.

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Tracy Borman (Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him) is one of my favorite historians, so I was very excited to get her new take on Elizabeth I's succession. We've all been taught that she named James VI of Scotland her heir as she lay dying and the crown peacefully transferred over to him. But Borman's new book reports on work done by the British Library, showing that this is a story James ensured was passed around well into his reign- in order to keep him on the throne.

The Stolen Crown follows Elizabeth I's reign with the focus solely on how it reflected on who she would name her heir. Over the decades Elizabeth was pressed to marry and have children of her own, and/or to name successors to the crown. The chaos of the Wars of the Roses were still fresh enough in people minds that they didn't want to go through that again, and there were multiple candidates with potential claims of varying strength (despite Henry VIII doing his best to kill them all off while he was in power). Who rose or fell in Elizabeth's favor, moving nearer or farther to the throne, might surprise some readers. 

I was surprised by how active in the succession Eilzabeth's council became in the last few years of her reign, though in retrospect it does make sense. The fact that they managed to keep their dealings a secret from Elizabeth is perhaps the greater surprise. Did they, or did she let them think so? I learned more here about James than I'd ever known before- and while all of it fascinating, none of it to his advantage! It was really interesting to learn that in trying to firm up his claim on the throne once he had it, James is perhaps one of the people largely responsible for the image of "Good Queen Bess" that we still have today.

Brilliantly researched, engagingly written, The Stolen Crown is a must read for history lovers!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

 

Winston and the Windsors

 

Winston and the Windsors: How Churchill Shaped a Royal Dynasty- Andrew Morton

Hanover Square Press

Release Date: October 21, 2025

Rating: 📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Few figures in British history have been so deeply and consequentially involved with the British royal family as Winston Churchill. Churchill was unique in his helping to shape not only a single reign but an entire royal dynasty.

However, it was by no means a seamless relationship. At times, the royals treated him with suspicion and contempt; at others they were avuncular, competitive and cheering. Yet whether he was playing the role of antagonist to the royal family or that of trusted confidante, the Prime Minister's influence was central to the twentieth-century history of the monarchy. This is drama of the first order, at times thrilling and always compelling.

Winston and the Windsors marks the first dual biography of Winston Churchill alongside the royal family. Having unearthed much under-appreciated archival material – including diary entries, postcards and letters to and from Kings, Queens and princes – Morton presents a meticulously researched biography of a royal house and a beloved Prime Minister.

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I've read many books on Winston Churchill, but this is the first I've read that focuses specifically on his relationship with the royal family- not as The Monarchy, but as individuals. In following his career there are certainly cases where his influence did help shape the monarchy's path, particularly during World War II, but it was the individual stories I found most interesting.

  

Churchill was born during the reign of Queen Victoria and his parents were close friends with her eldest son, the Prince of Wales and future King Edward VII. While I knew Edward and Churchill's mother Jennie had a close friendship, I'd never known how close the relationship between Edward and Winston was. Even after becoming king, Edward took the time to offer nearly parternal advise and praise to young Winston- something he never received from his own father. That section was perhaps my favorite to read for the new knowledge I gained and the stories it shared. 

As a rising politician Churchill frequently clashed in his thoughts and policy ideals with the reigning monarch (especially George V!) and Morton includes notes and diary entries from George V with his thoughts on Churchill that were less than complementary at times. But each man was able to separate politics from the personal and it was fascinating to watch their developing relationships on different fronts.

Much of the information covering the Abdication Crisis, Winston's relationship with David (Edward VIII) and George VI wasn't new but still presented well. And within the context of the book it put a different spin on things I already knew. Morton goes deeply, if briefly into Churchill's relationship with Queen Elizabeth II and I greatly enjoyed that section- again the context of the book helped me see things I knew as well as new information (maybe just new to me) in new and interesting ways.

Winston and the Windsors is more than a new biography of Winston Churchill. It is a biography of the Windsor family and the monarchy throughout the first part of the 20th century, and the huge part that Churchill played in keeping it a strong institution in trying times. Anyone interested in Churchill, the British royal family, and 20th century Briish history should read the carefully researched and entertainingly written book.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review