The Lives of the Kings and Queens of England - Antonia Fraser

THE LIVES OF THE KINGS AND QUEENS OF ENGLAND is the glorious pageant of almost one thousand years of England’s history, told through the lives and deeds of her sovereigns. Here in a sweep of colourful episodes are the stories of the many monarchs, some merry, some cruel, some heroic or sinister or perverse, who span ten great dynasties from the invading Normans in 1066 to the House of Windsor today.

Antonia Fraser, whose superb biographies of Mary Queen of Scots, Cromwell and James vI have established her as a leading historian, introduces the book, and has chosen the eight specialist contributors who bring alive the complex characters of both well-loved figures like Henry vIlI and Victoria and the fascinating, little-known medieval monarchs such as the debauched Edward Il and the enigmatic Richard III.

A particularly attractive feature of the book is the group of coloured illustrations of the royal coats of arms, drawn under the supervision of J.P. Brooke-Little, Richmond Herald of Arms, who explains their origins and significance. Richly illustrated with colour and black-and-white pictures, this book is a glittering celebration of a thousand years of royalty.