Their enemies branded them both murderesses, whores and daughters of the devil. Elizabeth’s supporters anointed her a hero and savior, while Mary’s faithful invested her as a saint and martyr. Reigning side by side, but yet never meeting face-to-face, these queens were inexorably linked in a tumultuous relationship that, until now, has never fully been revealed and explored.
 Elizabeth &amp; Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens is master biographer Jane Dunn’s richly textured portrait of two incredible women. A story of a relationship punctuated by reversals of fortune; murder mysteries; sexual intrigue; reckless behavior, heated battles and cold war, Elizabeth &amp; Mary is staged against a past as dark and dangerous as it was vibrantly alive.
Dunn shows the indissoluble bond between the queens was forged by two opposing forces; their shared inheritance and rivalry for Elizabeth’s crown set against their natural solidarity as ruling females in an overwhelmingly masculine world. She delves behind Elizabeth’s reputation as steely virgin queen, using her celibacy as a weapon, valuing reason and duty above all. She looks at Mary as celebrity queen, femme fatale and flawed heroine, a woman who capped the theatre of her death in a brilliant cloak of redemption. And she corrects many misconceptions about her subjects, revealing Mary as a more serious contender for power than had been previously thought, and Elizabeth as far more vulnerable than her formidable reputation.
Intelligent and completely riveting, this beautifully produced and lavishly illustrated book masterfully juxtaposes the histories of two remarkable women, culminating in tragedy, as Elizabeth the victorhesitantlysigned her cousin’s death warrant.

Elizabeth And Mary

Biographies & Memoirs

Dunn, Jane

Community & Culture

HarperCollins Publishers

This is a joint biography of Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots, their reigns and relationship with each other. These rival queens, both with a claim to the English throne, embodied opposing characteristics, ideals of womanliness and divinely-ordained kingship, resulting in a relationship that is punctuated by murder and psychological and actual warfare. Jane Dunn marks the 400th centenary of Elizabeth's death, by chronicling the intrigues of the lives of the rival "sister queens". Dunn juxtaposes the histories of the two women and the power struggle that continued between them until Elizabeth asserted her authority and, albeit hesitantly, signed Mary's death warrant.

Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

History

Europe

Harpercollins Pub Ltd

Elizabeth & Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

HarperPerennial

The first dual biography of two of the world’s most remarkable women—Elizabeth I of England and Mary Queen of Scots—by one of Britain’s “best biographers” (The Sunday Times). In a rich and riveting narrative, Jane Dunn reveals the extraordinary rivalry between the regal cousins. It is the story of two queens ruling on one island, each with a claim to the throne of England, each embodying dramatically opposing qualities of character, ideals of womanliness (and views of sexuality) and divinely ordained kingship. As regnant queens in an overwhelmingly masculine world, they were deplored for their femaleness, compared unfavorably with each other and courted by the same men. By placing their dynamic and ever-changing relationship at the center of the book, Dunn illuminates their differences. Elizabeth, inheriting a weak, divided country coveted by all the Catholic monarchs of Europe, is revolutionary in her insistence on ruling alone and inspired in her use of celibacy as a political tool—yet also possessed of a deeply feeling nature. Mary is not the romantic victim of history but a courageous adventurer with a reckless heart and a magnetic influence over men and women alike. Vengeful against her enemies and the more ruthless of the two queens, she is untroubled by plotting Elizabeth’s murder. Elizabeth, however, is driven to anguish at finally having to sanction Mary’s death for treason. Working almost exclusively from contemporary letters and writings, Dunn explores their symbiotic, though never face-to-face, relationship and the power struggle that raged between them. A story of sex, power and politics, of a rivalry unparalleled in the pages of English history, of two charismatic women—told in a masterful double biography.

Knopf

"Superb.... A perceptive, suspenseful account." --The New York Times Book Review "Dunn demythologizes Elizabeth and Mary. In humanizing their dynamic and shifting relationship, Dunn describes it as fueled by both rivalry and their natural solidarity as women in an overwhelmingly masculine world." --Boston Herald The political and religious conflicts between Queen Elizabeth I and the doomed Mary, Queen of Scots, have for centuries captured our imagination and inspired memorable dramas played out on stage, screen, and in opera. But few books have brought to life more vividly the exquisite texture of two women’s rivalry, spurred on by the ambitions and machinations of the forceful men who surrounded them. The drama has terrific resonance even now as women continue to struggle in their bid for executive power. Against the backdrop of sixteenth-century England, Scotland, and France, Dunn paints portraits of a pair of protagonists whose formidable strengths were placed in relentless opposition. Protestant Elizabeth, the bastard daughter of Anne Boleyn, whose legitimacy had to be vouchsafed by legal means, glowed with executive ability and a visionary energy as bright as her red hair. Mary, the Catholic successor whom England’s rivals wished to see on the throne, was charming, feminine, and deeply persuasive. That two such women, queens in their own right, should have been contemporaries and neighbours sets in motion a joint biography of rare spark and page-turning power.

VINTAGE

Random House Audio

The first dual biography of two of the world’s most remarkable women—Elizabeth I of England and Mary Queen of Scots—by one of Britain’s “best biographers” (The Sunday Times).In a rich and riveting narrative, Jane Dunn reveals the extraordinary rivalry between the regal cousins. It is the story of two queens ruling on one island, each with a claim to the throne of England, each embodying dramatically opposing qualities of character, ideals of womanliness (and views of sexuality) and divinely ordained kingship. As regnant queens in an overwhelmingly masculine world, they were deplored for their femaleness, compared unfavorably with each other and courted by the same men. By placing their dynamic and ever-changing relationship at the center of the book, Dunn illuminates their differences. Elizabeth, inheriting a weak, divided country coveted by all the Catholic monarchs of Europe, is revolutionary in her insistence on ruling alone and inspired in her use of celibacy as a political tool—yet also possessed of a deeply feeling nature. Mary is not the romantic victim of history but a courageous adventurer with a reckless heart and a magnetic influence over men and women alike. Vengeful against her enemies and the more ruthless of the two queens, she is untroubled by plotting Elizabeth’s murder. Elizabeth, however, is driven to anguish at finally having to sanction Mary’s death for treason. Working almost exclusively from contemporary letters and writings, Dunn explores their symbiotic, though never face-to-face, relationship and the power struggle that raged between them.A story of sex, power and politics, of a rivalry unparalleled in the pages of English history, of two charismatic women—told in a masterful double biography.From the Hardcover edition.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Dunn, Jane. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Dunn, Jane

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Dunn, Jane. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Elizabeth And Mary

Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

Elizabeth & Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens

Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens