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She was known by King Henry VIII as "His rose without a thorn", but her life would prove to have many thorns in it. Queen Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of King Henry VIII was a girl queen that was destined for mistakes and heartache. The story of Catherine Howard is more than a story about a queen who made King Henry VIII a cuckhold and encountered the same fate as her cousin, Anne Boleyn, but a story about a lonely and easily manipulated young girl who just wanted to be loved.
"The Rose Without A Thorn", a novel in the series called "The Queens of England" by the expert in historical fiction, Jean Plaidy, is a tale of the tragic Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of King Henry VIII. She was orphaned at a young age and placed into the wild and unsupervised household of the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk which proved disasterous. It is there that young Catherine enters a sexually awakening which she views as love and devotion. A beautiful and naive girl, Catherine gives herself freely to two young men. Her story truly begins when her uncle, the cunning and scheming Duke of Norfolk plots to place her as a mistress to King Henry VIII who was disillusioned with his current wife, Anne of Cleves. The Duke of Norfolk uses the young and pretty Catherine for his political ambitions and she is too scared and innocent to resist. Henry VIII ends up falling in love with Catherine Howard and intends to place her on the throne as his fifth wife. It is a dazzling prospect for the young girl even though her husband is years older than her and is obese and tyrannical at this point. The young queen marries King Henry VIII and becomes Queen of England, but takes pleasure and comfort in a charming young man of the court, her childhood love and cousin, Thomas Culpepper. The great power and prestige Catherine has threatens to reveal all her secrets and the young girl suddenly finds herself facing arrest and death. The young queen dies on the scaffold as a pawn to the powerful people around her and as a lonely young girl.
Jean Plaidy is the best author of historical fiction specifically relating to the monarchy. As time goes by more of her novels are being re-released for the public's pleasure giving us a beautiful, tragic, scandalous, and scheming view of past monarchs, but also giving a historical lesson at the same time. Plaidy's books weave romance, deceit, and history together beautifully. The portrayal of Catherine Howard as an innocent and lovesick girl is a refreshing and accurate portrayal compared to her later portrayals as a bubbleheaded wanton. Plaidy highlights Catherine's devotion and adoration of those who love and protect her, her kind heart, and her awe at the exciting court of King Henry VIII. She even highlights a sweet and tender relationship between the aging king and his young queen before disaster took over. Plaidy also does a fine job of comparing Catherine Howard's tragic story and fate with her cousin Anne Boleyn's same fate. Both cousins were used by their Uncle Norfolk, placed as a mistress for King Henry VIII, became Queen of England, and were ordered to be executed by their husband.
The novel is one of Jean Plaidy's shorter works so it is a quick and easy read. It is a heartbreaking and moving tale of a young queen who you feel like you want to protect and take away from all the manipulative and disappointing people in her life. As with all Plaidy novels, the book is well-researched, historically accurate, and well-written.
Catherine Howard, while having an exciting story meant for the pages of a novel, does not have a large collection of historical fiction novels available on her so this is one of the only stories we get of the poor little doomed queen. A truly compelling story about yet another of Henry VIII's tragic wives.
To purchase "The Rose Without A Thorn":
www.amazon.com/Rose-Without-Thorn-Wives-Henry/dp/0609810170
For more information on Jean Plaidy:
www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl
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