Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury 1473-1541

Born in 1473, Margaret Pole was the daughter of George, duke of Clarence, niece of both Edward IV and Richard III, and the only woman, apart from Anne Boleyn, to hold a peerage title in her own right during the sixteenth century. She was restored by Henry VIII to her executed brother's earldom of Salisbury in 1512. In the 1530s, however, her deep Catholic convictions became increasingly out of favour with Henry and she was executed on a charge of treason in 1541 aged sixty-seven. In 1886, Margaret Pole was among sixty-three martyrs beatified by Pope Leo XIII for not hesitating 'to lay down their lives by shedding of their blood' for the dignity of the Holy See. In this first biography of a significant female figure in the male-dominated world of Tudor politics, Hazel Pierce presents the life and culture of this propertied, titled lady against the social and political background of late Yorkist and early Tudor Britain. Containing important new research on aristocratic life and court politics in the period, and including a complete reappraisal of the so-called 'Exeter conspiracy', Margaret Pole is a major contribution to our understanding of Henry VIII's relationship with the nobility, and the political, social and cultural position of women in sixteenth-century England.

'The oldest woman ever killed by Henry VIII: Margaret Pole, a heroine and a saint, is the subject of this detailed and scholarly biography by Hazel Pierce. I read this while I was researching Margaret Pole for my novel, The King's Curse, and I was moved and impressed by the story of a woman who was the heir to the Plantagenet throne and a defender of their faith.', Philippa Gregory, author of the UK number one best seller (March 2015) The King’s Curse)

'Hazel Pierce's study of Margaret Pole brings to life one of the most powerful and tragic women of the age of Henry VIII. With scholarship and sympathy, the author sets Margaret in her political context: niece, cousin and godmother to kings and queens, independent landed magnate, but daughter, sister and mother of executed traitors ... she evokes the material signs of Margaret's power, her palaces, gardens, clothes and music, to provide a thorough study of an unduly neglected figure.', Steven Gunn, Merton College, Oxford, author of Early Tudor Government 1485-1558

'. . . The capriciousness of the Henrician regime is surely evident here. Margaret emerges from this study as a powerful, principled, and sympathetic character. Hazel Pierce has done an excellent job.', C.S.L. Davies, English Historical Review

'A life of such changing fortunes deserves its biographer; and Hazel Pierce has here produced a thorough and tautly written account ... She illuminates the complexities of Margaret’s position as landed magnate. And she offers a moving account of the fall of the family . . .it is a fine study of a noblewomen who experienced the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune...', G. W.Bernard, History

'Pierce carries us through her life with a combination of scholarship...and a sure hand on the pen...Pierce's writing is never off-putting or stale, and her scholarly tone manages to remain true to her academic environment while never boring the lay reader...[it is] a worthy read, a comprehensive and entertaining evocation of an extraordinary woman...', Renaissance Magazine

'Hazel Pierce’s book is a gripping study of the dramatic life of Margaret Pole, who became the only woman in the 16th century, apart from Anne Boleyn, to hold a peerage in her own right. Hazel Pierce combines her history of Margaret Pole with sympathetic portraits of the people whose personal faults, strengths and actions shaped the course of English politics … Hazel Pierce’s study of Margaret Pole offers a vivid and scholarly evocation of the knife-edge of survival that was politics in the Tudor period.', Dr Sally Crawford, University of Birmingham, Church Times

'Hazel Pierce has produced this scholarly and sympathetic study, painstakingly researched, a clear and attractive piece of historical writing, the assessments and conclusions judicious and fair-minded and supported by evidence. The volume is tastefully produced, commendably free from error both in fact and typography.', Recusant History

'…Pierce’s story is horrifyingly gripping . . .The two halves of this book lead Margaret and her less well-known sons from the dynastic allegiances and enmities of the fifteenth century to the Machiavellian statecraft of mid-Tudor England', Medium Aevum

'This is a balanced and scholarly assessment, which contributes significantly to our understanding of early Tudor politics and of the participation of elite women in the political process at both national and regional levels.', Southern History)

'...a well-researched and interesting discussion...The skillful use of a variety of sources makes this work useful and appropriate for specialists in Tudor/Stuart England, as well as those just beginning their study of the Tudor court and its politics...Pierce has done an excellent job of placing Margaret Pole within her milieu...an important addition to our understanding of not only the life of Margaret Pole, but the politics and dangers of the early Tudor court.', Albion

'...[an] impressive and well-conceived biography...’', Renaissance Quarterly