title: The Hidden Lives of Tudor Women: A Social History
author:  Elizabeth Norton 
description: An absorbing look not only at the powerful women of that era, but everyday life for women throughout Tudor society.<br /> - <strong><em>Minneapolis Star Tribune</em></strong><br /><br />Without romanticizing the era, Nortons biography of the Tudor Everywoman weaves together the lives of well-known figures to lesser-known women. A captivating, inspiring and informative summer read not only for fans of Tudor England, but also those who are facing insurmountable obstacles themselvesand are looking to craft fulfilling lives for themselves.<br /> - <strong><em>Ms. Magazine</em></strong><br /><br />Queens, servants, widows, nuns, harlots, and more are depicted in a rich tapestry of meticulous scholarship, historical detail, and insightful observations. Anyone interested in expanding and enriching her of his view of the Tudor era will enjoy Nortons skillfully written study.<br /> - <strong><em>Booklist</em></strong><br /><br />Engrossing and charming. By uncovering all the tiny, painstaking day-to-day details of these varied existences, Norton has constructed something inspiring.<br /> - <strong><em>British Heritage Travel</em></strong><br /><br />Tells an alternately fascinating and repugnant story of this exciting period.<br /> - <strong><em>New Criterion</em></strong><br /><br />Thought-provoking. Norton tells the stories of her characters with tremendous energy, wonderfully fleshing out the details of how non-royal women made their way through life in a world entirely, legally dominated by men. The combination of the multi-part main lives of the book and all these fleshing-out digressions builds into something truly impressive, as broad and complete a picture of what it was like to be a woman in Tudor times as readers are likely to get with the documentary evidence we currently possess.<br /> - <strong><em>Open Letters Monthly</em></strong><br /><br />In these absorbing and well-researched portraits, Norton juxtaposes the experiences of prominent and ordinary women across the social, economic, and religious spectra during the Tudor period. Norton weaves her stories with an expert hand and illuminates many rarely discussed aspects of daily life for Tudor women.<br /> - <strong><em>Publishers Weekly</em></strong><br /><br />Norton provides further evidence of her position as a leading authority on Tudor history. Highly recommended for readers interested in the time period.<br /> - <strong><em>Library Journal</em></strong><br /><br />A satisfying series of historical vignettes.<br /> - <strong><em>Kirkus Reviews</em></strong>
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  THE LIVES OF TUDOR WOMEN
  
  Elizabeth Norton
  
  
  > [Start Reading](index_split_001.html#filepos1357)
  
  
  > [About this Book](index_split_001.html#filepos1357)
  
  
  > [About the Author](index_split_060.html#filepos1321169)
  
  
  > [Table of Contents](index_split_003.html#filepos2899)
  
  
  [www.headofzeus.com](http://www.headofzeus.com)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [About The Lives of Tudor Women](index_split_003.html#filepos2899)
  
  The turbulent Tudor age never fails to capture the imagination. But what was
  it actually like to be a woman during this period?
  
  This was a time when death in infancy or during childbirth was rife; when
  marriage was usually a legal contract, not a matter for love; and the
  education of women was minimal at best. Yet the Tudor century was also
  dominated by powerful and characterful women in a way that no era had been
  before.
  
  Elizabeth Norton explores the seven ages of the Tudor woman, from childhood to
  old age, through the diverging examples of women such as Elizabeth Tudor,
  Henr