Determination and success Quote by Philippa Gregory
““It is hard to tell the story of Elizabeth of York without her farbetter-known husband, Henry VII, as the hero. Henry himself, Jasper Tudor, and Thomas Stanley are all described as powerful coherent agents of their own lives, but the enemies that Henry feared—Margaret, Dowager Duchess of Burgundy, and Elizabeth Woodville—are written off as harpies filled with pointless malice, or as women crazed by grief. His greatest supporter, the leader of the anti-York rebellion to put Henry Tudor on his throne, was his mother, Margaret Beaufort—but the conventional histories follow her own declaration that she was wholly guided by God’s will, as if she did not live her life with absolute determination and successful strategy. The rebellion against Richard III that she led has gone down in history as “Buckingham’s Rebellion,” because Margaret Beaufort, as mother of the king of England, used the official court history to cover her tracks as a powerful politician, royal advisor, and treasonous rebel against the Plantagenet kings. For the benefit of her reputation she herself hid her determined and ruthless ambition. She””
About This Quote
Source Historical Novel: The Other Boleyn Girl, 2001
A critique of how women’s agency is minimized in history, focusing on Margaret Beaufort’s strategic power versus patriarchal narratives.
In simple terms: Women’s contributions are often downplayed in historical accounts.
Question and broaden historical narratives.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- academic research
- teaching history
- public discourse
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we uncover hidden female agency?
- What sources reveal alternative perspectives?
Historical records may be incomplete or biased.