--- product_id: 348875 title: "The Life of Elizabeth I" price: "€ 39.25" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.pt/products/348875-the-life-of-elizabeth-i store_origin: PT region: Portugal --- # Deep dive into Elizabethan era NYT Bestseller status Reveals hidden truths & myths The Life of Elizabeth I **Price:** € 39.25 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > 👑 Unlock the secrets of England’s most enigmatic queen — before everyone else does! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Life of Elizabeth I - **How much does it cost?** € 39.25 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.pt](https://www.desertcart.pt/products/348875-the-life-of-elizabeth-i) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Masterful Storytelling:** Award-winning historian Alison Weir crafts a narrative that’s both scholarly and captivating for modern readers. - • **Unrivaled Historical Depth:** Meticulously researched biography that brings Queen Elizabeth I’s complex reign to vivid life. - • **Cultural & Political Context:** Explores Elizabeth’s navigation of religious upheaval, assassination plots, and power dynamics with razor-sharp intellect. - • **Exclusive Insights & Revelations:** Provocative new interpretations challenge myths about the Virgin Queen’s private life and political savvy. - • **Immersive Elizabethan Experience:** Richly detailed backdrop of court intrigue, war, and cultural renaissance that shaped a nation. ## Overview The Life of Elizabeth I is a New York Times bestselling historical biography by Alison Weir that offers a meticulously researched, richly detailed portrait of Queen Elizabeth I. It explores her private nature, political genius, and the turbulent Elizabethan era, blending fresh insights with captivating storytelling to reveal the woman behind the legend. ## Description NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • An intimate, captivating biography of Queen Elizabeth I that brings the enigmatic ruler to vivid life, from “the finest historian of English monarchical succession writing” ( The Boston Globe ) “An extraordinary piece of historical scholarship.” —The Cleveland Plain Dealer Perhaps the most influential sovereign England has ever known, Queen Elizabeth I remained an extremely private person throughout her reign, keeping her own counsel and sharing secrets with no one—not even her closest, most trusted advisers. Now, in this brilliantly researched, fascinating chronicle, Alison Weir shares provocative new interpretations and fresh insights on this enigmatic figure. Against a lavish backdrop of pageantry and passion, intrigue and war, Weir dispels the myths surrounding Elizabeth I and examines the contradictions of her character. Elizabeth I loved the Earl of Leicester, but did she conspire to murder his wife? She called herself the Virgin Queen, but how chaste was she through dozens of liaisons? She never married—was her choice to remain single tied to the chilling fate of her mother, Anne Boleyn? An enthralling epic, The Life of Elizabeth I is a mesmerizing, stunning chronicle of a trailblazing monarch. Review: Superb - Having read Weir's non-fiction, The Princes in the Tower, and thoroughly enjoyed it, I knew that this biography of Queen Elizabeth I would be worth investing in as well. It was much more than that. Impeccably researched and beautifully written, Weir's work on arguably one of the most significant English historical figures is a tour de force. Commencing before Elizabeth's birth in order to provide a familial, cultural, social and religious context for the monarch she was to become, Weir quickly establishes the fraught times into which the second daughter of Henry VIII was born. The period leading up to Elizabeth's ascension to the throne is well known: the decapitation of her mother, Anne Boleyn, for apparent treason when she was only three; her half-brother Edward VI becoming king at nine, dying at 15 and, in order to ensure England remain Protestant removing his sisters', Catholic Mary and Protestant Elizabeth from the succession in favour of his cousin Lady Jane Grey; Lady Jane's ousting in favour of Mary after only nine days; England plunging into religious schism as Catholicism was restored and heretics burned, suspicion of heresy and treason falling upon young Elizabeth, who living with Henry's last wife, Katherine Parr had to endure the unwelcome (?) sexual attentions of her step-mother's new husband Thomas Seymour, as well as having to hide her Protestant leanings from her older sister- and that's just some of the events! Witness to so much turmoil, when Elizabeth finally took the throne at 25, in 1558, it's no wonder that she took a more moderate line on religion, refusing 'to open windows on men's souls' or that she was reluctant to relinquish her unexpected but hard won autonomy and power to a husband. After 'Bloody Mary's' reign, Elizabeth was regarded by many as a saviour of the country, but her sex was always, even by those who respected her fierce intellect, ability with languages, and creativity (she was a gifted poet, musician and translator of the classics) struggled with her sex. Weir carefully explores the way Elizabeth kept both the Privy Council and the Commons dancing to her tune, enduring and appearing to consider their constant demand for her to find a husband and thus produce an heir while actually procrastinating continuously. Weir offers both psychological and practical reasons for Elizabeth's 'Virgin Queen' status that are fascinating and plausible. Virgin or not, 'Gloriana' enjoyed and encouraged the attentions of men and was a consummate flirt. Men were attracted to her power and, one imagines initially at least, her beauty. Robert Dudley, the Earl Of Leicester, his “stepson”, the Earl of Essex, Raleigh, Drake, foreign princes and dukes came into her orbit, but only a fortunate few were not destroyed by the encounter. Mercurial, demanding, vain, whip smart and with an enormous capacity to understand her people, proud, generous, haughty, Elizabeth was a handful. Prone to tears and tantrums, she also succumbed to flattery, particularly in her declining years. Not all men fell for or pretended to yield for her charms (though none could deny her intelligence) and the queen, Weir makes clear, had a knack for surrounding herself with talented and loyal men such as William Cecil (Lord Burghley), his son, Robert, and Francis Walsingham. Women too, while not Elizabeth's preferred company to keep, were among some of her closest and most beloved companions, such as Kat Ashby. Earning the love of her people, the enmity of Catholic Europe, and the grudging admiration of her closest counselors, Elizabeth ruled England for decades, escaping assassination attempts, rebellions and Catholic uprisings, two papal bulls, never mind the Spanish Armada and countless attempts to marry her off. Weir not only gives us a fabulous portrait of the queen on the throne, but the woman beneath the white make-up, wigs and sumptuous gowns. This is a marvellous biography that brings Elizabeth and the period to which she gave name to life. The problems - famine, greed, failed harvests, plague, disease, Catholicism - and the triumphs - the flourishing of the arts (theatre, writing, poetry, pamphlets, music, art) exploration, creativity, firmer establishment of the Protestant faith - with her unerring eye, gifted imagination and erudite mind. This is for lovers of history and those who enjoy a terrific read. Review: I enjoyed this - I can't say this book was a quick read; even though I'm normally a speedy reader, this took me almost two weeks to plow through. I didn't once set it aside in favor of something else, though, which is a big mark in its favor. One negative, that I'm hesitant to even call "negative" since it's certainly not the author's fault, is that QE1's court had so very many people passing through that it was hard to keep them straight; this wasn't a novel where the characters were introduced in a way that supported the story! As hard as it could be at times to keep track of who's who - especially when you've got people who take up titles in favor of their names - I will say it gave a vivid picture of what life in the Elizabethan court must have been like. It also did a very nice job of taking the legend that is QE1 and making her real. Weir was very careful to refer to her sources to back up the assertions she made, and she was similarly careful to point guesses out as guesses, and explain how she came to her conclusions. I suspect that while, on the one hand, someone very familiar with QE1's life (in a way I was not) wouldn't necessarily get much new information out of this...but on the other hand, I, who wanted the straight story rather than new tidbits, was personally reassured when I didn't have to work too hard at figuring out what to be skeptical of. The writing itself was well done as well. Weir didn't use Elizabethan English (except for the direct quotes), but she did manage to strike a tone that wasn't wholly modern, either. (Her insertions of definitions for her quotes, when they contained wholly unfamiliar words the average person couldn't be expected to puzzle out using context clues, was also appreciated.) Incidentally, I also enjoyed the author's note at the end, where she critiques modern day films about QE1, and points out which are at least somewhat factual and which are made up out of whole cloth. I'm a little abashed to admit that it was one of the latter that got me interested in the queen in the first place, but I'm happy to have been set straight. It's funny how, in some ways, that era is so different from what we have that it was almost like reading a fantasy. And then something else would come along that shows how little politics have changed. This was a glimpse into a fascinating era of history, one that fleshed out some of the vague stuff from old history lessons (the defeat of the armada, Henry's wives...), and it was dense and informative and engaging all at the same time. I'll certainly be hunting down more of Alison Weir's work. ## Features - Historical novel about the life of Queen Elizabeth I who was known as a very private person. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #66,918 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #70 in England History #90 in Historical British Biographies #95 in Royalty Biographies | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 2,538 Reviews | ## Images ![The Life of Elizabeth I - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91jURSmH+eL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Superb *by K***B on October 11, 2013* Having read Weir's non-fiction, The Princes in the Tower, and thoroughly enjoyed it, I knew that this biography of Queen Elizabeth I would be worth investing in as well. It was much more than that. Impeccably researched and beautifully written, Weir's work on arguably one of the most significant English historical figures is a tour de force. Commencing before Elizabeth's birth in order to provide a familial, cultural, social and religious context for the monarch she was to become, Weir quickly establishes the fraught times into which the second daughter of Henry VIII was born. The period leading up to Elizabeth's ascension to the throne is well known: the decapitation of her mother, Anne Boleyn, for apparent treason when she was only three; her half-brother Edward VI becoming king at nine, dying at 15 and, in order to ensure England remain Protestant removing his sisters', Catholic Mary and Protestant Elizabeth from the succession in favour of his cousin Lady Jane Grey; Lady Jane's ousting in favour of Mary after only nine days; England plunging into religious schism as Catholicism was restored and heretics burned, suspicion of heresy and treason falling upon young Elizabeth, who living with Henry's last wife, Katherine Parr had to endure the unwelcome (?) sexual attentions of her step-mother's new husband Thomas Seymour, as well as having to hide her Protestant leanings from her older sister- and that's just some of the events! Witness to so much turmoil, when Elizabeth finally took the throne at 25, in 1558, it's no wonder that she took a more moderate line on religion, refusing 'to open windows on men's souls' or that she was reluctant to relinquish her unexpected but hard won autonomy and power to a husband. After 'Bloody Mary's' reign, Elizabeth was regarded by many as a saviour of the country, but her sex was always, even by those who respected her fierce intellect, ability with languages, and creativity (she was a gifted poet, musician and translator of the classics) struggled with her sex. Weir carefully explores the way Elizabeth kept both the Privy Council and the Commons dancing to her tune, enduring and appearing to consider their constant demand for her to find a husband and thus produce an heir while actually procrastinating continuously. Weir offers both psychological and practical reasons for Elizabeth's 'Virgin Queen' status that are fascinating and plausible. Virgin or not, 'Gloriana' enjoyed and encouraged the attentions of men and was a consummate flirt. Men were attracted to her power and, one imagines initially at least, her beauty. Robert Dudley, the Earl Of Leicester, his “stepson”, the Earl of Essex, Raleigh, Drake, foreign princes and dukes came into her orbit, but only a fortunate few were not destroyed by the encounter. Mercurial, demanding, vain, whip smart and with an enormous capacity to understand her people, proud, generous, haughty, Elizabeth was a handful. Prone to tears and tantrums, she also succumbed to flattery, particularly in her declining years. Not all men fell for or pretended to yield for her charms (though none could deny her intelligence) and the queen, Weir makes clear, had a knack for surrounding herself with talented and loyal men such as William Cecil (Lord Burghley), his son, Robert, and Francis Walsingham. Women too, while not Elizabeth's preferred company to keep, were among some of her closest and most beloved companions, such as Kat Ashby. Earning the love of her people, the enmity of Catholic Europe, and the grudging admiration of her closest counselors, Elizabeth ruled England for decades, escaping assassination attempts, rebellions and Catholic uprisings, two papal bulls, never mind the Spanish Armada and countless attempts to marry her off. Weir not only gives us a fabulous portrait of the queen on the throne, but the woman beneath the white make-up, wigs and sumptuous gowns. This is a marvellous biography that brings Elizabeth and the period to which she gave name to life. The problems - famine, greed, failed harvests, plague, disease, Catholicism - and the triumphs - the flourishing of the arts (theatre, writing, poetry, pamphlets, music, art) exploration, creativity, firmer establishment of the Protestant faith - with her unerring eye, gifted imagination and erudite mind. This is for lovers of history and those who enjoy a terrific read. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ I enjoyed this *by M***. on July 10, 2014* I can't say this book was a quick read; even though I'm normally a speedy reader, this took me almost two weeks to plow through. I didn't once set it aside in favor of something else, though, which is a big mark in its favor. One negative, that I'm hesitant to even call "negative" since it's certainly not the author's fault, is that QE1's court had so very many people passing through that it was hard to keep them straight; this wasn't a novel where the characters were introduced in a way that supported the story! As hard as it could be at times to keep track of who's who - especially when you've got people who take up titles in favor of their names - I will say it gave a vivid picture of what life in the Elizabethan court must have been like. It also did a very nice job of taking the legend that is QE1 and making her real. Weir was very careful to refer to her sources to back up the assertions she made, and she was similarly careful to point guesses out as guesses, and explain how she came to her conclusions. I suspect that while, on the one hand, someone very familiar with QE1's life (in a way I was not) wouldn't necessarily get much new information out of this...but on the other hand, I, who wanted the straight story rather than new tidbits, was personally reassured when I didn't have to work too hard at figuring out what to be skeptical of. The writing itself was well done as well. Weir didn't use Elizabethan English (except for the direct quotes), but she did manage to strike a tone that wasn't wholly modern, either. (Her insertions of definitions for her quotes, when they contained wholly unfamiliar words the average person couldn't be expected to puzzle out using context clues, was also appreciated.) Incidentally, I also enjoyed the author's note at the end, where she critiques modern day films about QE1, and points out which are at least somewhat factual and which are made up out of whole cloth. I'm a little abashed to admit that it was one of the latter that got me interested in the queen in the first place, but I'm happy to have been set straight. It's funny how, in some ways, that era is so different from what we have that it was almost like reading a fantasy. And then something else would come along that shows how little politics have changed. This was a glimpse into a fascinating era of history, one that fleshed out some of the vague stuff from old history lessons (the defeat of the armada, Henry's wives...), and it was dense and informative and engaging all at the same time. I'll certainly be hunting down more of Alison Weir's work. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Life of Elizabeth I, Allison Weir has done an excellent job as usual *by A***R on April 25, 2014* I thoroughly enjoyed reading this biography and learning about Elizabeth I. This is not a novel but it is an easy history to read. I had many misconceptions about this lady which the book addressed in historically factual information from contemporary sources. Since I have been studying and reading books covering the period of English history from 1066 to present this was a great find and being Alison Weir was an added bonus. Whenever she has written on the time frame that I am currently reading, I rely on her to give me facts in a very readable form and when it is possibly fiction she gives me the sources and their standing in the scholarly literature. The book did a great job of portraying how Elizabeth grew up around the intrigues of Henry VIII's court, when she was in favor, and her and the peoples' great admiration of her father. She loved the processions and the admiration of the people and she understood from this came power. Elizabeth saw and learned from Henry's mistakes as well as those of her siblings, Edward VI and sister Mary I. Henry VIII began the break with the Church in Rome to suit his own needs for a heir and opened the door to Protestantism in England. Then his son's tutor and counselors were able to keep the protestants in power around the child king. When Mary I gains the throne she is determined to turn the religion of her small island back to the Church of Rome, marries a leader of the inquisition, and gets involved in foreign wars which depletes the treasury of England. Therefore Elizabeth understood she could never marry because if she did she would have to relinquish her rule to that of a foreign husband. I particularly enjoyed learning about her private life and appreciate the way the Ms. Weir gave you the facts and allowed you to draw what conclusions you would about the "virgin queen", for real no one knows more. I think since she was introduced to passion in her teens makes the story of her reign so much more poignant because she knew what she sacrificed for her kingdom. Her love and talent for dancing I did not know until I read this book, but the collection of dress I had heard some information on but she like all of us would wear "old comfortable" when she had the chance. Her diplomacy was unique to her personality. Not ever rushed to decisions she learned to use this technique to her advantage, when in doubt, dither. She very well knew that when a monarch gave a decision it was final. I believe that she knew her father regretted and was haunted by the taking of Anne Boleyn's life but he had an agenda. He and the people around him did not know genetics but they had seen the pattern, first babies live then no more live births. I always find the genetics and other modern sciences applied to the historical period I am reading fascinating. All in all this is a very scholarly study of the reign of Elizabeth I and you also get a little peek into her personal life and the times of her era. I hardily recommend the book to the casual reader as well as to the historian. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.pt/products/348875-the-life-of-elizabeth-i](https://www.desertcart.pt/products/348875-the-life-of-elizabeth-i) --- *Product available on Desertcart Portugal* *Store origin: PT* *Last updated: 2026-09-09*