Book Review: "Katherine Swynford" by Alison Weir

I did a series on the book Henry VIII: King and Court by Alison Weir. A book of many pages, deep and incredible research and I cannot lie, I was immersed from start to finish - my heart and mind was full. Truly a brilliant experience that dropped you deep into the heart of the Tudor realm with all of its politics and intrigue. I then wanted to buy a book that was perhaps about lesser known women and so, I went with her book on Katherine Swynford, the wife and mistress of John of Gaunt. I didn't know what had tempted me to the book apart from the fact that Alison Weir had written it.

We know surprisingly little about Katherine Swynford for a woman who was born wealthy and married the brother of the king. There is a lot that Alison Weir says is either speculation or the most probable thing to have happened, but there's not a lot of hard facts. I appreciate the amount of research that has been done into this book though because it gives us a good story to sink our teeth into. We look at the royal households she served, first Hainault and then Lancaster. We gain access to her life growing up and the possibilities, due to her modest yet noble background, of social mobility. We gain access to the fact that she was widowed. Again though we are told she was most likely married to Hugh Swynford, but of course he died. But it also left the working Katherine with courtly connections she would use to gain access to the Lancaster house and thus, become the mistress of John of Gaunt. It's an interesting story of a woman who works her way around the land, a woman who is constantly turning with thought. I often wondered what was going through her head during these turbulent years - what would she be thinking about John of Gaunt when she became his mistress?

But the relationship temporarily ended during the Peasants' Revolt and at this point, Richard II was king and John of Gaunt was his uncle. Political pressure forced Gaunt to dismiss Katherine but he made a weird sidestep some years later and married her. This was odd to the entire court yes, but it definitely solidified Katherine's position in court more than before, when she could simply be tossed aside. We have to remember, many, many royals can trace their heritage back to Katherine Swynford and yet, she has been forgotten entirely by history for some weird reason. This was a woman whom in her own lifetime, refused to be forgotten or tossed aside. We cannot help but think about the amount of influence she would have had over John of Gaunt to make him turn around and marry her. We cannot pretend that it is not a possibility. Alison Weir definitely writes Katherine as a woman who's individuality makes her powerful and yet, a seemingly lovely person. Flawed, but lovely.

She is not this scheming seductress who manipulated a man of higher standing to marry below his status, but she is a complex figure whom ever move was reliant on her advancing herself forwards. Every monarch from 1461 onwards is related to Katherine Swynford and thus, she should be celebrated a lot more than she actually is. Often sidelined in history behind other more controversial figures such as Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and of course the monolith that was Queen Victoria - Katherine Swynford is perhaps just as important. If I am going to tell you anything about this book it is that if you deny her importance, then this book will show you why you are wrong. Katherine Swynford had so much to say and we know so little about this mother of English monarchy - what we do know and what we can prove feels like a prized treasure.

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading about Katherine Swynford and her journey through life. I will be searching for more about her in the future but for now, I think I might put the historical nonfiction to rest. What a joke that is, of course I'm not going to do that - who do you think I am?