Queenship: Politics and Gender in Tudor England

Abstract

In the Tudor century both queens consort and queens regnant presided at court. The role of consorts reflected that of noblewomen, who were expected to produce a male heir to continue their husband's line, to oversee some household functions, to supervise their female attendants, and to support religious enterprises deemed appropriate to women. In addition, their royal status offered consorts opportunities to engage in court politics and to influence patronage. Because giving birth to a male heir defined the success of their reign, their inability to reproduce or to protect their honor sometimes endangered their position as consort, as Henry VIII's wives discovered. By contrast, in addition to marrying and securing the succession, Mary and Elizabeth Tudor were expected to rule as monarchs. The perceived inability of women to govern led to demands that they heed their male councilors’ advice. Concerns about whether her husband would dominate royal decision‐making raised questions about Philip II's role in Mary's reign. Elizabeth compensated for her singleness by devising strategies for dealing with her male councilors and through representations of her public persona as male.

Tudor queenship: Rethinking how power affect Catherine of Aragon and Elizabeth I with foucauldian theories from a feminist perspective

“…Warnicke elevates the prime duty of noblewomen to produce a male heir to continue their husband's line [3]. In the House of Tudors discourse, it means the Tudor Dynasty's future succession.…”

“…In addition, there is an evident conflict between her motherhood and her political persona. During the Tudor Dynasty, motherhood was the consorts' primary duty, whilst the birth of a male heir was crucial to solidifying their position and perpetuating the patriarchal line [3]. Essentially, no matter how successful and helpful Catherine is in assisting Henry in the political and public sphere, all her creditability would be quickly challenged by her failure to produce a son.…”