The Fall of Anne Boleyn: A Countdown

I've been interested in Anne Boleyn for over a decade now. and recently stumbled across Ms. Ridgeway's YouTube videos, which led me to her work as an author. I love the obvious care she puts into her research and find her conversational way of presenting history to be very appealing a relatable. Though the book is packed with information and interesting facts, there is a heart to the writing that really helped me to reach back through time and feel connected to the fascinating woman known as Anne Boleyn.Well done. I just purchased three of her other books and amlooking forward to cracking them open!

This was well written with a lot of quotes from primary sources so the author has clearly done extensive research. But it felt more like a collection of blog entries (which may very well be the case). I think it could have been edited differently to flow better rather than having short, choppy chapters that were sometimes only a page or two long.Occasionally, I felt it was a little vague in places where I was interested in seeing more detail. For example, the author details how others have come to the conclusion that Henry's jousting accident was the sole cause of the decline of his character and health and then states that it is "more likely a combination of factors" and that it "cannot be blamed on that one accident". While I agree with this statement, I prepared myself for a detailed explanation as to what these other factors were and why they contributed to Henry's physical and mental decline. But then the chapter promptly ended and jumped to a chapter on Anne's last miscarriage and the subject was never really revisited. I realize Henry's physical and character decline mostly occurred after Anne Boleyn's death and outside the focal point of this book. But if it was worth going into all the detail about how other historians feel the jousting accident is the sole cause, why isn't it worth going into detail about why the author disagrees? Don't open a topic and then leave your readers hanging with a tantalizing, unexplained statement.The other thing I took issue with a little bit was how the author handled the biases from various sources. In the beginning, the author points out that only primary sources can really be relied upon for accuracy and even those must be taken in with consideration to any bias from them. Very true. But the author is quick to point out these biases, however obvious they may be, when they are against Anne Boleyn while at the same time uses secondary sources to regularly quote comments in favor of Anne and her innocence, skirting the issue of any bias. For example, there are several quotes from George Wyatt in favor of Anne but the author only briefly mentions that they were written during Elizabeth I's reign and fails to mention at all that George wasn't even born until 14 years after Anne's execution. Of course a writer in Elizabeth's reign is going to write favorable things about his queen's own mother. But this doesn't even seem to be taken into consideration. That is not to say I disagree with the author's attempt to rehabilitate Anne's reputation. Just that if she wishes to be taken seriously, she should be a bit more upfront about quotes that have a clear bias in favor of her view point, not just the ones that have a bias that conflict with her personal agenda.The subtitle of the book is "A Countdown" and it does succeed at that. It felt like a countdown or timeline of events leading up to Anne's execution. It has an actual timeline in the beginning and short summaries of all the major players involved in the fall of Anne Boleyn, which are great for reference.While the title does indicate a focus on the fall of Anne Boleyn, a small time period, so you might expect it to be short, Alison Weir's similarly titled "The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn" is nearly twice it's length (of course, Weir's is also more than double the price). This should serve as a good reference or introduction, especially for a low price. But if you're looking for something a bit more comprehensive, Weir's similar biography might be a better choice (though I admit I haven't read it).

Hello Claire! I know you read all the reviews and I want to say that I also watch your YouTube vids a lot with my wife and we think you are super sweet and pleasant as well as knowledgeable and educative. I'm an American living in NY and a history freak. I love all types of history but American and British history are my favorites. In fact I consider them one and the same and I always say that it's impossible to truly understand American history without also knowing English history. I've never been to England but I would like to go and see all the history. America and England are family and the founders, caretakers of liberty in the world. Thank God for both nations.As far as the book I would like to say that I found it very informative and emotional compelling as I felt drawn in to the tragedy. I already know a great deal about the tudor era but was thrilled to find many new nuggets of information to add to the picture! Really enjoyed the book especially because I can tell from YouTube that you are a very sweet woman and felt like I was spending time with you. 😊 On the debit side there were some grammatical errors that may have been from whoever put the book to digital format perhaps? Also it was occasionally redundant but only in a minor way. I have many questions about the Tudor era that I wish I could ask you and your opinions also. Is there a way to contact you? Perhaps email? Mine is [email protected] if perhaps that would be acceptable to you?P.s. I am about to begin reading your George Boleyn book and looking forward to it! IJerry

Well, I must say this is a slightly fresh new look into the downfall of Anne Boleyn. However, I do feel that it was not necessary to give a detailed account on all the men that were executed with Anne (such as the different titles and lands that each person owned). A small look into their lives would've been enough. Now, what got my attention was the affair of Jane and Henry. I feel (in my opinion) that something must have taken place between Jane and Henry at Wolf Hall. I'm not sure if Anne did catch Jane sitting on Henry's knee(four months after they both had visited Wolf Hall) and the author does not mention Anne ripping a necklace off Jane's neck (a locket of Henry's picture is what Jane was wearing). I feel that Henry grew tired of Anne's temper, her lack of being able to give the king a male heir, and had decided to move on from her. Yet, he could not tell Anne or anyone in her circle these things. I believe Henry had to be on the side of God (in his mind) and so they both were one in the same page. He wanted Anne to feel comfortable, to believe that everything was okay, and then strike her down to nothing. He did the same to his first wife Katherine of Aragon. She didn't even know about the talk of a pending divorce to much later. Henry did things quietly, and only told those that he could trust with the upmost care. The same can be said of Anne. Henry would not want the world to know that he had risked everything to get Anne, and now wanted to be rid of her. That would make him look incompetent. So, he gave Thomas Cromwell permission to investigate the allegation or rumors that were made against the queen. As for letting Anne die, there's no way Henry could stand to be seen as a cuckold husband with a wife that allegedly took over 100 lovers (I Never believed this rumor). Anyway, good read and I would recommended it to my friends.

I've always been saddened by the events of May 1536. Reading this book has ensured increased sadness, as well as the addition of another emotion—anger. Claire Ridgway does a great job of explaining the contemporary sources, presenting logical, persuasive arguments. The countdown lays everything out clearly. Something else Claire does is remind us of the spouses, children, parents, siblings, friends, etc. who were left to grieve after the brutal end of six lives. Claire is an admirer of Anne's, but she doesn't let her off the hook (e.g. her part in implicating Francis Weston, her reckless "dead men's shoes" comment, how calculating she could be, etc.). Nevertheless, I can't fathom anyone coming out of this great read with no sympathy for Anne & the men accused with her. If only the likes of Claire could've been around back then to argue the case for their innocence. She did them proud with 'The Fall of Anne Boleyn: A Countdown'.

I've been following Claire's 'On this day in Tudor history' series for a year or so which I've really enjoyed so I decided to give one of her books a go.Her style of writing is easy to follow and understand. I liked the diary aspect of the book as it told the story of Anne Boleyn's fall in chronological order.I'd recommend this book for anyone interested in Anne Boleyn's story who wants to read a book that isn't pretentious or verbose, one that just tells the story in a way that we all understand.

I have given this book four stars as it has editing problems, is too repetitive in places and has some historical errors. For example, Sir John Seymour was not dead by the time of the visit in 1535, he died in December 1536.Having said this the book is well researched, many of the sources are made accessible and the book is a well constructed countdown of the last months of the life of Anne Boleyn. We are given a full account of the events leading to her fall, trial and death from the documents available, the inside view around Anne, and the betrayal she suffered at the hands of some who had enabled her rise to power. For example the author asks who was ultimately responsible for Anne's fall, Thomas Cromwell, with whom Anne fell out over public policy, the King, who at the end of the day was in charge and gave the orders, a conspiracy of the Conservative factions gathering around Jane Seymour or Anne herself, by her implied behaviour? All scenarios are evaluated using the available contemporary sources and modern authorities.The book is not a biography, nor an indepth new investigation but an honest and accessible chronology of the tense events which gave rise to the deaths of six innocent people on the orders of Henry Viii. It is a detailed bringing together of all of the evidence in one place, concentrating on the period between the Summer progress of 1535 and the final days of May 1536 when Henry married his third wife, Jane Seymour. Using the count down almost as a diary of each important event, on an almost daily basis, we are given a brief explanation of what happened, why it is important and are shown evidence from a contemporary source to back up these events. However, we are left to make up our own minds as to any interpretation of those sources. There is an introduction to the main historical characters involved in the fall of Anne Boleyn at the start of the book and finally we are reintroduced to them during the crucial 19 days in May of intense investigations, questioning and trials, as to how they fit in here as well and their connection to each other. I am not certain we needed a second complete overview of each cast member, but with the formatting problems on Kindle at the time, this was helpful to readers in this format. A new edition would not need this as Kindle have now resolved this problem, making earlier information in books easier to access without losing your current position. The day to day account as the execution nears enables the reader to feel as if they are experiencing the tension and distress felt by all six of the prisoners at their side. It is an accessible format and makes this an excellent source book for the last days of Anne Boleyn.The account is gripping, accurate, a good read, and displays the authors empathy for her subject, as well as her enthusiastic determination to allow the reader to share in the last traumatic days of Anne Boleyn.

I absolutely love and admire Queen Anne Boleyn. I am sooo glad that people are finally hearing the truth about the way she was maligned and finally murdered.Grateful thanksto Claire Ridgwayand all the other historians and authors who have exposed Henry V111 and his cronies and told Queen Anne's story.

What a fantastic book. I have just discovered Claire and I am so pleased by that. I have always loved history and Claire’s books are amazing in that they read like a fiction book but are historically correct and her sources are given.She has treated Queen Anne with the kindness and compassion that she deserves as someone who was innocent and yet beheaded.I am also watching Claire’s daily Y videos on you tube at the Anne Boleyn files and thoroughly recommend them too.Brilliant book and brilliant author