An Unofficial 'The MeatEater Podcast' Reading List

616. Elizabeth I: The Fall of the Axe (Part 1)

November 10, 2025

Description

How did Elizabeth I’s tumultuous early life in the court of her wife murdering father, Henry VIII, influence the rest of her life? What was the nature of the Tudor world she was born into? Why did...
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Books Referenced

The Faerie Queene

Author: Edmund Spenser

Context:

Referenced as 'the great poem, The Fairy Queen, by Edmund Spencer' while discussing Elizabeth I's portrayal as Gloriana and the Amazonian figure Britomart. The poem was written in the 1590s and portrayed Elizabeth in various forms.

Elizabeth: Apprenticeship

Author: David Starkey

Context:

Referenced as 'David Starkey, in his great book on the young Elizabeth Elizabeth apprenticeship' when describing Anne Boleyn's birthing chamber at Greenwich Palace as 'a cross between a chapel and a luxuriously padded cell.'

Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Forever Changed British History

Author: Tracy Borman

Context:

Referenced as 'Tracy Borman, she wrote a brilliant book on Anne Boleyn and her relationship to Elizabeth.' Used when discussing Anne Boleyn's fashion sense and describing her 'irresistible je ne sais quoi.'

Young Elizabeth, Princess, Prisoner, Queen

Author: Nicola Tallis

Context:

Referenced as 'Nicola Tallis, who wrote another great book, Young Elizabeth, Princess, Prisoner, Queen' when discussing Princess Mary's mistreatment by Anne Boleyn and her spending time 'weeping in her chamber.'