Notorious

'An imaginatively compelling investigation of a remarkable Tudor life, shedding sympathetic light on a world where prophecy and divine revelation unleashed dangerous political power' Malcolm Gaskill, author of The Ruin of All Witches

'The enthralling tale of Elizabeth Barton, the most dangerous woman in Henry VIII's England' Amanda Matta

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A daring young nun forces her way into the centre of Henry VIII’s divorce scandal, going head-to-head with Anne Boleyn and becoming one of the Tudors’ most influential power players.
But how did this former housemaid manage to hold such sway? And why was she trying to stop Boleyn achieving ultimate power as queen?
Elizabeth Barton’s shocking rise from poverty to celebrity caught Anne Boleyn and the King off guard. As the dazzling new star of the sixteenth century ‘miracle industry’, this small-town girl became the most notorious influencer of her day. Adored by the public, Barton soon had every Tudor power player under her spell, from Cardinal Wolsey to the pope – until she was silenced by the man she tried to con, Henry VIII.
But was the girl a deluded fantasist, a cold-hearted hoaxer, or was she the victim of her corrupt celebrity managers? Anne Boleyn certainly thought so, which is why, despite Barton’s smear campaign against her quest to save the people of England from a cruel system, Boleyn set out to rescue the girl intent on ruining her.
In this page-turning tale of prophecy, ambition and deceit, historian Hayley Nolan breathes life into the strategic manoeuvres between the housemaid, the king and his mistress – with the Tudor court never recovering from the fallout of this almighty hoax.