CHARLES BEEM. The Lioness Roared: The Problems of Female Rule in English History. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 2006. Pp. viii, 271. $69.95

Abstract

This is a surprisingly good book. I write “surprisingly,” because the book started out with some serious drawbacks. First, individual female rulers have already been extensively discussed; second, Charles Beem has chosen not to devote much attention to the one who excites the most interest, Elizabeth I; and, finally, scholarly accounts that span 700 years of history tend to be uneven in coverage and quality. These might have been fatal flaws if the author had not been an excellent writer and researcher who sticks to specific topics and follows broad analytical outlines rather than allowing himself to get bogged down in detail. The result is highly readable, engaging, and enlightening. One might even consider reading this book purely for pleasure. Beem proposes to examine “the long view of female rulership as a particular category of English kingship” (p. 3). He takes as his primary examples the Empress Matilda, who called herself “Lady of the English,” Queen Mary I, Queen Anne, and Queen Victoria. He concentrates on particular aspects of their rulership, including their relationships with political elites and the roles of their consorts. Elizabeth I, Mary II, and Elizabeth II are dealt with more briefly. Beem uses the oxymoron “female kingship” to describe how women ruled legally as kings, while remaining physically women. He is sensitive to the particular gender constraints under which they toiled, as well as to the changing political systems in which they operated. Female rulers, according to Beem, became more politically acceptable by the 1500s, due to a shift in the understanding of kingship, which was seen less as a personal dominion over territory and more as an impersonal office. None of the women he discusses, however, sought to inspire any changes in gender relations among their subjects. When they expressed opinions on the topic, it was usually to the effect that women other than queens regnant should not be involved in politics.