Stephen Alford is a British historian and academic specializing in early modern British history. His work delves deeply into the pivotal moments and figures of this era, seeking to uncover their motivations and subsequent impact. Through meticulous research and engaging narrative, he brings the complexities of the society and politics of the time to life for readers. His analytical approach and emphasis on historical context make his writings a valuable resource for understanding British history.
The acclaimed and enthralling story of the dark side of Elizabethan rule, from Stephen Alford Elizabeth I's reign is known as a golden age, yet to much of Europe she was a 'Jezebel' and heretic who had to be destroyed. This title is a portrayal of the secret state that sought to protect the Queen; a shadow world of spies, codebreakers and more.
Edward VI, the only son of Henry VIII, became king at the age of nine and died wholly unexpectedly at the age of fifteen. This book gives full play to the murky, sinister nature of Edward's reign, and also an account of a boy learning to rule, learning to enjoy his growing power and to come out of the shadows of the great aristocrats around him.
From the acclaimed author of The Watchers, the untold story of Robert Cecil - the ultimate Tudor spy-master Robert Cecil, statesman and spymaster, lived through an astonishingly threatening period in English history. Queen Elizabeth had no clear successor and enemies both external and internal threatened to destroy England as a Protestant state, most spectacularly with the Spanish Armada and the Gunpowder Plot. Cecil stood at the heart of the Tudor and then Stuart state, a vital figure in managing the succession from Elizabeth I to James I & VI, warding off military and religious threats and steering the decisions of two very different but equally wilful and hard-to-manage monarchs. The promising son of Queen Elizabeth's chief minister Lord Burghley, for Cecil there was no choice but politics, and he became supremely skilled in the arts of power, making many rivals and enemies. All His Spies is a wonderfully engaging and original work of history. Many readers are familiar with the great events of this tumultuous time, but All His Spies shows how easily these dramas could have turned out very differently. Cecil's sureness of purpose, his espionage network and good luck all conspired to keep England uninvaded and to create a new 'British' monarchy which has endured to the present day.