As you may have noticed, I’ve been periodically going through and adding WCW’s on the various English queens that I skipped-for-being-too-big in my series. Last time was Anne Neville, now it’s her successor, Elizabeth of York (1466-1503). She was the eldest daughter of King Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville, and married King Henry VII, thus bringing together the previously-warring houses of Lancaster and York.
Her marriage was a happy one, and she had seven children, four of whom survived into adulthood: Arthur, Prince of Wales; Margaret, Queen of Scotland; King Henry VIII; and Mary, Queen of France. From my brief read, she didn’t play much of a political role and instead focused on her children’s education — but correct me if I’m wrong.
Elizabeth of York has made it to the screen a number of times, both in stories about the Wars of the Roses as well as the founding of the Tudor dynasty:
The Shadow of the Tower (1972)
A BBC miniseries about Henry VII’s reign. Elizabeth was played by Norma West.
Richard III (1995)
An adaptation of the Shakespeare play, set in the 1930s. Kate Steavenson-Payne plays the more minor role as the story focuses on the older generation.
Princes in the Tower (2005)
A British documentary focusing on Perkin Warbeck, one of the pretenders to Elizabeth’s elder brother, Richard, Duke of York — one of the murdered heirs to the throne. Elizabeth is played by Nadia Cameron-Blakey.
The White Queen (2013)
An adaptation of a Philippa Fucking Gregory novel about Elizabeth’s mother, Elizabeth Woodville. Freya Mavor plays the teenage Elizabeth of York.
The Hollow Crown: Richard III (2016)
Another Shakespeare adaptation, this one by the BBC. Madison Lygo plays the teenage Elizabeth.
The White Princess (2017)
More Philippa Fucking Gregory — this one focused on Elizabeth of York herself. Jodie Comer (Lady Chatterley’s Lover, The Last Duel) plays the queen.
The Spanish Princess (2019)
Yet Another Philippa Fucking Gregory Adaptation. This one focuses on Catherine of Aragon, Elizabeth of York’s daughter-in-law. The middle-aged Queen Elizabeth is played by Alexandra Moen (Dickensian, Death Comes to Pemberley).
Which is your favorite portrayal of Elizabeth of York on screen?
Whole lotta Renfair going on there. And the gold plates and chargers in that banquet scene are straight out of the Dollar Store…
Poor Elizabeth can’t get a decent dress in any film.
You are not wrong. By all accounts Elizabeth was as unpolitical as it was possible for a queen consort to be. Some foreign diplomats thought she was being held down but given her traumatic childhood and youth it might very well have been her own choice to focus on giving her children a secure home.
I agree. Elizabeth’s youth sounded painful: living part of her life in sanctuary; enduring the loss of her father, uncle, and brothers; and then being sold off to an obscure Welshman without good claim to the throne. Apart from that gable hood, her costumes look just terrible. (And what is PFG’s Henry VII doing in a beard?! And thanks for yet another mention of “Philippa Fucking Gregory,” which always makes my husband and me giggle.)
For me Henry’s ability trumps any flaw in his claim. And Elizabeth was by all accounts very happy with him and he loved her dearly.
Strictly speaking, His Late Majesty King Henry VII had a claim to the throne quite as strong as that of William the Conqueror and Edward IV himself – the man (and his followers) kept winning battles.
The funeral effigy is more than a little creepy, but then again, you can kinda really see the real woman that she must have been.
The jewel encrusted gable hood is faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaabulous, but must have weighed a ton.