English Monarchs, How To Academy

Historians John Guy, Sir David Cannadine, Helen Castor, Stephen Alford and Philip Ziegler will each be giving a short, innovative, sometimes provocative account of Britain’s rulers, to launch Penguin's new book series, Monarchs. The talks will contribute to a fascinating exploration of the nature of Monarchy and its place at the heart of our history.
In this revealing new account, Henry VIII: The Quest for Fame, John Guy will discuss a king whose terrifyingly complete belief in himself as the perfect exemplar of kingship and religion explains why he transformed the physical and spiritual landscape of England. Guy explores how Henry himself understood the world and his place in it - and in doing so casts new light on his choice of wives and ministers, his impact on the European stage, and his extraordinary legacy.
In George V: The Unexpected King, David Cannadine will show how the modern image of the monarchy – the first Christmas broadcasts, family values and frequent public appearances – was forged by George’s conventional homeliness.’. In an era of ever greater media coverage–frequently filmed and initiating the British Empire Christmas broadcast–George became for 25 years a universally recognised figure. 
Stephen Alford’s Edward VI: The Last Boy King is shaped by the ambitions of the sinister courtiers who tried to direct the child’s reign to their own ends before his disastrously early death. It is also a poignant 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. England’s last child monarch, Edward would have led his country in a quite different direction to the catastrophic one caused by his death.
And Philip Ziegler’s George VI: The Dutiful King is an affectionate portrait of a man who overcame his crippling stammer and his hatred of public appearances to become an admirable figurehead during the nation’s darkest hours of World War II. He was not born to be king, but he made an admirable one, and was the figurehead of the nation at the time of its greatest trial, during the Second World War. 
Helen Castor will moderate the evening.