'A fantastic, feminist dance through history.' - Julia Quinn, author of Bridgerton

What queens would England have had if firstborn daughters, not firstborn sons, had inherited the throne?

We may think of princesses as dutiful and elegant, wearing long flowing dresses, but the eldest daughters of England's kings have been very different.

Political intriguers. Abducted nuns who demanded divorces. Murderers.

It's time we rediscovered the politicians we lost, the masterminds we see negotiating nunneries not armies, the personalities shining brilliantly even hundreds of years later: the queens who should have been.

Let's meet them.



- Title

- Copyright

- Contents

- Introduction

- 1 The Edith Queens (870–?)

- 2 The Nordic Queens (990–c.1093)

- 3 The Norman Queens (?–1182)

- 4 The Plantagenet Queens (1102–1275)

- 5 The Edward Queens (1269–1382)

- 6 The Rose Queens (1392–1503)

- 7 The Renaissance Queens (1489–1662)

- 8 The George Queens (1687–1828)

- 9 The Modern Queens (1840–today)

- 10 The Queens Who Were (1516–2022)

- Epilogue

- Acknowledgements

- Bibliography



'A wonderfully accessible introduction to a collection of royal women who deserve more time in the spotlight. Murdoch Perkins does an excellent job of highlighting the agency of princesses past, who were much more than quiet pawns in the games of kings.'



'A fantastic, feminist dance through history.'



'A triumph ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️'



'This lively book charts the destinies of might-have-been queens.'

'Their hidden lives are revealed in this entertaining potted history.'