Catalina: Warrior Princess

'The Constant Princess' by Philippa Gregory

After the disappointment of something new in fiction, I decided to go for something old.  This led me to one of my reading staples, historical fiction, in the form of Philippa Gregory's 'The Constant Princess'.

'The Constant Princess' is the story of Catalina, Infanta of Spain and Princess of Wales, the youngest daughter of Renaissance power couple Isabella and Ferdinand.  Born while her parents are on campaign against the Moors, she lives and breathes war, religious ideology and a sense of destiny from childhood, until victory brings peace and the luxury of the Alhambra Palace.  But at the age of 13 she leaves her parent's exotic court for England to marry Arthur, Prince of Wales, sealing an alliance between the newly united Spain and the freshly conquered country of Henry VII.  But from the moment she arrives, Catalina finds herself at odds with the brusque king and the alien culture.  She eventually finds solace and purpose in her marriage, but everything changes when an unexpected death leads Catalina to make a promise that will echo through history...

Catalina is better known as Katherine of Aragon, the first wife of Henry VIII.  I knew a bit about her before reading this book, so was worried about it holding no surprises for me.  In the end, the biggest surprise was how absorbed I got in the narrative and how I was kept on the edge of my seat even though I knew what would happen.

Gregory is at her best when she takes a well-known piece of history and uses fiction to offer an alternative (but no less plausible) version of the accepted narrative.  This is exactly what she does with Catalina / Katherine.  I always admired Katherine of Aragon for her nobility and strength in the face of a tyrannical husband, but it was mixed with pity too.  All too often she seemed at the mercy on the whims of powerful men.  Although it's a novel, 'The Constant Princess' has made me consider that there could be other possibilities, and I find Catalina a more interesting figure as a result.

'The Constant Princess' is well written (hardly a surprise with Gregory's back catalogue of over 20 bestselling historical novels behind her!), passionate, interesting and emotional and, I think, one of Gregory's better books.  I'm already looking forward to reading the next in the timeline, 'The King's Curse', at some point in the future.

But, in the meantime, what next...

'The Constant Princess' by Philippa Gregory was published in 2005 by HarperCollins.  This review is based on the hardback edition.

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