Anya Seton

Anya Seton

Anya Seton was the pen name of Ann Seton, an American author of historical romances.-Biography:...

's Katherine is a historical novel

Historical novel

According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...

 based largely on fact. It tells the story of the historically important love affair between the titular Katherine Swynford

Katherine Swynford

Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster , née Roet , was the daughter of Sir Payne Roet , originally a Flemish herald from County of Hainaut, later...

 and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster

Duke of Lancaster

There were several Dukes of Lancaster in the 14th and early 15th Centuries. See also Duchy of Lancaster.There were three creations of the Dukedom of Lancaster....

, the third surviving son of King Edward III

Edward III of England

Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...

. The novel begins with Katherine's arrival at court at the age of 15, after years of a convent education, and ends shortly after her marriage to the Duke in 1396.

In 2003, Katherine was ranked 95 in the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

's Big Read

Big Read

The Big Read was a survey on books carried out by the BBC in the United Kingdom in 2003, where over three quarters of a million votes were received from the British public to find the nation's best-loved novel of all time...

 survey of Britain

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

's best-loved novels. It is commonly regarded as a prime example of historical fiction.

Plot summary

Katherine tells the true story of Katherine de Roet, born the daughter of a minor Flemish herald

Herald

A herald, or, more correctly, a herald of arms, is an officer of arms, ranking between pursuivant and king of arms. The title is often applied erroneously to all officers of arms....

, later knight

Knight

A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....

. Katherine has no obvious prospects, except that her sister is a waiting-woman to Queen Philippa

Philippa of Hainault

Philippa of Hainault, or, Philippe de Hainaut was the Queen consort of King Edward III of England. Edward, Duke of Guyenne, her future husband, promised in 1326 to marry her within the following two years...

, wife of King Edward III, and the fiancée of Geoffrey Chaucer

Geoffrey Chaucer

Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...

, then a minor court official. By virtue of this connection, Katherine meets and marries Sir Hugh Swynford of Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

 and gives birth to a daughter, Blanchette, and a son, Thomas. After Hugh's death, Katherine becomes the mistress of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and bears him four children out of wedlock. She is also appointed official governess to the Duke's two daughters by his first wife, Blanche of Lancaster

Blanche of Lancaster

Blanche of Lancaster, Duchess of Lancaster was an English noblewoman and heiress, daughter of England's wealthiest and most powerful peer, Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster...

, and helps raise his son by Blanche, the future King Henry IV

Henry IV of England

Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...

. The Duke and Katherine separate for a number of years, immediately following Wat Tyler

Wat Tyler

Walter "Wat" Tyler was a leader of the English Peasants' Revolt of 1381.-Early life:Knowledge of Tyler's early life is very limited, and derives mostly through the records of his enemies. Historians believe he was born in Essex, but are not sure why he crossed the Thames Estuary to Kent...

's Peasant's Revolt in 1381, when the rioting peasants sacked and burnt the Duke's Savoy Palace

Savoy Palace

The Savoy Palace was considered the grandest nobleman's residence of medieval London, until it was destroyed in the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. It fronted the Strand, on the site of the present Savoy Theatre and the Savoy Hotel that memorialise its name...

 to the ground. The novel's explanation for their separation is Katherine's shock over revelations concerning the death of her husband. However, the couple eventually reconcile and marry after the death of the Duke's second wife and after their children are grown.

Criticism

As a historical romance, Katherine is considered well written and carefully researched, given that Seton was not a historian or paleographer and was working in the 1950s, when less information was available to her. It diverges comparatively little from known history, though since paleographic documentation of Katherine's life is limited, it does contain some necessary conjecture. Though subsequent non-fiction accounts of Katherine, including those by historians Alison Weir

Alison Weir

Alison Weir is a British writer of history books, and latterly historical novels, mostly in the form of biographies about British royalty.-Personal life:...

 and Jeanette Lucraft, make clear that Seton's various speculations were partly and sometimes significantly incorrect, the novel does provide the reader with a reasonably accurate view of medieval England, life at court, and the lives of women in the 14th century, along with intelligent and sensitive glimpses of Chaucer, Katherine's brother-in-law.

In addition, Katherine is one of the few fictional texts that include writings by the Blessed Julian of Norwich

Julian of Norwich

Julian of Norwich is regarded as one of the most important English mystics. She is venerated in the Anglican and Lutheran churches, but has never been canonized, or officially beatified, by the Catholic Church, probably because so little is known of her life aside from her writings, including the...

, a character in the novel, who is considered one of England's greatest mystics and whose Revelations of Divine Love

Revelations of Divine Love

The Revelations of Divine Love is a book of Christian mystical devotions written by Julian of Norwich. It is believed to be the first published book in the English language to be written by a woman. At the age of thirty, 13 May 1373, Julian was struck with a serious illness...

was the first book written in English by a woman. Katherine is also considered one of the greatest examples of a historical-fiction love story ever written. In a poll conducted in the 1990s by Ladies' Home Journal

Ladies' Home Journal

Ladies' Home Journal is an American magazine which first appeared on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States...

, the novel ranked among the top-10 all-time best love stories.

Alison Weir's non-fiction study, Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and his Scandalous Duchess

Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and his Scandalous Duchess

Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and his Scandalous Duchess is a biography of Katherine Swynford written by Alison Weir and published in 2007...

(2008) (U.S. title, Mistress of the Monarchy, The Life of Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster) examines the book in historiographic terms and, while praising its general historical accuracy, categorizes it as primarily a feminist romance.

Historical background

Katherine Swynford

Katherine Swynford

Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster , née Roet , was the daughter of Sir Payne Roet , originally a Flemish herald from County of Hainaut, later...

 was a significant figure in English history. Apart from being the direct ancestress of all members of the British royal family since Edward IV

Edward IV of England

Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...

, who was her 4th great-grandson, she and John of Gaunt gave Henry Tudor

Henry VII of England

Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....

 his tenuous claim to the English throne. Queen Elizabeth II is only one of Katherine's and Gaunt's many direct descendants.