The Queen as Lady of the Manor: The Economic Agency of the Tudor Queen Consorts in relation to their Manorial Interests

Abstract

England’s Tudor queen consorts became major landowners following their marriages, with economic agency a potential route to political power for women. This paper examines how the seven Tudor queen consorts administered their lands and the extent to which they took a direct interest in their business and economic affairs. This includes an analysis of the ways in which lands could produce an income, the differences in approach taken by the queens when compared to each other and the significance of the fact that they held only a life interest in the lands, something that impacted how the lands could be commercialized.