Tracy Borman - The private lives of the Tudors : uncovering the secrets of Britain’s greatest dynasty

I do not live in a corner. A thousand eyes see all I do. This telling lament by Elizabeth I begs the question: did the Tudors have a private life at all? As monarchs, they were constantly surrounded by an army of attendants, courtiers, ministers and place-seekers. Even in their most private moments, they were accompanied by a servant specifically appointed for the task. A groom of the stool would stand patiently by as Henry VIII performed his daily purges, and when Elizabeth I retired for the evening, one of her female servants would sleep at the end of her bed. Little wonder that in protesting her innocence of any sexual misdemeanour, she called as her witness those thousand eyes that watched her constantly.

But if the Tudors were rarely alone, they did lead a very different life behind closed doors to the one that most of their subjects witnessed. In their private apartments at Hampton Court, Whitehall or the myriad other sumptuous palaces where they spent their days, their more human characteristics and habits could find expression. A monarch has at least two selves, the public self and the private, remarked one recent historian. It was vital for a king or queen to show no vulnerability to the outside world: any sign of frailty, illness or even the natural process of ageing had to be disguised by a mask of invincibility. If this mask slipped, then so might their dynasty. But their closest attendants knew the truth. They saw the tears shed by the seemingly implacable Henry VII upon the death of his son Arthur. They knew the real cause of Bloody Marys protracted and, ultimately, fruitless pregnancies. And they saw the crooked carcass beneath Elizabeth Is carefully applied make-up, gowns and accessories.

It is the accounts of these eyewitnesses, as well as a rich array of other contemporary sources correspondence, household accounts, architectural and pictorial evidence, ambassadors reports and the words of the monarchs themselves that have enabled me to explore the private life of the Tudors. In so doing, I have interwoven familiar tales, such as Henry VIIIs turbulent affair with the Great Whore, Anne Boleyn, and the endlessly debated question of their daughter Elizabeth Is virginity, with lesser-known episodes such as Henry VIIs courtship of his own daughter-in-law, and the lingering, excruciating death of his grandson, Edward VI.