In 1692 Puritan Samuel Sewall sent twenty people to their deaths on trumped-up witchcraft charges. The nefarious witch trials in Salem; Massachusetts represent a low point of American history; made famous in works by Longfellow; Nathaniel Hawthorne (himself a descendant of one of the judges); and Arthur Miller. The trials might have doomed Sewall to infamy except for a courageous act of contrition now commemorated in a mural that hangs beneath the golden dome of the Massachusetts State House picturing Sewall's public repentance. He was the only Salem witch judge to make amends.But; remarkably; the judge's story didn't end there. Once he realized his error; Sewall turned his attention to other pressing social issues. Struck by the injustice of the New England slave trade; a commerce in which his own relatives and neighbors were engaged; he authored "The Selling of Joseph;" America's first antislavery tract. While his peers viewed Native Americans as savages; Sewall advocated for their essential rights and encouraged their education; even paying for several Indian youths to attend Harvard College. Finally; at a time when women were universally considered inferior to men; Sewall published an essay affirming the fundamental equality of the sexes. The text of that essay; composed at the deathbed of his daughter Hannah; is republished here for the first time.In Salem Witch Judge; acclaimed biographer Eve LaPlante; Sewall's great-great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter; draws on family lore; her ancestor's personal diaries; and archival documents to open a window onto life in colonial America; painting a portrait of a man traditionally vilified; but who was in fact an innovator and forefather who came to represent the best of the American spirit.
#478339 in Books Eleanor Herman 2007-06-26 2007-06-26Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.00 x .79 x 5.31l; .64 #File Name: 0060846747352 pagesSex with the Queen 900 Years of Vile Kings Virile Lovers and Passionate Politics
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Get It GirlsBy 500 BooksI don't know about you; but when I was a little girl; I wanted to be a princess when I grew up. There was the influence of Disney; but there was also the influence of Prince William (this was obviously before he grew up and started to look a lot more like his dad). From what you see on the outside; as a young girl; being a princess looks wonderful. You're rich; famous; and you get to wear a tiara. As a 13 year-old; I was pretty sure I'd found my future.As it turns out; not so much. Also as it turns out; being royalty kind of sucks. There's plenty of speculation that Prince Harry's trouble in finding a steady girlfriend is (at least in some measure) the pressure of becoming a member of the royal family. As an adult; the idea of trading living under a microscope; with public interest in your private life extending not just to juicy stories; but to snooping on your phone and long-lens photography hoping to catch you taking off your top to tan more evenly; is a devil's bargain for getting to wear some pretty headgear once in a while.But as much as there are significant downsides to being royalty today; it used to be much worse; especially for women. Author Eleanor Herman details the very real drawbacks being a princess or a queen. Royal women weren't people; they were bargaining chips in international diplomacy. They were married off to princes and kings who were old and fat; who were impotent; who were gay. They were expected to tolerate their husband's infidelity without doing anything that would cast doubt on the true parentage of their children. Those children were frequently unceremoniously confiscated from them and raised according to the wishes of others. Their lush castles were drafty and dirty; and their expensive physicians were as likely to kill them as help them. Their access to funding was usually controlled by other people and so they were slaves to the whims of those who held the purse strings. They were often deprived of the company of those to whom they could speak their native languages...their ladies-in-waiting from their home countries could be dismissed without their consent and seeing their family members required long; complex negotiations that fell through more often than not.Some princesses and queens; though; didn't follow the rules. They took lovers at great risk to themselves...and even greater risks for the men in question. It is those women (and their men) who Herman's Sex with the Queen is about. After detailing how awful it actually was (and still is; on a certain level) to be a princess; Herman moves into the good stuff: dishy gossip. From the Tudor queens Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard all the way to Princess Diana (it's not just English queens; there are stories from all over Europe); we're regaled with tales of forbidden passion and courtly intrigue. It covers the expected subjects (the aforementioned Tudor queens; Marie Antoinette; Catherine the Great) as well as some lesser-known stories; like that of Sophia Dorothea of Celle and Queen Maria Francisca of Portugal. There's not a lot of substance here; it's mostly well-written soap opera; but it's fun and frothy and easy to read0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Loved it!By Lady CthulhuI love this book. Even though i was familiar with most of the Queens discussed; I definitely learned new information. The author is a very good writer; lyrical; interesting; detailed and witty; without being vulgar or crass; which is rare for the subject matter. I liked the way the writer linked certain details and the way she connected seemingly unconnected events. I enjoyed the first book of this series; Sex with Kings; and I highly recommend it; but I think Sex with the Queen was a better-written book. Anyone that wants to learn more about European Kings; Queens and the people who loved them should read this series.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Riveting storytelling ... just keep an open mind!By AnnaholicI just finished this book and enjoyed it from beginning to end. I always scan the reviews on before purchasing a book; and so now I feel I can react to the more critical reviews I read. For those who question the historical accuracy; first of all; this book is not a text book nor does it strive to be one. It is factual; based on the information at hand; with some presumptions and imaginings woven throughout which blend together to create a wonderful story of some of history's most intriguing and misunderstood women. These women have always been categorized as either the Madonna (Queen Victoria) or the whore (Catherine the Great). This book demonstrates that these women are far more complex; and like most us; fall somewhere in the middle. Secondly; how do we know that the history we have on record is even accurate? History is never 100% factual and kind of fiction in itself. It is generally created by and biased toward men; is pieced together from disparate sources; and is continually edited and revised as a society's values and politics evolve. What the author has done is helped fill in the gaps from a genuinely female perspective; a perspective that was silenced during these women's lifetimes. I actually learned a lot from this book; and I think that if readers keep an open mind they will find it immensely entertaining and engaging. Highly recommended!
