Books by Susan E. James

Contributing an original dimension to the study of women in 16th-century England, this pioneering work examines the largest corpus of women¿s private writings available: their wills. Through an intensive analysis of more than 1200 wills, women from all parts of the country and all strata of society are revealed as articulate, opportunistic, and capable individuals who, despite legal and cultural limitations, exercised authority over their own lives and influenced the lives of their heirs after their death.

Contributing to the understanding of 16th century English art in an historical context, this study represents a rethinking and restructuring of the Tudor art world based on a broad survey of women's diverse creative roles within that world. It examines and clarifies many of the misperceptions upon which modern discussions of Tudor art are based.