Queen Anne and the Union

Season 1Episode 360 minMar 3, 2020
Queen Anne and the Union

Lucy Worsley explores how Queen Anne's reputation and legacy have been marred by a sustained campaign of historical fibs. When Queen Anne came to the throne in 1702, England looked set to be dominated by France and Spain. But Anne fought bravely to help England become a leading European power. She also helped unite England and Scotland to create Great Britain. 

Anne was shy and reclusive. At first, she was supported as queen by her childhood friend and 'favourite', Sarah Churchill. However, they increasingly clashed over personal tensions and politics. 

When Sarah's cousin Abigail Masham became a lady-in-waiting, she began to replace Sarah in the queen's affections. In revenge, Sarah helped pen a bawdy ballad claiming Anne and Abigail performed 'dark deeds at night'. This led to endless rumours about Anne's sexuality that persist to this day.

In the end, Sarah was dismissed. Thirty years after Anne's death, Sarah took further revenge by publishing a tell-all story of her time as the queen's favourite. Her portrait of Anne, as a foolish and stubborn woman, has been taken on board by most historians. But Lucy finds it is full of fibs. 

Hollywood used Sarah's version of history to create 2019's The Favourite, destroying Queen Anne's reputation for a whole new generation. Lucy reveals Anne to have been a smarter, more successful queen than history has ever acknowledged.

Queen Anne and the Union has aired on Mar 3, 2020 at 9:00 PM
Previous EpisodeNext Episode

Trailer

We do not have any trailers for this episode

Recently Updated Shows

Recently updated shows that might be of your interest.
The Last American Vampire
Upcoming

The Last American Vampire

Chicago P.D.
Running

Chicago P.D.

District 21 of the Chicago Police Department is made up of two distinctly different groups. There are the uniformed cops who patrol the beat and go head to head with the city's street crimes. And there's the Intelligence Unit, the team that combats the city's major offenses - organized crime, drug trafficking, high profile murders and beyond. These are their stories.

GenreDrama, Crime
Chicago Fire
Running

Chicago Fire

No job is more stressful, dangerous or exhilarating than those of the Firefighters, Rescue Squad and Paramedics of Chicago Firehouse 51. These are the courageous men and women who forge headfirst into danger when everyone else is running the other way and whose actions make the difference between life and death. These are their stories.

The Mortician
Running

The Mortician

A darkly gripping series, The Mortician chronicles a trusted family-owned funeral home that hid behind a façade of decency and propriety to take advantage of loved ones at their most vulnerable moments. In the early 1980s, David Sconce, scion of the Lamb family, took over the family business and sought to exploit the deceased in numerous ways to expand their earnings. Driven by profit, the Lamb Funeral Home in Pasadena, California engaged in years of morally questionable and inhumane practices. 

Not Going Out
Running

Not Going Out

Can hapless Lee win Lucy round to his dubious charms? And if he does, mishaps and pratfalls mean it's unlikely to be domestic bliss... Starring Lee Mack.

GenreComedy