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The Best Episodes of She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1

Every episode of She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1!

The Best Episodes of She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1

Historian Dr Helen Castor explores the lives of seven English queens who challenged male power, the fierce reactions they provoked and whether the term 'she-wolves'...
Binge this in Unknown•Peaking at 7.9/10
BBC Four
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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1 Episode 1 - Matilda and Eleanor
    7.9/10(56 votes)

    #1 - Matilda and Eleanor

    S1:E1

    800 years ago, Matilda came within a hair's breadth of being the first woman to be crowned queen of England in her own right. Castor explores how Matilda reached this point and why her bid for the throne ultimately failed. Her daughter-in-law Eleanor of Aquitaine was an equally formidable woman. Despite being remembered as the queen of courtly love, in reality during her long life she divorced one king and married another, only to lead a rebellion against him. She only finally achieved the power she craved in her seventies.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1 Episode 2 - Isabella and Margaret
    7.6/10(51 votes)

    #2 - Isabella and Margaret

    S1:E2

    In 1308 a 12-year-old girl, Isabella of France, became queen of England when she married the English king. A century later another young French girl, Margaret of Anjou, followed in her footsteps. Both these women were thrust into a violent and dysfunctional England and both felt driven to take control of the kingdom themselves. Isabella would be accused of murder and Margaret of destructive ambition - it was Margaret who Shakespeare named the She Wolf. But as historian Helen Castor reveals, their self-assertion that would have seemed natural in a man was deemed unnatural, even monstrous in a woman.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. She-Wolves: England's Early Queens Season 1 Episode 3 - Jane, Mary and Elizabeth
    7.7/10(46 votes)

    #3 - Jane, Mary and Elizabeth

    S1:E3

    Helen Castor looks at what happened when England was faced not just with inadequate kings, but no kings at all. In 1553, for the first time in English history all the contenders for the crown were female. In the lives of these three Tudor queens - Jane, Mary and Elizabeth - she explores how each woman struggled in turn with wearing a crown that was made for a male head. Elizabeth I seemed to show that not only could a woman rule, but could do so gloriously.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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Season 1 Ratings Summary

"Matilda and Eleanor" is the best rated episode of "She-Wolves: England's Early Queens" season 1. It scored 7.9/10 based on 56 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 3/7/2012. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "Isabella and Margaret".