A modest recital of the extraordinary events through which Elizabeth, spouse of Henry VII of England, managed to survive. Elizabeth was a daughter of Edward IV, niece of Richard of Gloucester, wife of Henry Tudor whose victory over Richard at Boswell Field subdued the warring factions of York and Lancaster, and daughter-in-law of Margaret Beaufort, herself a political manipulator of considerable acumen. And Elizabeth, the calm eye among battling factions, was present at three courts: joyfully as a child in King Edward's; warily at King Richard's, after being his privileged prisoner; and as Queen at her own. There was violence, fear and tragedy -- her brothers' apparent deaths; executions of former friends and relatives; rapidly shifting currents of power with the constant threat of insurgency; and the death of her firstborn, Arthur. Throughout Elizabeth remains dutiful -- gracefully acceptant of love and loyalty when offered, never losing sight of royal imperatives. The author decorates these processions and retreats with snatches of contemporary songs and rhymes, creating an atmospheric pageant from which the personality of Elizabeth emerges dimly, far-off and yet plausible and appealing.