Research Interests
Tudor History - Elizabethan Studies - Queenship Studies - Monarchical Representations - Anglo-French Relations - Diplomatic Studies
Latest News
BLOOD FIRE & GOLD is now available for PRE-ORDER: Click on the cover!

BLOOD FIRE & GOLD: The Story of Elizabeth I and Catherine de Medici - 30 June 2022
Ebury Publishing pre-empts biography of two sixteenth-century queens.
The book will explore the relationship between the British and French queens from their rivalry to their friendship, as well as how they wielded and negotiated power in the 16th century.
Drury commented: "From the opening page of Estelle’s proposal I was completely compelled. When we think of Elizabeth’s rivalries, we often think of Mary Stuart — but in fact Elizabeth’s long association with Catherine de Medici tells us even more about her character, and her style of leadership. In Estelle’s vivid storytelling, which has the colour and pace of the best historical fiction, we’ll discover a new side to one of Britain’s best-known monarchs. It will be a brilliant book and we can't wait to publish it."
Academic Monograph:
Academic latest edited collection:
Remembering Queens and Kings in Early Modern France and England: Reputation, Reinterpretation, and Reincarnation (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019) - paperback published in August 2020
Photo credit: Nick St.John Gill.
Academic latest journal article:
Catherine de Medici’s Grandmotherhood: The Building of Emotional and Political Intergenerational Relationships, Renaissance Studies Journal, Vol. 34:3; 412-429.
Public Engagement:
August 2022: BBC2 The Boleyns: A Scandalous Family
1 July 2021: TALKINGTUDOR PODCAST: Elizabeth I
27 May 2021: HISTORYEXTRA Catherine de Medici: The Serpent Queen's Life
19 May 2021: ARTUK Anne Boleyn Through the Centuries: A Woman For All Seasons?
14 May 2021: HISTORYEXTRA: Queens Know Best
10 May 2021: ARTUK Princess to Queen to Guillotine: The Tragic Fate of Marie-Antoinette
3 December 2020: ARTUK Ambassadorial Receptions: The Diplomatic Art of Maintaining Good Relations
3 December 2020: WELLCOME TRUST The Doctor Who Challenged the Unicorn Myth
Upcoming Projects
Next academic research project:
Royal Favourites
Scandal and Political Allegiances at Early Modern Courts
In preparation.
Academic journal article:
'Devotion, Influence, and Loyalty: Re-evaluating Queen Louise de Lorraine-Vaudémont's political and diplomatic role in early modern France', accepted in Early Modern Women Journal, forthcoming Spring 2022.