Tracy Borman

Chief Historian at Historic Royal Palaces

Tracy Borman is an author, Tudor historian, broadcaster and Chief Historian at Historic Royal Palaces.

Tracy has written several historical biographies, including:

Crown & Sceptre: A New History of the British Monarchy
Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him
Elizabeth’s Women
The Private Lives of the Tudors
Thomas Cromwell: The Untold Story of Henry VIII’s Most Faithful Servant

Tracy has also written about the palaces in Historic Royal Palaces' care, notably: The Story of the Tower of London, The Story of Kensington Palace and The Private Lives of the Tudors, which includes many references to Hampton Court Palace. She is a regular broadcaster and lectures on her books across the country and internationally.

Tracy is Chief Executive of the Heritage Education Trust, a charity that encourages children to visit and learn from historic properties. She is Chancellor and Professor of Tudor History at Bishop Grosseteste University, Lincoln. Tracy was awarded an OBE in the King's Birthday Honours 2024 for services to heritage.

Tracy's role at Historic Royal Palaces

Tracy works with our team of curators to share the stories of our palaces with millions of visitors and supporters every year. She regularly appears on Channel 5's Inside the Tower of London and has filmed other history documentaries, including The Princes and the Tower and Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I. She also hosts series on the Historic Royal Palaces podcast, including on the Six Queens, Elizabeth I and witchcraft. Tracy has written lots of content for our website and gives talks and tours to Historic Royal Palaces Members and other supporters.

Tracy says of her role at Historic Royal Palaces: "As a historian, working for Historic Royal Palaces is a dream job. Being able to research and communicate the stories behind these six iconic palaces is an endless joy. And, given my love of the Tudors, having an office at Hampton Court is hard to beat!"

Subject expertise

Tracy has particular expertise in the 16th century, but has also researched and written about the 11th, 17th and 18th centuries. She specialises in Tudor monarchs and their courts, courtiers, the private lives of monarchs and the history of witchcraft.

Tracy completed her PhD, Sir Francis Vere in the Netherlands, 1589-1603: a re-evaluation of his career as Sergeant Major General of Elizabeth I’s troops at the University of Hull (1997). She has an MA in Historical Research (1994) and a BA (Hons) in History (1993).

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All articles by Tracy Borman (11)

St George and the Tudors

23 April 2025

St George’s Day was already well established by the Tudor period, but the Tudor monarchs saw something more in this patron saint – the perfect symbol to bolster their shaky claim to the throne.

The death of Henry VII and the delayed accession of Henry VIII

21 April 2025

On 21 April 1509, Henry VII died aged 52 in his private apartments at Richmond Palace. But officials waited two days to tell the strapping young man that he was now King. Why?

Triumph and tragedy: Thomas Cromwell's legacy at the Tower of London

06 December 2024

For Thomas Cromwell, hero of Wolf Hall, the Tower of London would be the scene of the start of his career and the end of his life. Here, Chief Historian Tracy Borman explores the Tower through the lens of Thomas Cromwell's rise and fall.

Thomas Cromwell's fateful match-making

29 November 2024

Tracy Borman explores the real history behind Thomas Cromwell's downfall, which forms the dramatic conclusion to Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light.

Jane Boleyn, Lady Rochford: The Most Hated Woman in Tudor England?

01 November 2024

Tracy Borman investigates whether Jane Boleyn, widow of George Boleyn, deserves her notorious reputation, or whether the hostile accounts of her a product of Elizabeth I's later attempts to rehabilitate her mother.

The Extraordinary Life and Death of Lady Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury

25 October 2024

On 27 May 1541, Lady Margaret Pole – another victim of Henry VIII’s increasingly bloody regime – was led to her execution inside the Tower. But Margaret was no scheming minister or prisoner of conscience. She was a 67-year-old woman who had spent her life serving the Tudors.