History's 'Dastardly Dames,' From Cleopatra To Mary Tudor

A new series for tweens examines the lives of several "dastardly dames," from Cleopatra to Mary Tudor, Marie Antoinette and Agrippina.

Author and editor Shirin Bridges says that while none of these women were saints, some ended up with perhaps worse reputations than they deserved.

[sidebar title="" width="230" align="right"]Guest: Shirin Bridges, editor of the series, "The Thinking Girl's Series of Dastardly Dames[/sidebar]

For instance, she says, Mary Tudor went down in history as "Bloody Mary" for burning protestants at the stake. Meanwhile,  her sister Elizabeth the First of England killed a similar number and was remembered as "Good Queen Bess," and their father Henry VIII killed many more and was remembered favorably.

Bridges says that though these dames behaved badly, their stories stand in contrast to some of the Disney princesses who wait around for a prince to come fix their lives.

"I'm much more interested in sharing stories of women who actually went out and made a difference themselves, who didn't wait around for anything," she said.