14 September – Henry VIII, the shrine destroyer

Yes, on this day in Tudor history, 14th September 1538, a religious shrine which had stood since the early 12th century, was destroyed on the orders of King Henry VIII. The Shrine of Our Lady of Caversham was destroyed as part of Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries.

In today's talk, I share contemporary accounts of the shrine's destruction, which included details of what was seized and sent to London.

Also on this day in history:

• 1514 – Second proxy marriage of King Louis XII of France and Mary Tudor, sister of Henry VIII. You may be interested in my Claire Chats talk on proxy weddings - click here.
• 1523 – Death of Pope Adrian VI in Rome. He was buried in Rome's Santa Maria dell'Anima church. Adrian had only been Pope since January 1522.
• 1540 - Sir William Kingston, Constable of the Tower of London, Knight of the Garter and comptroller of the King's household, died at Painswick in Gloucestershire. He was buried at Painswick.
• 1585 – Sir Francis Drake set sail from England on a mission to raid Spanish ports. He had been given royal approval for these raids, and raids in the West Indies at the end of 1584.