On this day in Tudor history, 31st May 1443, Lady Margaret Beaufort, the woman known as the matriarch of the Tudor dynasty, was born.
Find out a few facts about her in this #TudorHistoryShorts video:
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May 31 – The birth of Lady Margaret Beaufort, and a special Legatine court opens in London
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30 May – The stabbing of Christopher Marlowe
On this day in Tudor history, 30th May 1593, Christopher Marlowe, the famous Elizabethan playwright, was stabbed to death.
Find out what happened in this #TudorHistoryshorts video…
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May 29 – The hanging of John Penry, and a fire-breathing dragon on the Thames
On this day in Tudor history, 29th May 1593, Welsh religious controversialist, and a man regarded by Welsh historians as the pioneer of Welsh nonconformity, John Penry was hanged at St Thomas-a-Watering in Surrey.
John Penry was linked to the Martin Marprelate tracts and the resulting Marprelate Controversy, not for writing them, but for helping to run the secret press that printed them.
Find out more about Penry, his life and his work, and his involvement with these tracts, and how appealing to William Cecil didn’t save him from the hangman’s noose…
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Anne of Cleves Places Word Search
This week’s puzzle tests your knowledge of places associated with Anne of Cleves, fourth wife of King Henry VIII.
Note: the words can go in any direction!
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May 28 – An alleged plot and the Spanish Armada
On this day in Tudor history, 28th May 1582, Roman Catholic priests Thomas Forde, John Shert and Robert Johnson suffered full traitors’ deaths at Tyburn.
The three priests had been condemned for their alleged involvement in the Rome and Reims Plot of 1580, but many believe that this plot wasn’t actually real.
Let me explain exactly what led to these men’s executions in 1582, why Roman Catholic priests were persecuted in this manner, and what the plot was all about…
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May 27 – Cardinal Pole makes an enemy and his mother, Margaret Pole, suffers a botched execution
On 27th May 1536, Cardinal Reginald Pole, who was in Venice, wrote to King Henry VIII. It was a very polite letter but what he sent with it brought Pole and his family trouble. He made the mistake of making an enemy of King Henry VIII.
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Three Tudor Queens: Katherine Parr, Mary I and Mary, Queen of Scots
Linda Porter is one of my favourite Tudor historians so for our Friday video this week I thought I’d share this talk she did for us back in 2014.
In “Three Tudor Queens”, Linda explores the lives of Katherine Parr, Mary I and Mary, Queen of Scots.
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June 2022 – Popular Culture and the Tudors
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May 26 – Henry VIII meets with Emperor Charles V, and the burial of Barbara Sidney, Countess of Leicester
On this day in Tudor history, 26th May 1520, in the lead-up to King Henry VIII’s meeting with Francis I of France at the Field of Cloth of Gold, the English king met with his nephew Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, at Dover Castle on the south coast of England.
Find out more about this meeting and the rather lavish outfits worn by Henry VIII and his queen consort, Catherine of Aragon…
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May 25 – Lady Jane Gret gets married in a triple wedding, and a Tudor earthquake
On this day in Tudor history, 25th May 1553, Lady Jane Grey got married to Lord Guildford Dudley, son of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland.
They weren’t the only couple to get married in the ceremony at Durham House, Jane’s sister, Katherine, and Guildford’s sister, Catherine, also got married.
Find out more…
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May 24 – Anne Askew, Robert Cecil, and a monstrous birth
On this day in Tudor history, 24th May 1546, letters were sent from the Privy Council to the future Protestant martyr Anne Askew and her estranged husband Thomas Kyme.
The couple were ordered to appear in front of the council within fourteen days.
But why? What was going on? And what happened next?
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May 23 – Elizabeth under house arrest, Henry VIII gets his annulment, and Henry Grey becomes a Garter Knight
On this day in Tudor history, 23rd May 1554, Elizabeth, daughter of King Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn, arrived at the Palace of Woodstock in Oxfordshire, where she was placed under house arrest.
Elizabeth remained under house arrest there for just under a year, and she didn’t make it easy for her gaoler, Sir Henry Bedingfield, and neither did her servants.
Find out why Elizabeth was under house arrest and what happened…
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May 22 – A prophecy fulfilled and new Garter knights
On this day in Tudor history, 22nd May 1538, Franciscan friar John Forest met his end at Smithfield in London for his allegiance to the Church of Rome.
His death, along with the burning of a religious statue from Wales, was said to be the fulfilment of a prophecy made about the statue.
Find out more about Blessed John Forest and the prophecy…
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Anne Boleyn’s Life Crossword Puzzle
This past week has been the anniversary of the execution of Queen Anne Boleyn on 19th May 1536, so I thought we’d pay tribute to Anne by testing your knowledge of Henry VIII’s second wife.
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May 21 – Philip of Spain, a Duke of Norfolk, and a Bible translator
Today is the anniversary of the birth of King Philip II of Spain, husband of Queen Mary I.
I’m commemorating his birthday by sharing a few facts about this European ruler…
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May 20 – A cardinal’s hat for Bishop Fisher, and a deist heretic
On this day in Tudor history, 20th May 1535, Pope Paul III made John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, Cardinal-Priest of San Vitale, and arranged to have his cardinal’s hat sent to him.
The pope hoped that this would save Fisher, who was imprisoned at the time, from further punishment, but it made the king even more determined to behead Bishop Fisher. Oh dear!
Find out more about what happened…
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Tudor Wills – Brigitte Webster
What did the Tudors write in their Tudor wills? How did the Tudors pass on their belongings to their surviving family?
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May 19 – A queen is executed, Henry VIII gets a dispensation, and Elizabeth is released from the Tower
On this day in Tudor history, 19th May 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn was executed within the confines of the Tower of London.
It must have been an incredibly hard day for the queen’s friend, Archbishop Thomas Cranmer. Not only did he have a visit from a friend regarding a terrifying vision, in the early hours… Not only did he have to cope with the idea of his friend and patron being beheaded, but he had to issue a dispensation for the king to marry again!
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May 18 – Catherine Woodville, and a rebel comes to a sticky end
On this day in Tudor history, 18th May 1497, Catherine Woodville, Duchess of Buckingham and Bedford, died.
Who was Catherine Woodville and how was she linked to the famous Woodvilles who rose in the reign of King Edward IV?
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May 17 – Executions in 1521 and 1536, and the spy Anthony Bacon
On this day in Tudor history, 17th May 1521, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, was executed for treason on Tower Hill.
He’d served King Henry VII and King Henry VIII loyally for many years, so what led to this nobleman being condemned for high treason?
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May 16 – Another prison for Mary, Queen of Scots, Sir Thomas More resigns, and the real “John Blackthorne” of Shōgun
On this day in Tudor history, 16th May 1568, following her escape from prison in Scotland, Mary landed on English soil and was taken prisoner once more, but this time by England.
Why was Mary taken prisoner? What happened?
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May 15 – Two barons tried for treason, the trials of Queen Anne Boleyn and Lord Rochford, and a third marriage for Mary, Queen of Scots
On this day in Tudor history, 15th May 1537, Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy de Darcy, and his cousin, John Hussey, 1st Baron Hussey of Sleaford, were tried for treason at Westminster after being implicated in the Pilgrimage of Grace rebellion.
Both men may have been sympathetic to the rebel cause, but there was no actual evidence that they conspired against the king. Poor men!
Find out more about them and how they ended up being branded rebels, and what happened next…
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Tudor Annes Word Search Puzzle
Anne was a rather popular name in the Tudor period, but how many of these Annes do you know and can you find them in the Word Search?
Warning: the words can go in any direction!
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May 14 – The Creeping Parliament and Lady Helena Gorges
On this day in Tudor history, 14th May 1571, the “Creeping Parliament” was held in Edinburgh, Scotland. Why was it called the “Creeping Parliament” and why were there actually two Parliaments meeting? What was going on and what happened next?
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May 13 – A battle for Mary, Queen of Scots has a battle, and Mary Tudor marries Charles Brandon
On this day in Tudor history, 13th May 1568, the forces of Mary, Queen of Scots, met those of her brother, the Regent Moray, at the Battle of Langside in Scotland.
Mary, Queen of Scots was defeated soundly, but what happened and why was she fighting against the regent acting on behalf of her son, King James VI? What had led to this moment?
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Jane Boleyn by Charlie Fenton – Lil’s Book Reviews
Jane Boleyn has always been seen as a divisive character. Did she bring about the fall of not one but TWO queens?
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May 12 – An innocent baron is charged with treason, an obstinate friar, and Martin Luther is proclaimed a heretic
On this day in Tudor history, 12th May 1537, John Hussey, a Northern baron, was charged with treason even though he was innocent and had actually done the opposite of what he was accused.
Poor man! Find out what happened to John Hussey, Baron Hussey…
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May 11 – Two Carthusians lose their lives and the doctor who saved a queen
On this day in Tudor history, 11th May 1537, Blessed John Rochester and Blessed James Walworth, two Carthusian monks from the London Charterhouse, met their ends in York after being condemned for treason.
In a five-year period, eighteen Carthusian monks were executed, but why? What had King Henry VIII got against these men of God? What happened?
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May 10 – Henry VIII’s annulment is nearly done, Ivan the Terrible, and the suicide of John Clerk
On this day in Tudor history, 10th May 1533, the Great Matter, Henry VIII’s quest for an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, neared its conclusion.
Find out what happened on this day in 1533, and what happened next…
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May 9 – Henry VII’s remains go to St Paul’s, a proxy marriage for Marie de Guise, and colonist William Bradford
On this day in Tudor history, 9th May 1509, the remains of King Henry VII were taken to St Paul’s to prepare for his burial at Westminster Abbey.
I share an account of the journey to St Paul’s…
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