On this day in Tudor history, 30th June 1559, King Henry II of France, suffered a mortal injury.
The keen sportsman was injured while jousting. He died on 10th July and was succeeded by his son, Francis II.
Jousting was a dangerous sport and Henry was fatally injured when splinters from his opponent’s lance entered his right eye.
Find out more about Henry II’s accident and death, and also his reign in this video…
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Today is the anniversary of the death of sixty-six-year-old Lady Margaret Beaufort. matriarch of the Tudor dynasty, on 29th June 1509.
She died just four days after she had enjoyed the coronation celebrations of her grandson King Henry VIII and his new bride and queen, Catherine of Aragon.
Margaret Beaufort is surrounded by myth and it seems fashionable to see her as a religious zealot. But who was this influential Tudor lady? What did she do?
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On this day in Tudor history, 28th June 1557, Philip Howard, 13th Earl of Arundel, was born at Arundel House, the Strand, London.
Arundel ended up being condemned to death for treason and dying of alleged poisoning in 1589, when he was just 32.
Let me tell you more about Arundel and his rather sticky end…
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On this day in Tudor history, 27th June 1497, in the reign of King Henry VII, two of the chief commanders of the rebels of the Cornish Rebellion were executed.
Lawyer and member of Parliament Thomas Flamank and blacksmith Michael Joseph (known as Michael an Gof) were hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn in London.
What had led them to this awful end?
What was the Cornish Rebellion about and why do they have “fame permanent and immortal”?
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On 26th June 1513, in the reign of King Henry VIII, a loyal soldier lost his life serving the Crown.
What happened to Sir Edmund Carew? How did he die? And how else did his service to the Crown affect him?
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We’ve just had the anniversary of the coronation of the second Tudor monarch, King Henry VIII, who was crowned on 24th June 1509, so I thought I’d test your knowledge of Tudor coronations.
How much do you know about the coronations of the Tudor kings and queens?
Test your knowledge with this fun quiz…
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On this day in Tudor history, 25th June 1533, in the reign of King Henry VIII, the king’s younger sister, Mary Tudor, former Queen of France and wife of Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, died at her home in Suffolk. She was just thirty-seven years old.
Let me tell you about Mary’s ill-health, her death and funeral…
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On this day in Tudor history, 24th June 1532, the Feast of St John the Baptist, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and favourite of Elizabeth I, was born.
Elizabeth I called Leicester her “eyes” and “sweet Robin” and there was gossip over their relationship, but there was far more to Robert Dudley than his closeness to the queen. Find out all about his life and career…
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This week for our Friday treat, I want to share this video from our archives on the beautiful moated manor house, Harvington Hall. Thank you to Philippa Lacey Brewell for allowing us to travel vicariously!
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On this day in Tudor history, 23rd June 1576, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, painter and miniaturist Levina Teerlinc died at Stepney in London.
Teerlinc was court painter to Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I, and was a prolific artist.
Find out more about her and her work…
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On this day in Tudor history, 22nd June 1535, in the reign of King Henry VIII, John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, was executed.
Why was Fisher executed and how did the pope try to save him?
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On this day in Tudor history, 21st June 1509, the new king, the nearly 18-year-old Henry VIII, travelled from Greenwich to the Tower of London.
Why was Henry VIII going to the Tower?
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On this day in Tudor history, 20th June 1567, a silver casket of eight letters were allegedly found in the possession of James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, the third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots.
These letters, which became known as the Casket Letters, were instrumental in bringing down Mary, Queen of Scots.
Let me tell you a bit more about the Casket Letters and why they were “dynamite” for Elizabeth I’s advisors.
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On this day in Tudor history, on 19th June 1566, in Scotland, Mary, Queen of Scots gave birth to a baby boy who would grow up to be King James VI of Scotland and King James I of England. He was baptised Charles James though.
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Our Sunday brain-stretcher this week is a crossword puzzle testing your knowledge on Henry VIII’s children.
How much do you know about these Tudor offspring? Get those little grey cells working with this fun crossword puzzle.
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On this day in Tudor history, 18th June 1558, the will of Welsh mathematician, physician and mint administrator Robert Recorde was proved.
Robert Recorde was the inventor of the “=” sign and wrote books on mathematics. Interestingly, he also wrote a urological treatise “The Urinal of Physick”.
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On this day in Tudor history, 17th June 1567, in Scotland, Mary, Queen of Scots, was imprisoned at Loch Leven Castle.
She’d been taken prisoner following her surrender at the Battle of Carberry Hill on 15th June.
At Loch Leven, it was reported that she miscarried twins fathered by her third husband, the Earl of Bothwell, and she was also forced to abdicate. She did, however, escape, but her freedom was very short-lived.
Find out more about this time in Mary, Queen of Scots’ life…
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On this day in Tudor history, 16th June 1487, the final battle of the Wars of the Roses took place, and I’m not talking about the Battle of Bosworth!
The Battle of Stoke Field was between the forces of Henry VII and the Yorkist forces of Lord Lovell and John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln, who had recently crowned Lambert Simnel as King Edward VI.
Who won that day? What happened? And what happened to the boy, Lambert Simnel?
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On this day in Tudor history, 15th June 1559, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, court fool William Somer (Sommers) died in Shoreditch, London.
He’d served as court fool to Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I.
Somer managed to survive the wrath of King Henry VIII to die a natural death in Elizabeth’s reign.
He wasn’t the only court fool at the time, and you can find out more about him and Jane the Fool in this video:
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On this day in Tudor history, 14th June 1557, in the reign of Mary I, Friar William Peto was made a cardinal and a papal legate.
He’d done well to survive Henry VIII’s reign as he’d upset the king with a controversial sermon and was attainted at one point.
Find out more about Peto in this short video…
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Fancy chatting with other Tudor history lovers weekly about episodes of “becoming Elizabeth”? Well, if you do, you can join us by being part of my latest event.
After the success of my previous two online events, I’m excited to announce my third, and it’s on Queen Elizabeth I, daughter of Anne Boleyn.
“Elizabeth I: The Life of Gloriana, the Virgin Queen” is a completely online event, so you can listen to expert talks and participate in Q&A sessions and chats from the comfort of your own home.
The main talks and Q&A sessions run from 7-16 September 2022, BUT we also have a bonus talk and Q&A session on the death of Amy Dudley (Robsart) in July, AND we have weekly chatroom sessions while the STARZ series “Becoming Elizabeth” is being aired. Out first chat is 17th June! We can dissect and discuss each episode – hurrah!
Let me tell you a bit more about my Elizabeth I event…
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On this day in Tudor history, 13th June 1535, courtier George Neville, 3rd Baron Bergavenny, died. He’d done well for himself in the reigns of King Richard III and Henry VII, but came undone in Henry VIII’s reign.
What happened to George Neville?
Find out a bit more about him
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On this day in Tudor history, 12th June 1567, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Richard Rich, 1st Baron Rich, died.
He wasn’t a particularly nice Tudor chap and was involved in the cases of Sir Thomas More and Anne Askew.
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I thought we’d celebrate Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon’s wedding anniversary, which was yesterday, by testing your knowledge of them and their marriage.
Get those little grey cells working with this fun quiz and do feel free to share your score.
Good luck!
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Today, 11th June, is the Feast of St Barnabas, a feast day that was celebrated by the Tudors by decorating churches with garlands of flowers.
Find out more about St Barnabas and how he was commemorated in medieval and Tudor times…
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On this day in Tudor history, 10th June 1584, Francis, Duke of Anjou and Alençon, died in Paris, probably of of malaria.
Anjou was, for a time, one of Elizabeth I’s suitors, and Elizabeth appears to have had true affection for him. She nicknamed him her “frog” and considered marrying him.
Find out more about what happened between Elizabeth and her dear “frog”
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As today is the anniversary of the deaths of two Carthusian monks on 10th June 1537, who were starved to death. I thought I’d share this talk I did after my visit to the home of their order, London Charterhouse, which has a wonderfully rich history.
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On this day in Tudor history, 9th June 1511, in the reign of King Henry VIII, William Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon, died.
Who was Courtenay and how did he go from being in favour to being a traitor and then back to being in favour?
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On this day in Tudor history, 8th June 1492, in the reign of King Henry VII, the king’s mother-in-law, Elizabeth Woodville, died at Bermondsey Abbey.
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