This day in history, 28th March 1483, is one of the dates out forward as the birthdate of Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, or Raphael as he is known, the Italian Renaissance artist and architect.
Did you know that Henry VII owned a piece of art by Raphael and that Henry VIII admired his work?
Find out a bit more about Raphael and see some of his beautiful works of art in today's talk.
Also on this day in Tudor history, John Skip, Bishop of Hereford, and a man who’d served Anne Boleyn as her chaplain and almoner, died. Find out more about his time serving Queen Anne Boleyn and a controversial sermon he preached in 1536, in last year’s video:
Also on this day in history:
- 1489 – Death of Thomas Kemp (Kempe), Bishop of London and nephew of John Kemp, Archbishop of Canterbury, in Fulham. He was buried in the chantry chapel of St Paul's.
- 1555 – Burnings of Protestant martyrs Stephen Knight and William Pygot at Maldon and Braintree, respectively, in Essex, and William Dighel at Banbury, for heresy.
- 1558 – Protestant martyrs Cuthbert Symson, Hugh Foxe and John Devinish were burned at the stake at Smithfield.
- 1579 – Death of Sir Thomas Gargrave, administrator and Speaker of the House of Commons. He was elected as Speaker at Elizabeth I's first Parliament in 1559.
- 1591 – Birth of William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury and politician, son of Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, and grandson of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley.
Transcript:
This day in history, 28th March 1483, is one of the dates out forward as the birthdate of Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, or Raphael as he is known, the Italian Renaissance artist and architect. The other date is 6th April. Raphael was born in Urbino in the Marche region of Italy, and was the son of Giovanni Santo, poet and court painter to Federico da Montefeltro, the Duke of Urbino.
Now I know that 1483 is two years before the Tudor period, but Raphael was obviously active during the Tudor period and one of his works, St George and the Dragon, a small cabinet painting, was commissioned by the Duke of Urbino as a gift for King Henry VII after the English king had sent him the Order of the Garter in 1504. Henry VII received the work in 1506. We know that Henry VIII admired Raphael’s work and ordered tapestries based on those designed by Raphael for Pope Leo X.
Raphael is known for his Madonnas and the famous four Stanze di Raffaello, or Raphael Rooms, in the Vatican Palace, with their frescoes painted by Raphael, including “The School of Athens”. As well as these beautiful frescoes, Raphael also painted portraits, including those of Popes Julius II and Leo X, and was an architect working on the new St Peter’s Basilica and palaces, like the now lost Palazzo Branconio dell'Aquila.
Raphael died on Good Friday (6th April) 1520, allegedly after a passionate night with his mistress Margherita Luti, or “La Fornarina”. He was buried in the Pantheon.
Rather than tell you any more about his life and career, I want to share with you a few of his amazing works.
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