In the second part of my series on the treatment that Mary, the future Mary I, received from her father following the breakdown of her parents’ marriage, I look at the years 1534 and 1535 and what happened to Mary after Parliament passed the First Act of Succession.
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If you remember, back in May, I wrote about Henry VIII’s Privy Council sending letters on 24th May 1546 to reformer Anne Askew and her estranged husband, Thomas Kyme, ordering them to appear in front of the council within fourteen days. Well, on 18th June 1546*, Anne, Nicholas Shaxton (former Bishop of Salisbury), Nicholas White and John Hadlam were all found guilty of heresy at London’s Guildhall.
Charles Wriothesley records that they “were this daie first indited of heresie and after arraygned on the same, and their confessed their heresies against the sacrament of the alter without any triall of a jurie, and so had judgment to be brent[burnt].” Although all four were condemned to death, Shaxton and White recanted their heretical beliefs and were spared. Shaxton visited Anne in prison and tried to persuade her to recant, but she would not and she said to him “that it had been good for him never to have been born”.
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On this day in history, 18th June 1558, the will of Robert Recorde, the Welsh mathematician, physician and mint administrator, was proved. His date of death is not known, but he is thought to have died in mid-June 1558.
Recorde is known for introducing the “equal to” sign, i.e. “=”. He published several mathematical works, including The Grounde of Artes, teachings the Worke and Practise, of Arithmeticke, both in whole numbers and fractions in 1543, which was the first book on Algebra published in England, and The Whetstone of Witte, whiche is the seconde parte of Arithmeteke: containing the extraction of rootes; the cossike practise, with the rule of equation; and the workes of Surde Nombers, in which he introduced the “=” sign.
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18th June:
1529 – Opening of the Legatine Court at Blackfriars to hear the case for the proposed annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon.
1546 – Anne Askew was arraigned at London’s Guildhall for heresy, along with Nicholas Shaxton, Nicholas White and John Hadlam (Adlams or Adams). She was sentenced to be burned at the stake.
1558 – Proving of the will of Robert Recorde, Welsh mathematician and physician. His date of death is not known, but is thought to have been mid June 1558. He is known for introducing the “equal to” sign, i.e. “=”. He published several mathematical works.
1588 – Death of Robert Crowley, Protestant printer, author, poet and Church of England clergyman. He was buried in the chancel of St Giles Cripplegate under the same stone as his great friend martyrologist, John Foxe.
1592 – Death of Francis Wyndham, Judge, at the Committee House, St Peter Mancroft, Norwich. His trials included the treason trials of John Somerville and William Parry in the 1580s, and his legal knowledge led to him being approached for advice on Mary, Queen of Scots.
1616 – Death of Thomas Bilson, Bishop of Winchester, at Westminster. He was buried at Westminster Abbey.
Test your knowledge of Tudor history with this week’s quiz. Grab your favourite beverage and a snack, make yourself comfortable and get your grain working with these general Tudor history quiz questions. Good luck!
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I have very mixed feelings about Mary I, but I have to say that there is much to admire about her. Not only did she rally support against Wyatt’s Rebellion in 1554 and reign as the first official queen regnant; not only did she rally support for her claim to the throne in 1553, being prepared to give her life for it; but she also stood up to her father, King Henry VIII, and the bullies he got to do the king’s business, when she was just seventeen years old. She was a tough cookie.
In today’s Claire Chats I talk about what happened to Mary from 1531 to 1534, what she went through.
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Mildred Cooke came from the influential Cooke family of Gidea Hall, Essex, a household renowned for its links with Renaissance humanism and reformist sympathies. Her father, Sir Anthony Cooke, was a royal tutor to King Edward VI; shaping the boy king’s interest in classical learning and Protestantism. Mildred’s sisters: Anne, Catherine and Elizabeth became renowned female scholars, with Anne famously translating from Latin John Jewel’s Apologie of the Anglican Church (1564). While the Cooke women were in the minority in terms of female education, (Thomas More’s daughter Margaret, and his wards, received humanist educations) their education did not mirror their male contemporaries. Sixteenth-century European scholars and clergyman dictated that women were naturally defective and immoral in comparison with virtuous, honourable men. However Humanist educators, such as Juan Luis Vives, understood the importance of educating women. He stressed that their curriculum should avoid ‘masculine’ studies such as mathematics, science and government. Rather, he recommended studying theological translations, languages and the moral philosophers of antiquity such as Plato and Cicero; topics that would not ‘corrupt’ the innate weakness of the female sex.
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11th June:
1456 – Birth of Anne Neville, Queen Consort of Richard III, at Warwick Castle. Anne was the daughter of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick and 6th Earl of Salisbury, known as the Kingmaker, and his wife, Anne Beauchamp.
1488 – Death of James III of Scotland, at Sauchieburn, or “the field of Stirling”. It is not known whether he died in battle or after the battle.
1509 – Marriage of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon at Greenwich Palace .
1540 – Birth of Barnabe Googe, translator and poet. Googe is known as one of the earliest English pastoral poets.
1544 – Bishops ordered by Henry VIII to ensure that the new litany was “in our native englysshe tonge”.
1560 – Death of Marie de Guise (Mary of Guise), former consort of James V and regent of Scotland, at Edinburgh Castle. Her body lay in a lead coffin at the castle, in St Margaret’s Chapel, until March 1561 when it was taken back to France. Marie was buried in the convent of St Pierre at Rheims.
1576 – Death of Sir Anthony Cooke, humanist and educator. Cooke educated his daughters to a high standard, teaching them Latin and Greek, and probably also modern languages and Hebrew. He was appointed royal tutor to Edward VI, but it is not known whether he actually tutored the King. It may have been more of a guiding role. He was buried at Romford, and his effigy can be seen at St Edward’s Church there.
Edward was a very popular name in Tudor times! Test your knowledge of Tudor Edwards with this fun crossword puzzle – good luck!
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In today’s Claire Chats video, I clear up a few misunderstanding that seem prevalent on social media regarding coronations, the numbering of monarchs, queens regnant versus queens consort, what makes a monarch and a few other issues to do with coronations and monarchy.
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Honor Grenville was born around c.1493-95; the daughter of Sir Thomas Grenville and his wife, Isabella Gilbert. Thomas was of Cornish origin, from the parish of Stowe in Kilkhampton, Cornwall. Honor was first married to Sir John Basset (1462-1528) of Umberleigh in the Parish of Atherington in Devon. The marriage was fairly ideal for the daughter of a gentry family. Her father was a well-respected Lord of the Manor of Stowe and Bideford in Devon. Additionally, he was a renowned Lancastrian supporter during the Wars of the Roses period, appointed one of the Esquires of the Body to Henry VII. Honor’s husband was Sherriff of Devon in the years 1497, 1517 and 1522, respectively and an important figure in West country politics. The couple produced seven surviving children, who entered a variety of careers. These children shall be explored later in the article.
While the marriage was ideal in terms of production of children, Honor’s second marriage would propel her into more discernible society. Her husband, John Basset, died in 1528, with Honor soon after marrying Arthur Plantagenet, 1st Viscount Lisle, thus becoming Lady Lisle. Her husband was later given the office of Lord Deputy of Calais. Most significantly about Arthur was his lineage, being the illegitimate son of King Edward IV and therefore having Plantagenet blood. He was the half-brother of Queen Elizabeth of York and uncle of the current king of this period, Henry VIII – an uneasy connection.
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On this day in history, 6th June 1522, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and the nephew of King Henry VIII’s wife, Catherine of Aragon, made a grand entry into the city of London. He was accompanied by King Henry VIII.
Three years ago, I did a Claire Chats video talk on Charles V’s 1522 visit to England, and here it is:
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4th June…
1534 – Death of Sir Edward Guildford at Leeds Castle. Guildford acted as guardian to John Dudley (future Duke of Northumberland) and held the posts of Marshal of Calais, Constable of Dover Castle and Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports.
1536 – Jane Seymour was proclaimed Queen at Greenwich Palace. Charles Wriothesley, the Tudor chronicler, recorded: “Also the 4th daie of June, being Whitsoundaie, the said Jane Seymor was proclaymed Queene at Greenewych, and went in procession, after the King, with a great traine of ladies followinge after her, and also ofred at masse as Queen, and began her howsehold that daie, dyning in her chamber of presence under the cloath of estate.”
1550 (some sources say 5th June) – Robert Dudley married Amy Robsart at the royal palace of Sheen at Richmond, near London. The marriage was attended by the then king, Edward VI.
1561 – The spire of St Paul’s Cathedral caught fire after being struck by lightning. The fire melted the Cathedral’s bells and lead from the spire “poured down like lava upon the roof”……
This month’s expert is the final part of our three-part series with Lauren Browne on Tudor Rivals and Mistresses. This month Lauren talks about how mistresses were represented on the Tudor stage. Lauren is researching her PhD in Medieval and Early Modern History and this talk is taken directly from her research for her PhD.
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How much do you know about the young King Henry VIII? Find out with this fun quiz. Grab your favourite beverage and snack and let’s get started! Good luck!
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Just to let you know that this month’s live chats will be taking place on 9th and 23rd June. Both chats will last one hour and will take place in the Tudor Society chatroom at www.tudorsociety.com/chatroom/.
Our informal chat will take place on Saturday 9th June and this month’s topic is the Seymour family. This is your chance to share your views on the Seymours (Jane, Edward, Thomas, the Seymours in Elizabeth I’s reign, their background, anything Seymour related!), to pose questions about them, to ask the views of other members, to share book recommendations, and to just talk Tudor.
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In today’s Claire Chats video talk, I talk about the Rome and Rheims Plot, a fictional plot in which 20 men, mostly Catholic priests, were implicated. Many of them were tortured, tried and executed.
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Sometimes my research leads me off on a tangent and that really is the joy of historical research, suddenly finding a little nugget of information that piques your interest and leads you off on a journey of discovery.
While I was looking at this week’s “on this day in history” events from my book On This Day in Tudor History, I noticed that an entry for the 31st May was the death of Katherine Brettergh (née Bruen) in 1601:
“Death of Katherine Brettergh (née Bruen), ‘exemplar of godly life’. Her biographer, Steve Hindle, writes of her deathbed crisis of faith “during which she raged against God’s unmercifulness and threw her Bible repeatedly to the floor”, and how “Her agonies formed the centrepiece of a polemical account of her embattled life appended to the two sermons preached by William Harrison and William Leigh at her funeral”, and which were published. Her crisis, they said, was a struggle between God and Satan for her soul.”
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Thank you to Lynne for asking these two questions about the shared tomb of Queens Elizabeth I and Mary I: “Why did James I decide to bury Elizabeth I on top of her sister Mary? Why is Elizabeth I’s effigy visible with her mother’s coat of arms and nothing on display for Mary?”
Let me tell you about their burials and their present resting place at Westminster Abbey.
Queen Mary I, daughter of Henry VIII and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, died on 17th November 1558. Mary left instructions in her will for her mother’s remains, which had been buried at Peterborough Abbey, to be exhumed and brought to London so that Catherine could be buried with Mary. However, her instructions were ignored; Catherine remained at Peterborough and Mary lay in state at St James’s Palace until her funeral on 14th December 1558, when she was buried at Westminster Abbey with just stones marking her resting place. You can read more about her funeral in my article 14 December 1558 – Burial of Queen Mary I.
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Thank you to everyone who attended our live chat on Friday night with Nathen Amin. Nathen was, as always, excellent and answered a lot of fascinating questions on Henry VII. Congratulations to Laurie who won a copy of Nathen’s book “The House of Beaufort”, we hope you enjoy this book as much as we do!
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On 28th May 1582, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Roman Catholic priests Thomas Forde, John Shert and Robert Johnson were hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn.
In his Memoirs of Missionary Priests, Bishop Richard Challoner gives a biography of each of these Catholic martyrs. You can read it online at archive.org/details/memoirsofmission01, but here are a few details about these men and what led to their horrific ends.
Thomas Forde was a Devonshire man who was educated at Trinity College, Oxford, where he graduated MA in 1567 before becoming a fellow there. He resigned his fellowship due to the college’s Protestant stance and in 1571 he travelled to the English College, a Catholic seminary, at Douai in France, to study divinity. In 1573, Forde entered the priesthood and in 1576 he attained his degree in divinity. He then returned to England to evangelise, i.e. spread the Catholic faith. He was arrested on 17th July 1581 with Edmund Campion in Berkshire and taken to London. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London and condemned to death on 21st November 1581 for being involved in what Challoner describes as “the pretended conspiracy of the Rhemes [Rheims] and Rome”, although, as Challoner points out “he had never been in his life either at Rhemes or Rome; nor had the witnesses that appeared against him […] ever so much as seen Mr Forde before his imprisonment.
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28th May:
1509 – Death of Edward Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon. He was buried at Tiverton.
1533 – Archbishop Thomas Cranmer proclaimed the validity of Henry’s marriage to Anne Boleyn.
1535 – Birth of Sir Thomas North, translator, in London.
1582 – Executions of Roman Catholic priests Thomas Forde, John Shert and Robert Johnson at Tyburn. They were hanged, drawn and quartered.
1611 – Funeral of Thomas Sutton, founder of the London Charterhouse.
Showtime’s TV series “The Tudors” was very popular and was responsible for igniting many people’s interest in Henry VIII and his six wives, but how much do you know about the series? Test your “The Tudors” knowledge with this fun quiz. Good luck!
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This month’s amazing 82 page Tudor Life magazine is a wonderful look at the Seymour family and their remarkable journey, both in royal history and in popular culture.
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On this day in history, 25th May 1553, Lady Jane Grey and Lord Guildford Dudley got married at Durham place in London.
In the same letter to the Emperor in which de described Edward VI as “wasting away daily”, Jehan Scheyfve recorded the marriage of Jane and Guildford:
“On the 25th of this month were celebrated the weddings of my Lord Guilford, son of the Duke of Northumberland, to the eldest daughter of the Duke of Suffolk; of the Earl of Pembroke’s son to the second daughter; and of the Earl of Huntingdon’s son to the daughter of the Duke of Northumberland. The weddings were celebrated with great magnificence and feasting at the Duke of Northumberland’s house in town.”
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As you know, I’ve just been leading the Anne Boleyn Experience Tour with Philippa Brewell of British History Tours and as well as being the resident historian on the tour, answering questions on Anne Boleyn and Tudor history, I also did a talk on the other victims of May 1536, i.e. the five men who were executed, the two men who were imprisoned and released, and the families left behind.
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Nathen Amin was a big hit when he spoke to us last year on Henry VII’s ‘journey’ to Bosworth, i.e. his early life and time in exile, so we got him back for the next instalment of Henry VII’s life. You can view Nathen’s excellent video talk “Henry VII: Bosworth to Coronation” by clicking here.
Nathen will be joining us in the Tudor Society chatroom tomorrow (Friday 25th May) to answer your questions on his talk, his research and anything Henry VII related. Our last live chat with Nathen was brilliant, so this one is bound to be! Please do join us. Here are the times in different time zones:
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On this day in history, 24th May 1546, letters were sent from Privy Council to Anne Askew (future Protestant martyr) and her estranged husband Thomas Kyme, ordering them to appear in front of the council:
“Two of the Yeomen of the Chamber were sent to apprehende Sir Robert Wesdom, prest, and had with them letters to oone Kyme and his wief for their apparance within x dayes after receipt.”
“Kyme” was Thomas Kyme, Anne Askew’s husband.
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Apologies for not writing this sooner but I was travelling. So, what did day 5 bring?
The day started with the usual delicious Hever Castle breakfast. I haven’t mentioned the food, I don’t think, but it was out of this world. The chef at Hever went out of his way to help with our dietary requirements (vegetarians, vegans and some serious food allergies) and every dish was divine. There was so much choice for breakfast (hot and cold) that I am finding it very hard to come back down to earth here at home. I want my halloumi and avocado on a toasted English muffin with grilled tomato! Where is it? Oh dear!
Over breakfast, we took the opportunity to pass around our special Anne Boleyn Experience books which had pages at the back for autographs, messages and addresses. Whenever I feel blue, I will take out my book and read the special messages from people who I now count as good friends. Then, unfortunately, it was time to do last minute packing and to have a last wander around the gardens.
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