The Tudor Society
  • This week in history 16 – 22 April

    16th April:

    1512 – The Mary Rose began her first tour of duty in the English Channel on the hunt for French warships.
    1521 – German Protestant reformer, Martin Luther, appeared in front of Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms. He had been summoned to the diet to either recant or reaffirm his religious views.
    1550 – Birth of Francis Anthony, alchemist, apothecary and physician. He was probably born in London and was the son of Derrick Anthony, a goldsmith. Anthony was imprisoned twice for practising as a physician without a licence, and is known for his aurum potabile (drinkable gold), made from gold and mercury, which he claimed had amazing curative powers. His works included Medicinae chymicae et veri potabilis auri assertio (1610).
    1570 – Baptism of Guy Fawkes, conspirator, at the Church of St Michael le Belfrey in York.
    1578 – Burial of Thomas Drant, Church of England clergyman and poet. He was part of the “Areopagus” intellectual circle at court, but also had an ecclesiastical career and was chaplain to Edmund Grindal, Bishop of London. He is known for his work on prosody (metre), and actually drew up some rules concerning it, which were mentioned by Edmund Spenser, Gabriel Harvey, Philip Sidney, Edward Dyer and Fulke Greville.
    1587 – Death of Anne Seymour (née Stanhope), Duchess of Somerset and wife of Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector during part of Edward VI’s reign. Anne was a reformer and a literary patron. She died at Hanworth Place and was buried at Westminster Abbey.
    1595 – Death of Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby and literary patron. His sudden death caused rumours of poisoning and witchcraft, but nothing was ever proved. Stanley was patron of the Strange’s Men company of players, which probably included William Shakespeare, and he was also a patron of poets. It is thought that he also was a poet.

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  • April Tudor Events Crossword Puzzle

    How much do you know about the events that happened in the month of April during the reigns of the Tudor monarchs? Why not test your knowledge with this fun crossword. Good luck!

    Click on the link or the picture below to print out the crossword.

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  • 13 April 1534 – Sir Thomas More is summoned to Lambeth

    Sketch of Sir Thomas More by Hans Holbein the Younger

    On this day in history, 13th April 1534, Sir Thomas More, Henry VIII’s former Lord Chancellor and good friend, was summoned to Lambeth to swear his allegiance to the Act of Succession. He refused to swear the oath and “thereupon was he delivered to the abbot of Westminster to be kept as a prisoner.”

    His son-in-law, William Roper, recorded what happened that day in his book The Life of Sir Thomas More:

    “So fell it out, within a month, or thereabout, after the making of the Statute for the Oath of the Supremacy and Matrimony, that all the priests of London and Westminster, and no temporal men but he, were sent for to appear at Lambeth before the Bishop of Canterbury, the Lord Chancellor, and Secretary Cromwell, commissioners appointed there to tender the oath unto them. Then Sir Thomas More, as his accustomed manner was always ere he entered into any matter of importance, (as when he was first chosen of the king’s privy council, when he was sent ambassador, appointed Speaker of the parliament, made Lord Chancellor, or when he took any like weighty matter upon him) to go to church and be confessed, to hear mass, and be houseled; so did he likewise in the morning early the selfsame day that he was summoned to appear before the lords at Lambeth.

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  • Execution Methods – Hanging, drawing and quartering

    In this week’s Claire Chats video talk, I discuss the brutal penalty for the crime of high treason – hanging, drawing and quartering – and just what it entailed, as well as its history and famous people who suffered this awful end.

    Apologies for the rather graphic descriptions!

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  • Just 10 places left on our Discover the Tudors Tour!

    Tour manager Philippa Lacey Brewell has informed me that there are now just 10 places left on our September 2018 Discover the Tudors tour so do act quickly if you’d like to join us! You can click here to secure your place now and to find out more.

    9 days of talking Tudor, 12 stunning historical attractions to visit, accommodation in luxury 4-star hotels, two full-time tour leaders and three expert speakers – what more could you ask for?! I’m very excited about being one of the leaders and I’m looking forward to meeting some of you on it.

    The Discover the Tudors tour runs from 16-24 September 2018 and the attractions visited are:

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  • Helena Gorges (1548-1635)

    Helena, Lady Gorges, was born in Sweden in 1548 and was the daughter of Ulf Henriksson of Östergötland and his wife, Agneta Knuttson. Before her two marriages, she was known as Helena (Elin) Snakenborg, the surname coming from her mother’s family, who came from Mecklenburg. Helena’s father was a nobleman of the Bååt family and her mother descended from the earls of Orkney.

    In the mid 1560s, Helena was chosen to serve Princess Cecilia of Sweden, Margravine of Baden, daughter of King Gustav I (Gustav Vasa) of Sweden, as a maid of honour. In late 1564, Helena left Sweden to accompany her mistress on a voyage to England to the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Their journey took almost a year due to bad weather and the need to avoid travelling through certain countries. Shortly after her arrival in England, Helena fell in love with William Parr, Marquis of Northampton and brother of Catherine Parr (Henry VIII’s sixth wife). When Princess Cecilia left England in 1566, Helena remained in England and joined Elizabeth I’s household in around 1567. Helena served Elizabeth I as maid of honour and then gentlewoman of the privy chamber.

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  • This week in history 9 – 15 April

    9th April:

    1483 – Death of Edward IV at the Palace of Westminster. He was laid to rest in St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, on 20th April. His cause of death is unknown. It may have been caused by a chill, but he was known for overindulging in food and drink, and that would not have helped his health.
    1533 – A delegation of the King’s councillors, headed by the Duke of Norfolk, visited Catherine of Aragon and informed her that Henry VIII was now married to Anne Boleyn. After they left, Catherine’s Chamberlain, Sir William Blount, 4th Baron Mountjoy, had to tell her that she had been demoted from Queen to Dowager Princess of Wales.
    1557 – Cardinal Reginald Pole’s legatine powers were revoked by Pope Paul IV.
    1582 – Death of Richard Bertie, evangelical, member of Parliament and second husband of Katherine Willoughby (other married name Brandon), Duchess of Suffolk, at Bourne. He had met Katherine when he became her Gentleman Usher. He was buried with Katherine, who died in 1580, at Spilsby.
    1590 – Funeral of Ambrose Dudley, Earl of Warwick. He was laid to rest in the Beauchamp Chapel of St Mary’s Church, Warwick.
    1626 – Death of Francis Bacon, Viscount St Alban, Lord Chancellor, politician and philosopher. It appears that Bacon died from inhaling nitre or opiates in a botched experiment.

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  • Quiz – Edward VI’s Regency Council

    In January 1547, King Henry VIII died and left his throne to his son and heir, Edward. Henry’s will made provisions for the nine-year-old King Edward VI to be helped by a regency council, but how much do you know about this council and what happened in early 1547? Test your knowledge with this fun quiz. Good luck!

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  • April 2018 Live Chats – 13 and 27 April

    As usual, we have two live chats in the Tudor Society chatroom this month – an informal chat and an expert chat. They will both take place in the Tudor Society chatroom at www.tudorsociety.com/chatroom/ and will last an hour each.

    Our informal chat will take place on 13th April and the topic is Lady Jane Grey (Queen Jane). We can all share our views on this Tudor queen, pose questions to each other, share book recommendations etc. – anything to do with Lady Jane Grey.

    Here are the times in different time zones:

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  • A favourite source for sources

    In this week’s Claire Chat’s video talk, I look at one of my very favourite sources for primary sources and old books, and show you how to use it.

    I hope you find it helpful!

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  • Sir Anthony Denny (1501-1549)

    Sir Anthony Denny was born in Cheshunt on 16th January 1501. He was the second son of Sir Edmund Denny and his second wife, Mary Troutbeck. Edmund was a Hertfordshire landowner who went on to become Baron of the Exchequer in the early years of Henry VIII’s reign.

    Anthony Denny educated at St Paul’s School in London and then at St John’s College, Cambridge. Among his contemporaries at St Paul’s were John Leland, William Paget and Thomas Wriothesley. Although he attended St John’s, there is no record of his graduation.

    Denny’s early public career began in the service of Sir Francis Bryan who was a favourite of King Henry VIII. Denny assisted Bryan on diplomatic missions to France. In the 1520s, he served the king in the royal household.

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  • Expert Talk – Treatments from the Tudor Court by Seamus O’Caellaigh

    This month’s expert is Seamus O’Caellaigh, author of “Pustules, Pestilence and Pain”. He’s speaking to us about the kinds of treatments that would have been used in the Tudor Court and setting them in reference to modern day treatments. Were these treatments helpful or downright dangerous?

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  • 2 April 1552 – Edward VI falls ill

    On this day in history, fourteen-year-old King Edward VI fell ill. His journal entry for 2nd April 1552 reads “I fell sike of the mesels [measles] and the small pokkes [smallpox]”, but he doesn’t mention it again in the entries for that month and he was still able to write entries.

    In a letter to his friend Barnaby Fitzpatrick written on 3 May 1552, Edward mentions his recent illness:

    “We have a little been troubled with the smallpox, which hath letted us to write hitherto; but now we have shaken that quite away.”

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  • This week in history 2 – 8 April

    2nd April:

    1502 – Arthur, Prince of Wales, son and heir of King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, died at Ludlow Castle in the Welsh Marches. He was just fifteen years old, and had only been married to the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon for four and a half months.
    1536 – Anne Boleyn’s almoner, John Skip, preached a rather controversial sermon in front of the King. Skip spoke on the Old Testament story of King Ahasuerus “who was moved by a wicked minister to destroy the Jews” but Queen Esther stepped in with different advice and saved the Jews. In Skip’s sermon, Henry VIII was Ahasuerus, Anne Boleyn was Queen Esther and Thomas Cromwell, who had just introduced the “Act of Suppression of the Lesser Monasteries” into Parliament, was Haman, the “wicked minister”.
    1552 – The fourteen-year-old Edward VI fell ill with measles and smallpox. Fortunately, he survived. His biographer, Chris Skidmore, believes that it was this bout of illness which suppressed the King’s immune system and which led to him dying of consumption (tuberculosis) on the 6th July 1553.
    1559 – The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis, ending the Italian Wars, was signed between Henry II of France and Elizabeth I of England.
    1568 – Death of Sir Ambrose Cave, member of Parliament, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Knight of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem, at the Savoy. He was buried at Stanford after a funeral at the Savoy Chapel.
    1571 – Death of Richard Onslow, lawyer, Solicitor-General and Speaker of the House of Commons. He caught a fever in Shrewsbury, while visiting his uncle there.

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  • Easter Sunday Wordsearch

    Today is Easter Sunday – Happy Easter! He is risen! I hope you have a very special day. To celebrate this feast day, our Sunday puzzle is an Easter wordsearch. Just how much do you know about how the Easter story was commemorated in Tudor times? Test your knowledge with this fun wordsearch.

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  • Good Friday traditions

    In this week’s Claire Chats, I talk about the medieval and Tudor traditions associated with Good Friday, the feast day commemorating Christ’s crucifixion.

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  • Maundy Thursday in Tudor Times

    Maundy Thursday commemorates the Last Supper, that final meal that Jesus Christ had with his disciples before his arrest.

    In Tudor times, on Maundy Thursday, the church was prepared for Easter with water and wine being used to wash the altars and it was traditional for people to go to confession. The three holy oils – the chrism oil, the oil of catechumens and the oil of the sick – were also blessed on this day.

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  • April 2018 – Tudor Life – Myths and Mysteries

    Here is the full version of our 76-page April edition of Tudor Life Magazine. This month we have articles about some of the strange and bizarre myths and mysteries surrounding the Tudors.

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  • Sir Anthony Browne (c.1500-1548)

    Sir Anthony Browne was born in c.1500 and was the son of Sir Anthony Browne and his wife Lucy. Browne’s father was a member of the Browne family of Betchworth, in Surrey, and his mother was a widow of Sir Thomas Fitzwilliam of Aldwark, Yorkshire. She was also the daughter and coheir of John Neville, 1st Marquess of Montagu and son of Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury. Browne’s great uncle was Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, the famous “Kingmaker”. From his mother’s first marriage, Browne had a half-brother, William Fitzwilliam, 1st Earl of Southampton, whose later career resembled his in many ways.

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  • This week in history 26 March – 1 April

    26th March:

    1533 – Convocation was asked to pronounce on the validity of a papal dispensation allowing a man to marry his brother’s widow, the man and widow in question being Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.
    1546 – Death of Sir Thomas Elyot, humanist scholar and diplomat. He was buried at Carleton Parish Church in Cambridgeshire. Elyot’s offices included Clerk of the Privy Council, High Sheriff of Oxfordshire and Berkshire, High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire, and a commissioner in the inquiry into the monasteries before their dissolution. He also acted as a diplomat, visiting the court of Charles V in 1531, and was one of the men chosen to receive Anne of Cleves in 1540. Elyot’s works include the 1531 treatise “The Boke named the Governour”, the 1536 medical treatise “The Castell of Helth”, his 1538 “Latin Dictionary” and a number of translations.
    1556 – Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Edmund Grindal, Bishop of London, summoned one hundred and ten ministers to Lambeth Palace to get them to pledge their willingness to wear vestments, as worn by the man in front of them: Robert Cole, a former non-conformist who now complied. The outfit consisted of a square cap, gown, tippet, and surplice. They were also asked “to inviolably observe the rubric of the Book of Common Prayer, and the queen’s majesty’s injunctions, and the Book of Convocation” and to commit to these orders on the spot, by writing “volo” or “no volo”. 37 refused and were suspended.
    1609 – Date of death for John Dee, astrologer, mathematician, alchemist, antiquary, spy, philosopher, geographer and adviser to Elizabeth I, given by John Pontois, a merchant who inherited some of Dee’s books. This date was backed up by Anthony Wood, who told Elias Ashmole that Dee had died at Pontois’ house in Bishopsgate Street. Dee was buried in Mortlake Church. The traditional date for Dee’s death is December 1608.
    1618 – Death of John Bridges, Dean of Salisbury in Elizabeth I’s reign and Bishop of Oxford in James I’s reign, at Marsh Baldon, Oxfordshire. He was buried there.

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  • Seymour Family – True or false?

    The Seymour family was a very important family in the reigns of Henry VIII and Edward VI, but just how much do you know about them? Grab a coffee and snack, and settle down to test your knowledge with this fun quiz. Good luck!

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  • Elizabeth I (1533 – 1603)

    On this day in history, 24th March 1603, Queen Elizabeth I died at Richmond Palace. She was sixty-nine years old and had ruled for over forty-four years.

    You can click here to read more about her death, but I thought it would be useful to list some Elizabeth I resources for you here:

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  • Competition winner – Mary wins a copy of Young and Damned and Fair by Gareth Russell

    Congratulations to Mary who was the winner of our Tudor Life Magazine competition.

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  • Claire’s bookcase – Books on the Six Wives of Henry VIII

    Thank you so much to Tudor Society member Anthony for inspiring today’s Claire Chats talk. Anthony asked if I’d do another of my “bookcase” chats so today I thought I’d focus on my collection of books on the six wives of Henry VIII.

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  • Thomas Cranmer (1489-1556)

    As today is the anniversary of the burning of Thomas Cranmer, former Archbishop of Canterbury, on 21st March 1556 in Oxford, I thought I’d list some resources for you to find out more about this fascinating Tudor man.

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  • Frances Murfyn, the Other Lady Cromwell

    Thank you to Teri Fitgerald for writing this biography of Frances Murfyn, a little know Tudor woman, for us.

    Frances Murfyn (c.1519–c.1543) was the daughter of Sir Thomas Murfyn, an alderman and former lord mayor of London, and his second wife Elizabeth Donne, daughter, and heir, of Sir Angel Donne, alderman of London and Anne Hawardine of Cheshire.

    Her father died in 1523 and her mother subsequently married Sir Thomas Denys in 1524. Her older sister Mary had married, in 1523, Andrew Judde, a successful merchant and future lord mayor of London. In early 1534, her stepfather successfully negotiated a marriage between Frances and Richard Cromwell (c.1510–1544), the nephew of Thomas Cromwell. The couple were married by 8th March 1534 and they would have two sons: Henry (c.1537–1604) and Francis (c.1541–1598).

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  • This week in history 19 – 25 March

    19th March:

    1563 – Deaths of Arthur Brooke, translator and poet, and Sir Thomas Finch, knight-marshal, in the shipwreck of the Greyhound, off the coast of Rye in East Sussex.
    1563 – Peace (Edict) of Amboise signed at the Château of Amboise by Catherine de’ Medici, as regent for her son, Charles IX. Catherine initiated this truce after the assassination of Francis, Duke of Guise, at the Siege of Orléans. The Edict ended the first phase of the French Wars of Religion and guaranteed the Huguenots religious privileges and freedoms. Peace did not last long, however.
    1568 – Death of Elizabeth Seymour, Lady Cromwell. Click here to read more.
    1577 – Death of Edmund Harman, former barber of Henry VIII, at Burford in Oxfordshire. He had retired there after Henry VIII’s death. Harman was buried at Taynton Church.
    1590 – Baptism of William Bradford, separatist and founder of the Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts, at Austerfield in Yorkshire. Bradford was Governor of the colony for over thirty years.

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  • 19 March 1568 – Death of Elizabeth Seymour, Lady Cromwell by Teri Fitzgerald

    On this day in history, 19th March 1568, Elizabeth Seymour, the wife of John Paulet, Lord St John died. She was laid to rest on 5th April in the Paulet family church of St Mary at Basing, Hampshire.1 She was around fifty years of age.

    The undated inscription on the wall of the vault in the church (as transcribed by Lord Bolton, 16th Dec. 1903) reads:

    “Hic jacet D[omina] Cromwell, quondam conjux Johis, Marchionis Winton.”2

    Known by her superior title of Lady Cromwell, Elizabeth was never a Marchioness – her husband succeeded his father as 2nd Marquess of Winchester after her death.

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  • Katherine of York, Countess of Devon

    The daughter of King Edward IV, Stained glass window of the northwest transept of Canterbury Cathedral,

    King Edward IV married the Lancastrian widow Elizabeth Wydeville [Woodville] in the spring or summer of 1464. In nineteen years of marriage, Elizabeth gave birth to ten children, seven of whom were daughters. The eldest daughter Elizabeth, born in 1466, remains the most well known in popular and scholarly circles and Edward IV’s other four daughters are significantly neglected both in factual and fictional accounts of their lives. The emphasis on Elizabeth and the neglect of her sisters are perhaps understandable, in that Elizabeth married Henry Tudor in 1485 and gave birth to Henry VIII in 1491. A queen of England undoubtedly attracts more attention than a countess or viscountess. Yet the lives of Elizabeth of York’s younger sisters are interesting in shedding light on the marriage policies of the houses of York and Tudor in an era of intermittent dynastic and political conflict. They also illuminate the contrasting fortunes of members of a side-lined royal dynasty.

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  • March Tudor Events Crossword 2

    March is a very busy month for “on this day in history” Tudor events, but how much do you know about the births, deaths, marriages, treaties etc. that took place in this month?

    Test yourself with this fun crossword and remember, all the answers can be found on this site somewhere!

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