Thank you to Heather R. Darsie, our regular Tudor Society contributor, for today’s article. Over to Heather…
Happy Thanksgiving to our American members! Today also marks the 474th anniversary of the Battle of Solway Moss, a border skirmish that took place on the English side of the border with Scotland on 24th November 1542. This was the last of a series of such battles that arose from a falling-out between Henry VIII of England and his nephew, James V of Scotland.
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On this day in history events for 21-27th November.
21 November:
1495 – Birth of John Bale, churchman, Protestant playwright, historian and Bishop of Ossory, at Cove, near Dunwich, in Suffolk. Bale wrote twenty-four plays, including “Three Laws of Nature, Moses and Christ, corrupted by the Sodomytes, Pharisees and Papystes most wicked”, “A Tragedye; or enterlude manifesting the chief promyses of God unto Man”, “The Temptacyon of our Lorde”, “A brefe Comedy or Enterlude of Johan Baptystes preachynge in the Wyldernesse, etc” and “ Kynge Johan”. His most famous work is his Illustrium majoris Britanniae scriptorum, hoc est, Angliae, Cambriae, ac Scotiae Summarium… (“A Summary of the Famous Writers of Great Britain, that is, of England, Wales and Scotland”), which was his effort to record every work by a British author.
1558 – Death of James Bassett, courtier and stepson of Arthur Plantagenet, Viscount Lisle. Bassett was a member of Philip of Spain’s Privy Chamber and private Secretary to Mary I. He was buried at Blackfriars, London.
How much do you know about King Edward VI, the third Tudor monarch? Test yourself with this fun quiz! Good luck!
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Here is the transcript of last night’s wonderful live chat session with Janet Wertman about Jane Seymour and Janet’s book “Jane the Quene”.
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On this day in history, 19th November 1587, Henry Vaux, poet, Catholic recusant and priest harbourer, died of consumption at Great Ashby, the home of his sister, Eleanore Brooksby. Vaux was sent to Marshalsea prison after being arrested in November 1586 for offering accommodation and assistance to Catholic priests. He was released in May 1587 due to ill health.
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For today’s Tudor Cooking with Claire video, I’m making a recipe dating back to the 15th century called Pears in Compote, or, as it’s written in the manuscript, Pears in Compost!
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Did you know that 17th November 1558 was the death date of not only Queen Mary I, but also of Reginald Pole, Mary’s Archbishop of Canterbury? Strange, isn’t it?
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At today’s stop for her book tour for Edward VI in a Nutshell, Kyra Kramer is giving us an overview of Edward VI. He’s a fascinating Tudor personality and it’s a shame that he’s often overlooked and overshadowed by his father and half-sisters.
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Just a reminder that Janet Wertman, author of Jane the Quene joins us on the Tudor Society chatroom tomorrow night to answer your questions on her research into Jane’s life, her book or anything Jane Seymour related. Or perhaps you’d like to ask her about writing historical fiction. Do join us!
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On the anniversary of Mary I’s death and her half-sister Elizabeth I’s accession, I’d like to share this piece with you from my book On this day in Tudor History.
On 17th November 1558, Henry VIII’s eldest child, Queen Mary I, died. She was just forty-two-years-old.
After Easter 1558, Mary I made her will because she believed that she was pregnant. The birth should have been imminent because Philip departed in July 1557, yet there is no mention in the records of preparations being made such as nursery staff being appointed, remarks on her changing body shape, preparations for confinement etc. The pregnancy was all in Mary’s mind.
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14 November
1501 – Catherine of Aragon married Arthur, Prince of Wales at St Paul’s Cathedral.
1531 – Birth of Richard Topcliffe, member of Parliament, priest-hunter, interrogator and torturer, in Lincolnshire. During the reign of Elizabeth I, Topcliffe was issued with warrants allowing him to use torture when examining imprisoned Catholic recusants and priests. His famous victims included Robert Southwell, John Gerard and Henry Garnet.
1532 – On this day in 1532, according to the chronicler Edward Hall, Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn secretly married:
Grab a coffee and tease those brain cells of yours with this fun general Tudor history quiz from Rebecca Larson. Can you get 10/10?
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Thanks to all who attended our live chat on the Princes in the Tower last night and a big thank you to Olga Hughes for running it. It was great fun and I think we could have gone on for hours!
Here is the transcript of the chat, for those who weren’t able to make it:
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As we are having a live-chat session later today on the Princes in the Tower, I thought I’d share with you this 2015 Channel 4 documentary looking at the fates of the Princes in the Tower, Edward V and his brother Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York.
We do not know what happened to these boys, the sons of King Edward IV who disappeared following the accession of their uncle, Richard III, but there are various theories. We can have fun debating them later!
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Thank you to our regular contributor, Heather R. Darsie, for introducing us to this interesting 16th century woman.
Dorothea Oldenburg, Princess of Denmark and Norway,1 was born to King Christian II of Denmark and Norway, and Isabella of Austria on 10 November 1520. Isabella of Austria was younger sister to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and a niece of Katherine of Aragon. Dorothea was a niece of Charles V.
Dorothea’s father, Christian II, was forced to abdicate his throne on 20 January 1523. Thereafter, Dorothea and her family, including her better-known little sister Christina of Denmark, fled to the Netherlands. Three-year-old Dorothea’s great-aunt, Margaret of Austria, was serving as Regent of the Netherlands; Margaret served in this capacity from 1507 to 1515, and again from 1519 until 1530. Margaret was pro-English.
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On this day in history events for 7th – 13th November:
7 November:
1485 – Richard III and his supporters were attainted at Henry VII’s first Parliament. Click here to read more.
1541 – Archbishop Thomas Cranmer and the Duke of Norfolk went to Hampton Court Palace to interrogate Queen Catherine Howard, and to arrange that she should be confined to her chambers there. Click here to read more.
1557 – Death of Sir John Arundell of Lanherne. He was buried at St Mawgan Church. Arundell served Henry VIII as Sheriff of Cornwall and Commander of troops against the rebels during the Pilgrimage of Grace. He also served in France in 1544. During Edward VI’s reign, in 1549, he was imprisoned after John, Baron Russell, accused him of refusing to raise troops and of ordering the mass to be performed. He was released in June 1552.
1565 – Death of Sir Edward Warner, soldier, member of Parliament and Lieutenant of the Tower of London during the reigns of Edward VI and Elizabeth I. He was the gaoler of Katherine Seymour (née Grey), Countess of Hertford, who had been imprisoned for secretly marrying Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford. Warner died in Norfolk and was buried at Little Plumstead Church in the county.
1568 – Baptism of Dunstan Gale, poet and author of “Pyramus and Thisbe”, at St Giles Cripplegate, London.
1581 – Death of Richard Davies, scholar and Bishop of St David’s, in Abergwili, Carmarthenshire, in the bishop’s palace. He was a friend of Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, and undertook translations of parts of the Bible.
1603 – Burial of Robert Allot, literary compiler, bookseller, poet and editor of the 1599 “Wits Theater” and the 1600 “Englands Parnassus”, at St Ann Blackfriars.
The time and date have now been confirmed for the live-chat session with Janet Wertman on the Tudor Society chatroom. It will take place at 11pm UK time on 18th November and here are the times in the different time zones:
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Our quiz maestro Rebecca Larson is testing your knowledge on Queen Katherine Howard this week. Enjoy and good luck!
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Wherever you are in the world, you can still enjoy a taste of the UK’s bonfire celebrations with the following recipes and videos that I’ve found for you.
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Remember, remember the Fifth of November,
The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,
I know of no reason
Why the Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t’was his intent
To blow up the King and Parli’ment.
Three-score barrels of powder below
To prove old England’s overthrow;
By God’s providence he was catch’d
With a dark lantern and burning match.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!”
I’ve been receiving lots of questions about blogging so Tim and I decided to dedicate one of my Claire Chats videos to giving you some advice on blogging about history and blogging in general. I do hope you enjoy the video and that you find it useful too, please do feel free to leave comments, to share your hints and tips for blogging, or to ask questions.
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On this day in history, 3rd November 1592, Sir John Perrot, Privy Councillor and former Lord Deputy of Ireland, died at the Tower of London from illness. He was buried in the Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula at the Tower. He’d been tried for treason in April 1592 and later sentenced to death, but he died of natural causes.
Philippa Jones (The Other Tudors) writes of how it was widely believed that he was actually the illegitimate son of Henry VIII by Mary Berkeley, who served Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s first wife, but others dispute this claim, saying that there is no evidence to support this.
I did a Claire Chats video “Was Sir John Perrot Henry VIII’s son?” in which I look at Perrot’s life and the evidence regarding his parentage.
[Read More...]As today is the anniversary of the birth of Edward V, son of Edward IV and one of the Princes in the Tower, it seems fitting to announce that we’re holding one of our informal live chats on the Tudor Society chatroom on 11th November 2016 and it will be on the Princes in the Tower. It will be open to all full-access Tudor Society members.
Olga Hughes, Tudor Life magazine regular contributor, and I will be moderating the chat and it will be 60 minutes of chatting about these boys and the theories regarding their fates. It’s your chance to have your say, pose questions or just lurk and ‘listen’ to others if you’d prefer. It will be fun and enlightening, I promise!
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In medieval and Tudor times, 2 November, the day after the Feast of All Saints, was the Feast of All Souls.
It was a time to remember the souls in Purgatory who might not have masses or prayers being said for them, the forgotten souls. Bells would be rung the night before All Souls Day to comfort the souls and to let them know that they were being remembered and then masses were said for them on All Souls Day. Bread was baked in honour of these troubled souls and it was given out to the poor in the hope that the act of giving on behalf of these souls would help them get out of Purgatory.
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In this month’s expert chat we have Janet Wertman, author of Jane the Quene, a novel about Jane Seymour, third wife of Henry VIII. Janet discusses how she went about researching her novel, including how she put together a detailed timeline to ensure that events happened in the correct order.
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This is Part I of a four-part series by Heather R. Darsie, which seeks to look at what were considered the attributes of a Renaissance prince, and who of our four princes embodied the ideals of the Renaissance best.
What were some of those themes?
The idea of a Renaissance man stood for a person who strove to embrace knowledge and develop himself. This included concepts such as the arts, knowledge, physical achievements, and social ideals. More plainly and for a prince, this could include cultivating a court known for patronising artists, musicians, and the like; establishing educational institutions, a good degree of physical fortitude, and things such as chivalric love or engaging in acts of charity.
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All Saints’ Day, which is also known as All Hallows or Hallowmas, is part of the three days of Hallowtide: All Hallows Eve (Halloween), All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day. It was celebrated in Tudor England on 1st November every year.
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Today marks the anniversary of the death of Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond, on 1st November 1456. He died from the plague at Carmarthen Castle.
Thank you to Sarah Bryson for writing this article on Edmund for us.
Henry Tudor, King Henry VII, was the founder of the Tudor Dynasty. His mother was the imposing Margaret Beaufort who risked everything to see her son on the throne and in turn the houses of Lancaster and York united through the marriage of her son to Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV. But who was Henry Tudor’s father? While so much is known about Henry’s mother, his father is a much more elusive figure and sadly he did not live to see his only son and heir claim the English throne.
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31 October:
1494 – Henry VII’s son, Henry (the future Henry VIII), was created Duke of York.
1517 – Martin Luther wrote to Albert, Archbishop of Mainz, and the Bishop of Brandenburg protesting against the sale of indulgences and sending them a copy of The Ninety-Five Theses (proper title: Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences).
According to Philipp Melancthon, “Luther, burning with passion and just devoutness, posted the Ninety-Five Theses at the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany at All Saints Eve, October 31”, rather than sending them in a letter, but no other contemporary source supports this.