It’s not long until our brand-new August Tudor Life magazine will be available to members. This month we’re focusing on “Coronations” and there are many things that you wouldn’t believe unless you knew that they were true!
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August Magazine Cover Reveal
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Robert Sidney’s Poems
Today marks the anniversary of the death of Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester, poet and courtier, in 1626.
His notebook, which held a collection of poems and sonnets, and showed the revisions he made to them, was discovered in Warwick Castle’s library in the 1960s. It had a 19th century leather binding and researchers found that it had been acquired in 1848 after the library at Penshurst Place, Sidney’s home, had been broken up and sold. Although the poetry collection had been misattributed, scholar Peter Croft was able to identify Sidney’s handwriting and he went on to edit and publish Sidney’s poems with Oxford University Press. The British Library purchased the notebook at Sotheby’s in 1975 and it is now part of their collection, with reference Add. (Additional) MS 58435.
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This week in history 13 – 19 July
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John Dee
John Dee, astrologer, mathematician, alchemist, antiquary, spy, philosopher, geographer and adviser to Elizabeth I and various influential statesmen during her reign, was born in London on 13th July 1527.
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Medieval and Tudor Games Quiz
If you’ve watched my Claire Chats video on Tudor Indoor Games then you should find this quiz easy-peasy!
How much do you know about Medieval and Tudor card games, dice games, board games and indoor pursuits? Test your knowledge with this fun quiz.
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11 July 1564 – The Plague hits Stratford-upon-Avon
On this day in history, 11th July 1564, the plague hit Stratford-upon-Avon, birthplace of William Shakespeare, in Warwickshire, or rather the first death from the disease was recorded in the parish.
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Indoor Tudor Games Video
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Reformation Books
As requested by those who joined Gareth Russell’s live chat last month, here is a list of recommended reading on the Reformation.
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July 1575 – Elizabeth I visits Kenilworth Castle
From the 9th to the 27th July 1575 Elizabeth I stayed at Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire, home of her great friend Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. She had visited Kenilworth three times before but this was a special visit in that it lasted nineteen days and was the longest stay at a courtier’s house in any of her royal progresses.
We know a substantial amount about Elizabeth’s visit to Kenilworth because it was recorded in a letter by Robert Langham, a member of Dudley’s household, and in an account by poet and actor George Gascoigne, a man hired by Robert Dudley to provide entertainment during the royal visit.
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9 July 1553 – Mary Tudor writes to the Privy Council
After declaring herself queen the previous day, in front of her household at Kenninghall, Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VIII and half-sister of the late King Edward VI, wrote the following letter to the privy council:
“My lords, we greet you well and have received sure advertisement that our dearest brother the King and late sovereign lord is departed to God. Marry, which news, how they be woeful unto our hearts, He wholly knoweth to whose will and pleasure we must and do humbly submit us and our will.
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Thomas Cranmer’s Everlasting Gift: The Book of Common Prayer
Thank you to Beth von Staats for joining us here on the Tudor Society today as part of her book tour for Thomas Cranmer: In a Nutshell. She is here to share an excellent article on Thomas Cranmer and the Book of Common Prayer – thanks Beth!
MadeGlobal Publishing is offering one copy of the paperback version of Thomas Cranmer: In a Nutshell as a prize for one lucky commenter. All you have to do to enter the giveaway is to comment below saying what you find so fascinating about Thomas Cranmer. You need to leave your comment by midnight (UK time) on Wednesday 15th July. The winner will be picked at random and contacted for his/her postal address. The giveaway is open internationally.
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Kett’s Rebellion – July 1549
8th July 1549 was the beginning of Kett’s Rebellion. Robert Kett, a Norfolk farmer, agreed to lead a group of protesters who were angry with the enclosure of common land. The protesters marched on Norwich, and by the time they reached the city walls, it is said that they numbered around 16,000.
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Expert Talk – Dr Elizabeth Goldring: Robert Dudley and the world of Elizabethan art
In this month’s expert talk, Dr. Elizabeth Goldring from Warwick University talks about the art collection of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.
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This week in history 6 – 12 July
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6 July 1553 – The death of Edward VI
Between 8 and 9pm on 6th July 1553 King Edward VI lay dying at Greenwich Palace. He prayed:
“Lord God, deliver me out of this miserable and wretched life, and take me among thy chosen: howbeit not my will, but thy will be done. Lord I commit my spirit to thee. O Lord! Thou knowest how happy it were for me to be with thee: yet, for thy chosen’s sake, send me life and health, that I may truly serve thee. O my Lord God, bless thy people, and save thine inheritance! O Lord God save thy chosen people of England! O my Lord God. defend this realm from papistry, and maintain thy true religion; that I and my people may praise thy holy name, for thy Son Jesus Christ’s sake!”
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Tudor Rebels and Rebellions Quiz
How much do you know about Tudor rebels and rebellions?
Test your knowledge and get those brain cells working with this fun quiz.
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Just editing up Elizabeth Goldring’s Expert Talk
We’re just editing the amazing talk by Dr. Elizabeth Goldring from Warwick University all about the artwork collection of Robert Dudley.
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4 July 1623 – Death of composer William Byrd
On this day in 1623, Wiliam Byrd, the famous Elizabethan English composer, died at Stondon Massey in Essex and he was buried next to his wife in the parish church there.
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Leanda de Lisle talks Tudor on Radio Leicester – 4 July
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3 July 1495 – Perkin Warbeck lands at Deal
On 3rd July 1495, the pretender Perkin Warbeck landed at Deal in Kent with men and ships. Around 150 of his men were killed and over 160 captured by Henry VII’s troops. Warbeck escaped, fleeing to Ireland. Warbeck claimed to be Richard, Duke of York, the younger of the Princes in the Tower.
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Researching Tudor History
In this week’s Claire Chats I talk about how to go about researching Tudor history. I’m sharing a slideshow and talk I did back in 2013 and I do hope it’s useful to those of you who are new to researching history.
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Painting Paradise – Review by Melanie V. Taylor
London is sweltering in unaccustomed heat, so if you are in England you might consider a visit to the Queen’s gallery, Buckingham Palace just to get out of the sun.
The exhibition is full of beautiful paintings, china and exquisite Fabergé flowers and importantly for members of The Tudor Society, this painting by the prolific artist, British School.
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ISIS v The West 1565 – Part 2: Dark Days – The Great Siege Begins by Derek Wilson
The waters of the bay were littered with floating wooden crosses. To each was nailed the decapitated corpse of a warrior who had died trying to defend the island. This was the gruesome sight which presented itself to Malta’s citizens in the last days of June 1565. After a month-long siege the fortress of St. Elmo had been obliterated by Muslim artillery and its 1,500 surviving inhabitants had been butchered. The incident has a horribly familiar ring to it. We recognise the fanatical nihilism of terrorists who justify their own most inhuman impulses by reference to the creation of a worldwide Islamic state from which everything not in accord with Sharia law would have been purged.
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This week in history 29 June – 5 July
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Henry VIII Quiz 2
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28 June 1461 – Coronation of Edward IV
On Sunday 28th June 1461, Edward IV was crowned king at Westminster Abbey. Edward had been declared king after defeating the Lancastrian forces at the Battle of Towton in March 1461. Edward had made his triumphal state entry into London on Friday 26th June, riding from Lambeth to the Tower of London.
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The English Court Masque – Part 2
Last week, I explained that the court masque that was part of the entertainments of Epiphany 1512 was a new type of entertainment and that it was the result of the merging of old English traditions with the new Italian fashion. In this week’s video, I talk about this Italian fashion and how it came about.
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July 2015 Tudor Life Magazine
This month we have a wide range of articles under the broad theme “Vulnerability”. Tudor Life magazine is packed with articles by well known historians.
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25 June 1533 – The death of Mary Tudor, Queen of France
Mary Tudor, Queen of France, and Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk.[/caption]Mary Tudor, Queen of France, was the younger sister of King Henry VIII. Born to King Henry VII and Queen Elizabeth of York in 1496, Mary was one of eight children and one of only three to survive to adulthood. Tragedy struck Mary at just seven years of age when her older brother and heir to the throne, Arthur, died in 1502. Less than a year later, Mary’s mother Elizabeth of York died trying to give Henry VII another son. Then, when Mary was eight years old, her older sister Margaret, then fourteen, left England for Scotland to marry King James IV. Mary and her older brother Henry were the only two siblings left in England and it has been suggested that during this time, growing up together, they formed a close bond which survived until Mary’s death.
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24 June – The Feast of St John the Baptist
The Feast of St John the Baptist was one of the most important feast days of the medieval and Tudor calendar and coincided with Midsummer, the pagan celebration of the summer solstice.
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