The Tudor Society

YOUR SEARCH UNCOVERED 1545 RESULTS

  • 28 January – Elizabeth I, friend of the Ottoman Empire

    On this day in Tudor history, 28th January 1598, diplomat Edward Barton died of dysentery on the island of Heybeli Ada, in the Sea of Marmara, off the coast of Istanbul. Barton and his predecessor, William Harborne, had played key roles in Elizabeth I’s alliance with the Ottoman Empire.

    Elizabeth I had a good relationship with the Islamic World and it was something that was very important to her. Find out why Elizabeth reached out to the Ottomans in the 1580s, and just how the relationship worked, in today’s talk.

    Recommended reading: “This Orient Isle: Elizabethan England and the Islamic World” – Jerry Brotton

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  • Katherine Ashley (Astley, née Champernowne)

    Portrait of Kat Ashley

    Katherine or ‘Kat’ Ashley (Astley, née Champernowne) is the purported daughter of Sir Phillip Champernowne, a wealthy landowner in Devon, and his wife, Katherine, daughter of Sir Edmund Carew. Although we do not know much regarding her early years, we do know that Kat received an education unlike that of her contemporary aristocratic women. For aristocratic women, their education centred on what would render them desirable for marriage and as such, learned dancing, sewing, embroidery and music in the place of reading and writing. As such, may aristocratic women were barely literate at all. Kat, however, received an education that was equal to that of a man, learning classical scholarship and developing an interest in humanism, her father being unusually committed to the education of his daughters. Kat’s humanist leanings and interests caught the eye of Thomas Cromwell, who suggested that she be appointed to the household of Princess Elizabeth. It is this appointment which would shape her life, and mark her as a historical figure worthy of note.

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  • 22 January – Wyatt’s Rebellion is planned

    On this day in Tudor history, 22nd January 1554, Thomas Wyatt the Younger met with fellow conspirators at his home of Allington Castle in Kent. The purpose of their meeting was to make final plans for their uprising against Queen Mary I and her decision to marry Philip of Spain.

    This rebellion would come to be known as Wyatt’s Rebellion, although the leader at the start appears to have been Sir James Croft.

    Find out all about Wyatt’s Rebellion and what happened in this talk.

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  • January 19 – Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke

    On this day in Tudor history, 19th January 1601, Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, died at Wilton, the family home near Salisbury.

    Who was Henry Herbert?

    Let me tell you about this interesting Tudor man in today’s talk.

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  • 13 January – The Prince of Poets

    On this day in Tudor history, 13th January 1599, Elizabethan poet and administrator in Ireland, Edmund Spenser, died in Westminster. He was described as “the prince of poets in his time” and is best known for his allegorical poem in praise of Elizabeth I, “The Faerie Queene”.

    But, did you know that he also upset William Cecil twice and that his most famous work is actually unfinished?

    Find out more about Edmund Spenser in today’s talk.

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  • 12 January – Elizabeth I goes to the Tower

    On this day in Tudor history, Thursday 12th January 1559, Queen Elizabeth I travelled by barge from Whitehall to the Tower of London to prepare for her coronation, which was due to take place on the 15th January.

    Of course, her journey wasn’t a low key one in a normal river barge, it was a lavish one with decorated barges, music and the usual artillery fire. Find out all about this river procession in today’s talk.

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  • 9 January – A queen twice over!

    On this day in Tudor history, 9th January 1514, Anne of Brittany, Queen Consort of King Louis XII of France, died at Château Blois in France. Her corpse was buried in the Cathedral Basilica of Saint-Denis and her heart was buried at Nantes.

    Anne of Brittany was the mother of Queen Claude of France, the wife of a Holy Roman Emperor AND two Kings of France, and had been betrothed to one of the Princes in the Tower. A very interesting lady!

    And then there’s the story of her stolen heart!

    Find out more in today’s talk.

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  • 7 January – “You shall find Calais lying in my heart”

    On this day in Tudor history, 7th January 1558, in the reign of Queen Mary I, England lost Calais to the French.

    It was a devastating blow as Calais had been held by England for over 200 years and was an important port for English wool exports. Mary I was said to have exclaimed ““When I am dead and opened, you shall find ‘Philip’ and ‘Calais’ lying in my heart”.

    Find out exactly what happened in today’s talk.

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  • 30 December – Roger Ascham, Elizabeth I’s tutor

    On this day in Tudor history, 30th December 1568, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Roger Ascham, scholar and royal tutor, died. He was laid to rest in the St Stephen’s chapel of St Sepulchre without Newgate, London.

    Ascham served as tutor to Princess Elizabeth, the future Elizabeth I, and is also responsible for the idea that Lady Jane Grey had abusive parents.

    Find out more about Roger Ascham, his life and career, in today’s talk.

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  • 29 December – Japanese pirates

    On this day in history, 29th (or 30th) December 1605, in the reign of King James I, Elizabethan navigator and explorer, John Davis (also spelled Davys) died near Bintang, off the coast of Borneo.

    Davis died after being attacked by Japanese pirates. He was about 55 when he died.

    He is known for his voyages, for being the first Englishman to document a sighting of the Falkland Islands, for his 1594 “The Seaman’s Secrets” and 1595 “The World’s Hydrographical Description”, and for his invention, the Davis Quadrant, or the backstaff.

    Find out more about him, his final voyage and death, in today’s talk.

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  • 22 December – Bishop Fisher begs for a shirt

    On this day in Tudor history, 22nd December 1534, John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, who was a prisoner in the Tower of London, wrote to Thomas Cromwell.

    In his letter to Cromwell, the poor bishop begged him for a shirt, sheet, food and books, as well as asking him to intercede with King Henry VIII on his behalf.

    It is so sad that a man who had served the king so loyally in the past had come to this, and, of course, the king’s mercy would only stretch to commuting his method of execution to beheading.

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  • December 20 – Catherine Howard’s stepgrandmother begs forgiveness from the king

    On this day in Tudor history, 20th December 1541, a “very sickly” Agnes Tilney, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, begged King Henry VIII for forgiveness.

    The dowager duchess had been arrested and taken to the Tower accused of misprision of treason for hiding her stepgranddaughter Catherine Howard’s past relationship with Francis Dereham.

    In today’s talk, I share what the dowager duchess wrote to the king and also what happened to this sickly woman.

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  • 15 December – Cardinal Pole is laid to rest

    On this day in Tudor history, 15th December 1558, Cardinal Reginald Pole, Mary I’s Archbishop of Canterbury and her chief advisor, was buried at Canterbury Cathedral. Coincidentally, Cardinal Pole had died the same day as his queen, on 17th November 1558.

    Find out a bit more about Cardinal Pole, his background, death and burial, in today’s talk.

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  • 11 December – Robert Dudley’s lover and mother of his son

    On this day in history, 11th December 1608, one of Queen Elizabeth I’s former ladies and a lover of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, was buried at St Margaret’s Church, Westminster. Her name was Douglas Sheffield (née Howard), Lady Sheffield, and she was the mother of Leicester’s illegitimate son, Sir Robert Dudley.

    Find out more about Douglas Sheffield, who claimed to be Leicester’s legal wife, in today’s talk.

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  • 9 December -The King is a beast and worse than a beast!

    On this day in Tudor history, 9th December 1538, Sir Edward Neville, courtier, Gentleman of the Privy Chamber and son of George Neville, 2nd Baron Bergavenny, was beheaded on Tower Hill.

    He had been condemned to death for treason, accused of conspiring against the king in the Exeter Conspiracy of 1538, along with members of the Pole family. He was also accused of saying “The King is a beast and worse than a beast”, which is not a wise thing to be overheard saying in Tudor England.

    Find out more about Neville’s life and downfall in today’s talk.

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  • 5 December – Anne Cecil and her unhappy marriage

    On this day in Tudor history, 5th December 1556, Anne de Vere (née Cecil) was born, She was the daughter of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, and his second wife, Mildred Cooke.

    Anne only lived until she was 31 years old, but in her short life she managed to impress scholars, have five children, and have a rather eventful and unhappy marriage with Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford, who didn’t treat her at all well and even refused to recognise their first daughter as his own, at one point. If only she had married Philip Sidney instead!

    Find out more about the life of William Cecil’s daughter, Anne de Vere, Countess of Oxford, in today’s talk.

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  • 1483: The Year of Three Kings – Matthew Lewis – Expert Talk

    This month we have the wonderful Matthew Lewis telling us about a very eventful year – Edward IV, Edward V and Richard III. This is an exceptional talk and we know you’ll enjoy it.

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  • 27 November – William Shakespeare gets married

    On this day in Tudor history, 27th November 1582, eighteen year-old William Shakespeare, the famous playwright and a man known as the Bard, married twenty-six year-old Anne (also known as Agnes) Hathaway, at Temple Grafton, near Stratford-upon-Avon, in Warwickshire.

    Anne Hathaway was pregnant at the time of their marriage and went on to give birth to a daughter, Susannah, the following May. The couple went on to have twins, Hamnet and Judith, in 1585.

    Find out more about William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway, and their marriage, and also what happened to them, in today’s talk:

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  • 26 November – Henry Fitzroy gets married

    On this day in Tudor history, 26th November 1533, in the reign of King Henry VIII, Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, illegitimate son of King Henry VIII, married Mary Howard, daughter of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, at Hampton Court Palace. They were both fourteen years old.

    It appears that the marriage, which was a political match rather than a love match, was the idea of Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne Boleyn.

    Find out more about Henry Fitzroy and Mary Howard’s marriage and its context in today’s talk.

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  • 25 November – The coronation of Elizabeth of York

    On this day in Tudor history, 25th November 1487, the Feast of St Catherine, Elizabeth of York, queen consort of Henry VII and mother of one-year-old Arthur Tudor, was crowned queen at Westminster Abbey.

    In today’s talk, I share details of Elizabeth of York’s coronation, including Elizabeth’s apparel, and who attended, plus a list of some of the interesting dishes served at Elizabeth of York’s coronation banquet which included swan and seal!

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  • 24 November – Elizabeth of York’s coronation procession

    On this day in Tudor history, Saturday 24th November 1487, the coronation procession of Elizabeth of York, queen consort of King Henry VII, the first Tudor monarch, took place in London.

    Elizabeth of York’s coronation was scheduled for the next day. She had become queen in January 1486, but her coronation had been postponed due to pregnancy and trouble with the Cornish rebels and Perkin Warbeck. Finally, Henry VII’s wife and the mother of little Prince Arthur could be crowned queen.

    Find out all about her coronation procession, what Elizabeth wore, who was involved and what happened, in today’s talk.

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  • 23 November – The pretender Perkin Warbeck

    Note: I say that Margaret of York was the Princes’ sister, when actually she was their aunt. Sorry!

    On this day in Tudor history, 23rd November 1499, in the reign of King Henry VII, pretender Perkin Warbeck was hanged at Tyburn after allegedly plotting to help another claimant, Edward, Earl of Warwick, escape from the Tower of London.

    Perkin Warbeck had claimed to be Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, the younger of the Princes in the Tower, and had even been proclaimed King Richard IV, but his rebellion and claim failed.

    In today’s talk, I give Perkin Warbeck’s background, and explain how he ended up trying to claim the throne of England, and what happened.

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  • 20 November – Sir Christopher Hatton Elizabeth I’s mouton and lids

    On this day in Tudor history, 20th November 1591, Sir Christopher Hatton, Elizabeth I’s Lord Chancellor and favourite, died aged fifty-one. He was such a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I that he had a dazzling career and was constantly at her side.

    Find out more about Sir Christopher Hatton, his career and accomplishments, his patronage of learned men and explorers, and his special relationship with Elizabeth I, in today’s talk.

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  • 14 November – Anne Boleyn and Catherine of Aragon get married (but not to each other!)

    On this day in Tudor history, 14th November and the Feast of St Erkenwald, there may have been two royal Tudor weddings. We know that Catherine of Aragon married Arthur, Prince of Wales, on 14th November 1501, but chronicler Edward Hall gives 14th November 1532 as the date of a secret wedding for King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Marquess of Pembroke, in Dover.

    Let me tell you all about the weddings of Catherine of Aragon and Arthur Tudor, and Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

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  • 12 November – Queen Jane Seymour’s remains are moved to Windsor

    On this day in Tudor history, 12th November 1537, the corpse of Queen Jane Seymour, Henry VIII’s third wife, was transported by chariot in a procession from Hampton Court Palace to Windsor Castle, in preparation for burial. Jane Seymour’s heart and entrails had been buried in the chapel at Hampton Court Palace following her death on 24th October 1537.

    Queen Jane’s stepdaughter, the Lady Mary, acted as chief mourner for the proceedings.

    There was also a commemoration for Queen Jane in the city of London.

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  • 11 November – Queen Catherine Howard is moved to Syon House

    On this day in Tudor history, 11th November 1541, the feast of Martinmas, King Henry VIII’s council sent Archbishop Thomas Cranmer a letter containing instructions to move Queen Catherine Howard from Hampton Court Palace to Syon House, formerly Syon Abbey.

    In today’s talk, Claire Ridgway, founder of the Tudor Society, shares the instructions that Cranmer was given and what the queen was sent for her time at Syon. Claire also shares what else happened on this day in 1541, along with some trivia about the people in charge of Catherine’s household at Syon.

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  • 10 November – Cats, pigeons and lions

    On this day in Tudor history, 10th November 1536 (some sources say 1537), Sir Henry Wyatt of Allington Castle, politician, courtier, Privy Councillor and father of poet Sir Thomas Wyatt the Elder, died.

    Sir Heny Wyatt was an important man, but rather than tell you about his career, Claire Ridgway, author of “On This Day in Tudor History”, thought she’d share with you two interesting stories concerning this Tudor man and cats, pigeons and a lion.

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  • 9 November – A stillborn daughter for Queen Catherine of Aragon

    On this day in Tudor history, 9th November 1518, Queen Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s wife of nine years, gave birth prematurely to a stillborn daughter at Greenwich Palace.

    This was to be Catherine’s sixth and final pregnancy. She had tried her very best to give King Henry VIII what he wanted, a surviving son and heir, a Prince of Wales.

    In today’s talk, I explain what happened on this day in 1518 and what we know about Queen Catherine of Aragon’s pregnancies.

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  • Richard III and his supporters are attainted – 7 November 1485

    On this day in 1485, just over two months after King Henry VII’s forces had defeated those of King Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field, Henry VII’s first parliament attainted Richard and his supporters.

    Here is an account from Rapahel Holinshed’s chronicle. I have altered the spelling to make it easier to read:

    “For the establishing of all things, as well touching the preservation of his own estate, as the commendable administration of justice and preferment of the common wealth of his realme, he called his high court of parliament at Westminster the seventh day of November, wherein was attainted Richard late duke of Gloucester, calling and naming himself by usurpation, king Richard the third.

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  • 4 November – The arrest of Cardinal Wolsey

    On this day in Tudor history, 4th November 1530, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Henry VIII’s former Lord Chancellor, was arrested at his home of Cawood Castle in Yorkshire.

    Wolsey was accused of high treason, but why? And what happened when his former servant, Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, arrived with orders to arrest him?

    I explain all in today’s talk, including how Wolsey ‘cheated’ the axeman.

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