30 October – Elizabeth I’s refusal to renew Robert Devereux and the coronation of Henry VII

On this day in Tudor history, 30th October 1600, Queen Elizabeth I refused to renew Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex’s monopoly on sweet wines, saying that “an unruly horse must be abated of his provender, that he may be the easier and better managed.”

It may not sound like a major event, but it was for Essex and it drove him to desperation and, ultimately, to the scaffold.

Why? What was going on? How could the queen's refusal to renew this monopoly lead to Essex's undoing?

Find out what was happened in 1600 and what happened next with the queen and her favourite, in this talk...

Also on this day in Tudor history, 30th October 1485, Henry Tudor, 2nd Earl of Richmond and son of Lady Margaret Beaufort and the late Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond, was crowned King Henry VII at Westminster Abbey in London. Henry VII had, of course, become king following the defeat of King Richard III's forces, and the death of Richard, at the Battle of Bosworth Field in August 1485.

Find out about his coronation celebrations and his mother Lady Margaret Beaufort's reaction to his coronation, in this video...