• 17 August 1510 – The end of Empson and Dudley

    8 hours ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history, 17th August 1510, the second year of King Henry VIII’s reign, Henry VII’s former chief administrators, Sir Edmund Dudley and Sir Richard Empson, were beheaded on Tower Hill after being found guilty of treason.

    Chronicler Edward Hall records:

    “The kynge beyng thus in hys progresse harde euery daye more and more complayntes of Empson and Dudley, wherfore he sent wryttes to the Shynfes of London, to put them in execucion, and so the xvii. day of August, they were both behedded at the Towre hyl, and their bodies buryed and their heades.”

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  • Thomas Kyd

    2 days ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history, 15th August 1594, the playwright Thomas Kyd was buried at St Mary Colechurch in London. Kyd is known for his play “The Spanish Tragedy” (c.1587), and some scholars believe that he wrote a “Hamlet” play before that of William Shakespeare.

    Thomas Kyd was born in 1558 to Francis Kyd, a scrivener, and his wife, Anne. Although we don’t know the date of Kyd’s birth, we know that he was baptised at the church of St Mary Woolnoth in London on 6th November 1558. Usually, a baby was baptised within just a few days of birth so Kyd was probably born in the first few days of November.

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  • This week in history 14 – 20 August

    3 days ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history…

    14th August:

    1473 – Birth of Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, the daughter of George, Duke of Clarence, brother of Edward IV, and his wife Isabel Neville. Margaret was born at Farley Castle, near Bath.
    1479 – Date given as the birthdate of Katherine of York (Katherine, Countess of Devon), at Eltham Palace. Katherine was the daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville, and she married Sir William Courtenay, the future Earl of Devon, in 1495.
    1513 – William Parr, Marquis of Northampton and brother of Queen Catherine Parr, was born.
    1539 – Death of Sir Peter Edgcumbe. Edgcumbe served as Sheriff of Devon and Cornwall at various times between 1494 and 1534, was at the 1513 Battle of the Spurs and was present at the Field of Cloth of Gold in 1520.
    1620 – Burial of Katherine Hastings (née Dudley), Countess of Huntingdon, in Chelsea Old Church. Katherine was the daughter of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, and his wife Jane, and was married to Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon. Katherine was buried in her mother’s tomb.

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  • 14 August – The births of Margaret Pole and William Parr

    3 days ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history, 14th August, two prominent Tudor people were born: Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, in 1473, and William Parr, Marquis of Northampton, in 1513.

    Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, born on 14 August 1473, was the only surviving daughter of George, Duke of Clarence, and his wife, Isabel Neville. She was the niece of Edward IV and Richard III, and cousin of Elizabeth of York, Henry VII’s consort. Her brother, Edward, Earl of Warwick, was executed by Henry VII in 1499 in response to a request forwarded by the Spanish monarchs during the marital negotiations between Arthur, Prince of Wales, and Katherine of Aragon, since they feared that Warwick’s presence would encourage rebellion against the Tudor dynasty.

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  • Tudor Trivia Quiz

    4 days ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    It’s that time of week again! Sunday is the day of the week where we exercise the little grey cells with our Tudor quizzes. This week’s quiz is a Tudor trivia quiz – good luck!

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  • The Muscovy Company

    6 days ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    I’ve been inspired recently to research the links between Russia and the Tudors so I hope you enjoy this video talk on the Muscovy Company.

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  • Expert Live Chat – Saturday 26 August

    1 week ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Historian Lauren Browne will be joining us in the Tudor Society chatroom on Saturday 26th August to answer your questions on her recent talk on Rivals and Mistresses and to chat about this topic and her research.

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  • 10 August 1512 – The Mary Rose’s first battle

    1 week ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history, 10th August 1512, the Battle of Saint-Mathieu took place. It was a naval battle in the War of the League of Cambrai and it was between the English and Franco-Breton fleets off the coast of Brest, in present day Brittany, France. England was allied with Spain and the Holy Roman Empire at this time.

    The Mary Rose, Henry VIII’s famous warship whose wreck was discovered in 1971 and raised in 1982, was chosen as the English fleet’s flagship by Sir Edward Howard, Admiral of the English fleet. It was her first battle. The twenty-five ship English fleet had set out from Portsmouth, on the south coast of England, after hearing news of the twenty-one ship French fleet gathering at Brest, and the two fleets engaged in Berthaume Bay on 10th August 1512.

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  • Online Tudor Summit – 3 and 4 September 2017

    1 week ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Thank you to Roland Hui for letting me know about this online event.

    Join 16th-century historians and bloggers at The Tudor Summit 2017 happening online on September 3 and 4! Speakers familiar to Tudor Society members include Nathen Amin (author and founder of The Henry Tudor Society), Natalie Grueninger (creator of On the Tudor Trail), author Tony Riches, Rebecca Larson (creator of Tudors Dynasty and Roland Hui (author and blogger at Tudor Faces). The keynote address will be given by historian Sarah Gristwood, author of ‘Game of Queens’.

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  • Elizabeth I’s Tilbury Speech on film

    1 week ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Today is the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth I’s rousing speech to the troops at Tilbury Fort on 9th August 1588. While we don’t have Elizabeth I herself on film, it’s a speech that has featured in many movies and TV series. You can read the various versions we have of the original Tilbury speech in my article from 2015, but here are a few famous depictions of that day in 1588.

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