A big welcome to historian Elizabeth Norton who joins us today with a guest article as part of the virtual book tour for her newly released book The Lives of Tudor Women.

The Tudor dynasty is bookended by two princesses named Elizabeth Tudor, who serve as the full-stops between which the lives of countless women were lived. The second Elizabeth Tudor, whose death brought the dynasty to an end in March 1603, is, of course, well known. But the other, who was born in 1492, is largely forgotten. As the playmate of his early childhood she is, however, Henry VIII’s lost sister.

I know it’s not Tudor but today is the 950th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings in 1066 so regular contributor Heather R. Darsie has written this factfile for us.

Edward II – King of England. Known as the Confessor. Died childless; cousin of William the Bastard. In 1051 Edward promised William that William would inherit the throne upon Edward’s death. Edward, when close to death in early 1066, told Harold that Harold would inherit the throne from Edward.

In 1571, the Ottoman Turks were a proven naval force. Leading up to 1571, the Venetians had attempted to make peace with the Turks to end their expansion through the Mediterranean. Turkish ships would harry the Venetians and, through Barbary pirates, occasionally raid the coasts of France, Spain and Italy. Counter to that, the Christian Knights of St John of Jerusalem effectively behaved as pirates in their attacks and raids on Turkish ships and ports. The Turks eventually attacked and gained control over Rhodes, where the Knights had their base. In 1570, the Turks then turned their attention to Cyprus, a Grecian island in the Mediterranean controlled by the Venetians. After the Venetians refused to give up control of the island, the Turks invaded.