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  • Live chat reminder – informal chat tomorrow!

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Just a reminder that February’s informal live chat is taking place in the Tudor Society chatroom tomorrow, Saturday 16th February, at 11pm UK time.

    The first of February’s live chats is an informal one on the topic of finding and using Tudor documents. I will be the moderator and I will also share some of the resources I use to access primary sources, but otherwise it will be an informal chat where we can all share our experiences, our favourite documents, and what we’d like to find. Feel free to lurk in the background or join in.

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  • 7 February – A joust, unrequited love and a nasty accident

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    A portrait of Henry VIII by an unknown artist, c. 1520.

    On this day in Tudor history, 7th February 1526, Henry VIII took part in the traditional Shrovetide joust at Greenwich. In this video, I give details of this joust, its theme and a nasty accident that affected one courtier that day.

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  • Expert Answer – Ambrosius Benson’s ‘Elegant Couples’: A Painting of Henry VIII and His Court?

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    3 Comments

    Tudor Society member Corinna emailed us recently regarding the work of artist Ambrosius Benson and the tradition that the couples depicted in his “Elegant couples dancing in a landscape” were “Henry VIII with Anne Boleyn, the Duke of Norfolk with the Dowager Queen Margaret of Scotland, and Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk, with the Dowager Queen Mary Tudor of France”. We passed on Corinna’s email to our resident art expert Roland Hui and he wrote this article…

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  • 5 February – Sir Henry Brooke

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    5th February was actually a rather quiet day in Tudor history, so let me introduce you to a little-known Tudor man, Sir Henry Brooke, or Henry Cobham as he called himself, a diplomat in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I who was born on 5th February 1537.

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  • Elizabethan Treasures: Miniatures by Hilliard and Oliver exhibition

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    2 Comments

    Thank you to Roland Hui for alerting me to this exhibition taking place at the NPG (National Portrait Gallery), London, from 21st February to 19th May 2019.

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  • February 2019 – Tudor Life – Documents and Sources

    5 years ago Author: ADMIN Tim
    2 Comments

    This month’s Tudor Life Magazine focuses on Tudor documents and sources. Our regular writers and guests have come up with another wonderful Tudor-packed magazine. And who knows, in 500 years time, Tudor Life magazine will also be a great historical document!

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  • Sir Henry Norris (1490s-1536)

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    8 Comments

    Sir Henry Norris was born sometime in the late 1490s and was the son of Richard Norris and grandson of Sir William Norris of Yattendon and his wife, Jane de Vere, daughter of John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford. Norris’s family had a long history of serving the monarch – his great-grandfather, Sir John Norris, had been Keeper of the Great Wardrobe to Henry VI and his grandfather, Sir William Norris, had been Knight of the Body to Edward IV. Sir William Norris had been attainted after being involved in the Duke of Buckingham’s rebellion against Richard III and had been forced to flee to Brittany, where he joined the forces of Henry Tudor and may even have fought at the Battle of Bosworth. Sir William had a command in June 1487 at Stoke and went on to become the Lieutenant of Windsor Castle.

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  • For your security – A+ Rating!

    5 years ago Author: ADMIN Tim
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    Your personal information is extra-safe as we now get an A+ rating from Qualys SSL labs. Great news for you and for us!

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  • Making Tudor History Interesting for Young People

    5 years ago Author: ADMIN Tim
    4 Comments

    Student and avid history fan, Emma Casson, is 18 years old and lives in the Netherlands. She contacted us as she wanted to share her experiences of learning about the Tudors and what she feels could be done to help history to flourish in the education system. Over to Emma…

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  • The 400th anniversary of the burial of Nicholas Hilliard, and Hilliard book news!

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history, 7th January 1619, Nicholas Hilliard, the famous Elizabethan goldsmith and miniaturist, was buried at the parish church of St Martin-in-the-Fields, London. This means that it’s the 400th anniversary of his burial!

    Hilliard is known for his beautiful portrait miniatures of the English court in the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I, and his paintings of Elizabeth I: the “Pelican” portrait and the “Phoenix” portrait.

    Hilliard is a fascinating man and artist, and he is the subject of Dr Elizabeth Goldring’s new book, which is due to be released by Yale University Press on 12th February. Its title is Nicholas Hilliard: Life of an Artist and here is the blurb

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  • Catherine of Aragon’s halo?

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    3 Comments

    Thank you to Lynne for asking this question about Michael (Michel) Sittow’s portrait of a woman said to be Catherine of Aragon. The portrait of Katherine of Aragon painted by Michael Sittow on her marriage to Arthur shows Katherine with a halo around her headdress, and I read that the halo was painted on at a later date. I always thought that it was part of Katherine’s headdress, am I wrong?”

    The painting by Michael Sittow, shown here, is beautiful. We don’t actually know for certain who it is and there has been controversy surrounding it in recent years because the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna relabelled the portrait as being of Mary Tudor, sister of Henry VIII, based on “Henry VIII’s Favourite Sister? Michel Sittow’s Portrait of a Lady in Vienna”, an article by Paul G. Matthews. You can read more about this in Katherine of Aragon or Mary Tudor? – The Re-identification of Michel Sittow’s Portrait of a Young Woman by Nasim Tadghighi. For me, it makes more sense that it is Catherine.

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  • British Christmas Traditions

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    2 Comments

    Our family’s Christmas is now a real mix of British and Spanish traditions, with an Icelandic tradition thrown in for good measure! In today’s Claire Chats video talk, I look at the popular Christmas traditions of the UK, and I’d love it if you could tell me about your country’s traditions, or those that are personal to your family.

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  • Open Weekend Schedule 7-9 December

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    This coming weekend is our Tudor Society open weekend!

    From 7th to 9th December, those who register - register at www.tudorsociety.com/open-weekend-2018/ will be able to use the site just as they are full-access members of the Tudor Society. It's a wonderful opportunity for Tudor history lovers to see what we're all about.

    Simply use the categories on the top menu bar or in the side menu to explore. There will also be new Tudor treats going live on the website that weekend too and I just wanted to give members and registrants a heads-up so you know what’s coming. Don’t worry, if you're an open weekend registrant you will be sent details of how to log-in beforehand so that you can access the following treats and links to them.

    Note: You will be able to access the links and treats between 7th and 9th after you have logged in.

    7 December

    Philippa’s Roving Report goes live – Every Friday, we have a video talk go live on the Tudor Society website, usually a Claire Chats video on a Tudor topic, but this week it’s a virtual tour of an historic property from our roving reporter, Philippa Lacey Brewell.

    Bonus Expert Talk – To celebrate our open weekend, we have a special bonus talk from historian Gareth Russell, author of Young and Damned and Fair: The Life and Tragedy of Catherine Howard, Fifth Wife of King Henry VIII. Gareth’s talk is on Catherine and I just know you’ll enjoy it. This talk goes live on the site on 7 December.

    8 December

    Live chat – Gareth Russell will be joining us in the Tudor Society chatroom on Saturday 8th December to answer your questions on Catherine Howard, his book and his research. Feel free to grill him. The chatroom can be found at https://www.tudorsociety.com/chatroom/

    Here are the times of the chat in different time zones:

    • London, UK - Saturday 8th December at 11pm
    • Madrid, Spain - Sunday 9th December at 12am
    • New York, USA - Saturday 8th December at 6pm
    • Los Angeles, USA - Saturday 8th December at 3pm
    • Sydney, Australia - Sunday 9th December at 10am
    • Adelaide, Australia - Sunday 9th December at 9.30am

    All you have to do is log-in, enter the chatroom and then you can participate as much as you like, whether you feel happier lurking and reading other people’s questions and Gareth’s answers, or whether you want to dive in and ask questions or comment on people’s views. You simply enter your question in the text box and hit “send” or Return. These chats are always fun and interesting.

    If you are unable to come to the chat, you can always log-in later and have a read through the chat to see the questions and Gareth’s answers. We also publish transcripts of each expert live chat for our members.

    Expert Answers – Tudor Society members are able to put questions forward to be answered by Tudor history experts. We’ve had some very interesting questions and we’ll be highlighting three of these today.

    9 December

    Sunday is quiz time. Each Sunday we publish a Tudor history themed quiz, crossword puzzle or wordsearch for members to enjoy. Look out for this Sunday’s quiz!

    More to enjoy

    Each month, we invite a historian or author to give an expert talk to our members. These talks are recorded on video and published on the site on the first of the month. We then invite the speaker into the Tudor Society chatroom later on in the month to answer members’ questions. Our expert speaker for December is historian Kate Cole who is speaking to us about Witchcraft in Tudor and Stuart Essex, a fascinating subject. You can view her video talk at https://www.tudorsociety.com/expert-talk-the-witches-of-elizabethan-and-stuart-essex-kate-cole/

    We also have an informal chat each month in the chatroom. We discuss a different topic each month. It’s lovely to talk Tudor!

    The Tudor Society produces a Tudor history focused magazine each month, Tudor Life Magazine. You can read the December edition, which has the Cecil family as its theme, but also has a special Christmas section, at https://www.tudorsociety.com/december-2018-tudor-life-the-cecils/

    The open weekend is your chance to explore the Tudor Society. There is so much on the site, from our regular Claire Chats video talks to our Tudor Society E-book series, from primary sources to bios of Tudor people... Enjoy over 4 years of archives! Browse by using the top menu bar.

    I do hope you enjoy using the Tudor Society this weekend!

  • A look at Cardinal Thomas Wolsey

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    As today is the anniversary of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey’s death on 29th November 1530, I thought today’s “Throwback Thursday” treat could be Conor Byrne’s article on the life of Wolsey…

    Thomas Wolsey was born between 1470 and 1473 in Ipswich, Suffolk. He was the son of Robert and Joan Wolsey. Robert owned a tavern in the parish of St. Mary at the Elms in Ipswich. Traditionally, Wolsey’s father has been identified as a butcher and cattle dealer. Thomas Wolsey’s humble origins proved a source of mirth to his critics during his long career. During his childhood and adolescence, Wolsey attended school in Ipswich and later studied at Magdalen College, Oxford, graduating with BA in 1486 when he was about fifteen years old. A decade later, he was ordained as a priest in the parish church of St. Peter in Marlborough. The year before, he graduated with MA. For a short period, Wolsey served as master of Magdalen School and, later, as dean of divinity.

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  • Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick c.1530-1590

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Ambrose Dudley was born the fourth son of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, and his wife, Lady Jane Guildford. Ambrose came from an exceptionally large family; he had twelve siblings. The family were renowned for their Protestant zeal: Ambrose’s sister, the Countess of Huntingdon, promoted her Protestantism by opening a school in the north of England for young gentry women. Among her pupils was Lady Margaret Hoby, a noted diarist whose pious daily accounts survive to this day. Much of her diary reflected her strict, daily, religious observances, with little information regarding her personal life. Similarly, Ambrose’s father was a prominent reformer during the reign of Edward VI. He was ultimately executed for his involvement with promoting Lady Jane Grey as queen through lobbying the ailing king Edward VI for support; in violation of the former king Henry VIII’s decreed will.

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  • Tudor Fruit and Vegetables talk

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    1 Comment

    In today’s Claire Chats video, I talk about the fruit and vegetables that were enjoyed in the Tudor period.

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  • John Skelton (c.1460-1529)

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    John Skelton’s birthdate is unknown; however, historians have put forward suggestions that a date in the early 1560s is the most likely. Additionally, it is thought that he was born in the North of England. His family name may be derived from several locations named ‘Skelton’ in Yorkshire, however unfortunately for historiography, the majority of Skelton’s upbringing is wrapped in a mystery as a result of scarcely any remaining documents surviving that mention him. A significant proportion of Skelton’s life, and personality, is instead found in his poetry, which survives in manuscript form and has been seriously analysed by historians.

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  • This week in history 5 – 11 November

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    1514 – Mary Tudor, sister of Henry VIII, was crowned Queen of France. She had married King Louis XII at Abbeville on the 9th October 1514. The marriage was rather short-lived, as Louis died on the 1st January 1515, and Mary went on to marry Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk.
    1520 – Death of Sir Robert Poyntz, courtier, landowner and Vice-Chamberlain and Chancellor of the Household to Queen Catherine of Aragon. He was around seventy when he died.
    1530 – Death of Sir John More, lawyer, judge and father of Sir Thomas More. More served as Serjeant-at-Law, Justice of Assize, Justice of the Common Pleas, and also served on the King’s Bench from 1520 until his death.
    1605 – Guy Fawkes was caught with thirty-six barrels of gunpowder in the cellars beneath Westminster. The idea was to blow up the House of Lords at the opening of Parliament on the 5th November, and to assassinate King James I.

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  • Queen Jane Seymour

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    A portrait of Jane Seymour by Hans Holbein the Younger

    As today is the anniversary of the death of Jane Seymour, third wife and queen consort of King Henry VIII and mother of King Edward VI, on 24th October 1537, I thought I’d share some resources from our archives:

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  • A look at Margaret Tudor

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    I thought it would be fun to have “Throwback Thursday” here on the Tudor Society to highlight interesting articles, videos, expert talks, magazines etc. from our archives. As today is the anniversary of the death of Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots (from 1503-1513) and sister of Henry VIII, I thought I’d share some Margaret Tudor themed goodies from our archives.

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  • Lord Edward Howard (c.1478-1539)

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Lord Edmund Howard was born in around 1478 as the third son of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk, and his first wife, Elizabeth Tilney, Countess of Surrey. Edmund came from a successful family; his father having served under four monarchs. During the tumultuous Wars of the Roses period, Edmund’s father supported the Yorkists, serving both Edward IV and Richard III. Thomas Howard was awarded the Earldom of Surrey in 1483, alongside being appointed to the Privy Council and becoming an invested member of the exclusive Order of the Garter. Upon Richard III’s defeat at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, the Earl of Surrey was imprisoned for a period and stripped of his honours as a result of his treasonous actions against the newly established Tudor throne. The now King Henry VII was discerning in his prevention of Surrey’s execution; intent on proving himself a merciful monarch in the wake of decades of factional brutality. Henry was later reassured that Surrey was a loyal servant and restored his earldom in May 1489. Similarly, the earl regained his position in society, taking up the role of Lieutenant of the North until 1499. From this point onwards, Surrey became a valued, trusted and loyal man to the Tudor crown; with his forces decimating the Scottish forces at Flodden in 1513. A year later, he was granted the title of Duke of Norfolk, one of England’s preeminent titles; which came with significant lands and annuities. When the duke died in 1524, his funeral was attended by a significant number of exclusive guests who congregated at Framingham Castle to pay their respects to a hugely influential figure at the Henrician court.

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  • Happy birthday Edward VI!

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    On this day in history, 12th October 1537, the eve of the feast of St Edward, Jane Seymour gave birth to the future King Edward VI. The third wife of Henry VIII had suffered a long and tiring 30-hour labour, but she had given the king what he’d wanted for so long: a legitimate son and heir.

    Henry VIII died on 28th January 1547, making Edward King Edward VI of England at the age of just nine.

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  • Lady Alice More (née Harpur) c.1474-c.1551)

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    5 Comments

    Lady Alice More was born the daughter of Sir Richard Harpur and his wife, Elizabeth Ardern. Little is known of Alice’s early life, including her year of birth, but historian Retha Warnicke has dated it to in or after 1474. Alice’s first husband was John Middleton; however, the date of their wedding ceremony is unknown. Warnicke has put forward the argument that Alice was likely already married to John by the year 1492, as her father had failed to mention her in his will of the same year. This is a convincing argument; it was not particularly unusual for a fifteenth-century father to exclude his daughter from his will if she was an established member of another household. Alice’s marriage to John represented the customary ambitions of the late medieval gentry: securing wealth, status and property. The Middleton and Ardern families were related by kinship, with John being Alice’s cousin; with both parties owning a significant number of properties in Yorkshire. Additionally, Alice’s husband was a wealthy silk merchant and a member of the Mercers’ Company (a successful trade association) and the Staple of Calais (a mercantile corporation). The couple had three children: a son and two daughters, Alice and Helen, but only Alice survived infancy.

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  • Elizabeth I and smallpox

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    2 Comments

    On 10th October 1562, twenty-nine-year-old Queen Elizabeth I was taken ill at Hampton Court Palace. It was thought that the queen had caught a bad cold but when she developed a violent fever it became clear that it was something more serious; Elizabeth had smallpox.

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  • Who was William Shakespeare?

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    4 Comments

    Today’s Claire Chats video was inspired by my recent visit to Stratford-upon-Avon with the Discover the Tudors tour. We visited Shakespeare’s birthplace, New Place, Hall’s Croft, Guild Hall and Shakespeare’s Schoolroom, and Holy Trinity Church, and although I grew up in the area and studied Shakespeare and his works at school and university I learned so much about the man from our guide and speakers. I wanted to share some of that with you today.

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  • Robert Dudley is made Earl of Leicester – 29 September 1564

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    1 Comment

    On this day in history, 29th September 1564, Robert Dudley was made Earl of Leicester, an earldom which had been planned earlier in the year to make him more acceptable as a bridegroom to Mary, Queen of Scots. This earldom was an important one, having previously been held by royal princes like John of Gaunt and Henry of Bolingbroke (Henry IV). Although Dudley behaved impeccably at the ceremony, the queen did not. As she put the chain of earldom around Dudley’s neck, she “could not refrain from putting her hand in his neck to kittle him smilingly.” A loving gesture and perhaps one that was meant to reassure Dudley that he was still hers.

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  • October 2018 – Tudor Life – The Supernatural

    5 years ago Author: ADMIN Tim
    10 Comments

    In this month’s Tudor Life magazine is perfect for the month of October as it’s all about the Supernatural and the Tudors. Packed with fascinating articles about the spookier side of history.

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  • Anne Dudley (née Russell), Countess of Warwick (1548/1549-1604)

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    Lady Anne Russell was born the eldest of three daughters of Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford, and his first wife, Margaret St John. Anne’s father was an English nobleman and soldier who had a successful career at both the Henrician and Elizabethan courts. However, he came to significant attention during the reign of Elizabeth I; a monarch renowned for her taste in dashing, exciting and reliable men. Through this relationship with the queen, Francis was able to rise in status to the office of privy councillor. He also carried out diplomatic missions on the continent. Very little is known of Anne’s childhood, as much of the Russell family papers, for the sixteenth-century, are lost. When compared to other families, such as the Cecils, there is substantially more information on the education of William Cecil’s daughters than the Russell children. Any information regarding the Russell daughters’ education, including Anne’s sister Margaret, is practically unknown.

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  • Discover the Tudors Tour Day 7 – London Charterhouse

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
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    After another delicious breakfast at the Arden Hotel in Stratford-upon-Avon – French toast and I shared it with Francis I and Elizabeth I, as you can see! – we said our goodbyes to Stratford and set off for London. We arrived in London for lunch and then headed to London Charterhouse.

    London Charterhouse has such a fascinating history. The land was used as a burial site for victims of the Black Death in 1348 and then in 1371, the Carthusian monastery was built. You might remember me telling you about that Carthusian Martyrs of Henry VIII’s reign, monks from this very monastery who refused to sign the oath recognising Henry VIII as supreme head of the Church in England and who were brutally executed or starved to death. The monastery was dissolved in the 1530s and it then passed through the hands of Sir Edward North; John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland; North again; Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk; Philip Howard, 13th Earl of Arundel; Elizabeth I; Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk, and Thomas Sutton. Elizabeth I visited it on several occasions.

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  • Discover the Tudors Tour Day 5 – Shakespeare’s Stratford-upon-Avon

    5 years ago Author: Claire Ridgway
    2 Comments

    I grew up near Stratford-upon-Avon so today was a special day for me, seeing my home area through the eyes of others and also seeing places that had been on my doorstep for years but that I’d taken for granted and never visited, or that hadn’t been open when I lived here.

    As a huge Shakespeare fan, I had ben waiting for this day of the tour with bated breath and as good luck would have it, it came round quickly. The weather forecast predicted that the day might not be for the faint-hearted, with rain and drizzle forecast, but all’s well that ends well and the day really was such stuff as dreams are made on. Sorry, that’s too much of a good thing and I think I’ll stop the Shakespeare phrases and get on with the diary entry!

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