On this day in history events for 12-18 October.
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This week in history 12 – 18 October
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This week in history 5 – 11 October
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Catherine Parr by Sarah Bryson
Catherine was born in 1512, most likely in London or Buckinghamshire. Her parents were Sir Thomas Parr, a favourite of King Henry VIII during his early reign, and Maud Parr, who served as a lady-in-waiting to Henry VIII’s first wife Katherine of Aragon. It is believed that Catherine was named after the Queen. Catherine had a younger brother named William, born in 1513 and a younger sister named Anne born in 1515.
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Childbirth in Medieval and Tudor Times by Sarah Bryson
Childbirth is openly discussed in today’s society. Images of pregnant women appear in magazines and women giving birth can be seen on television and in movies. Yet during the medieval period, childbirth was deemed a private affair. Giving birth in the middle ages was a dangerous time for women and childbirth did not discriminate. Young mothers, older mothers, poor or rich mothers, all could die not only in childbirth but also due to complications afterwards. Sadly, more than one in three women died during their child-bearing years.
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This week in history 24 – 30 August
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Painting Paradise – Review by Melanie V. Taylor
London is sweltering in unaccustomed heat, so if you are in England you might consider a visit to the Queen’s gallery, Buckingham Palace just to get out of the sun.
The exhibition is full of beautiful paintings, china and exquisite Fabergé flowers and importantly for members of The Tudor Society, this painting by the prolific artist, British School.
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This week in history 29 June – 5 July
29 June
1509 - Lady Margaret Beaufort, grandmother of Henry VIII and the matriarch of the Tudor dynasty, died on this day in 1509 at Cheyneygates, the Abbot of Westminster's house. Click here to find out more about Margaret.
Lady Margaret Beaufort
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This week in history 1 – 7 June
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This week in history 25 – 31 May
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Henry VIII
Henry VIII was born on 28 June 1491 at Greenwich Palace. He was the second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, but became heir to the throne when his brother Arthur died in 1502. He inherited the throne on the death of his father in April 1509, when he was just 17 years old, and he was crowned on 24 June 1509 in a joint coronation with his new bride Catherine of Aragon, the widow of his brother.
His reign was seen as the start of a new era, after his father’s harsh regime, and Henry was very much a Renaissance prince at the start, with his charm, good looks, intelligence, love of sport and desire to fight bribery and corruption. However, he has gone down in history as a larger than life, hulk of a man who had six wives and who executed two of them, and who, according to one contemporary source, executed 72,000 during his reign. His reign is famous for the break with Rome which happened as a result of Henry VIII’s “Great Matter”, his quest for an annulment of his marriage to his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Catherine had been unable to provide Henry with a living son and Henry had come to view the marriage as contrary to God’s laws, since Catherine was his brother’s widow. He had also fallen in love with Anne Boleyn. The Pope refused to grant Henry an annulment, but Henry took matters into his own hands after reading that kings and princes were only answerable to God. The marriage was annulled in 1533, Henry VIII married Anne Boleyn and the Reformation Parliament of 1529-1536 passed the main pieces of legislation which led to the break with Rome and the English Reformation.
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This week in history 18 – 24 May
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Sir Henry Norris and the Fall of Anne Boleyn by Kyra Kramer
Thank you to Tudor Life magazine contributor Kyra Kramer for this excellent article on Sir Henry Norris, Henry VIII’s Groom of the Stool, and the fall of Anne Boleyn. Over to Kyra…
Of all the men who were falsely accused of being Anne Boleyn’s companions in adultery, to point a finger at Henry Norris makes the most sense in terms of proximity and politics but the least sense in terms of his close relationship with Henry VIII.
If historian Greg Walker is correct in his 2002 proposal that Anne’s downfall was not due to her miscarriage of a male foetus in January of 1536 but instead to some hasty words she said in spring, then Norris was a ready-made target. One day in late April, the queen asked Henry Norris, who was the king’s groom of the stool and engaged to her cousin Madge Shelton, when he planned to wed. Norris hedged that he would wait just a bit longer, which vexed Anne. In her anger she told him he was looking for “dead men’s shoes, for if ought came to the king but good, you would look to have me”. This was a major blunder. It was treason to even think about the death of the king, let alone to talk about whom his queen might marry after his demise. Norris was appalled and Anne knew almost immediately that she had said something dangerous. She sent Norris to her chaplain, John Skyp, to swear that she was a good woman and faithful to the king.
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Lucas Horenbout by Sarah Bryson
Lucas Horenbout, or Hornebolte as he was sometimes referred to, was a Flemish artist who specialised in miniature portraits. Born in Ghent in 1490/95 (his exact birthdate is unknown), Horenbout was the son of famous painter and miniature artist Gerard Horenbout. Along with his sister Susannah, Lucas learnt his skill as a painter of miniature portraits from his father. Miniatures are beautifully painted portraits that are extremely small in size, some being only 4cm/1.5inch in diameter.
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This week in history 30 March – 5 April
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Recent and forthcoming books Spring 2015
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This week in history 16 – 22 March
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Hans Holbein the Younger by Sarah Bryson
Hans Holbein the Younger is one of history’s most famous painters and it is thanks to his great skill and talent that we have so many paintings of the people of Henry VIII’s reign, including the great King himself. But who exactly was Hans Holbein the Younger and how did he come to the English court and catch the eye of Henry VIII?
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March 2015 Tudor Life Magazine
Enjoy the amazing 92 page Richard III Special Edition magazine from the Tudor Society with a massive 50 page special feature section on King Richard.
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This week in history 16 – 22 February
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Hampton Court Palace by Sarah Bryson
Hampton Court has origins far older than Henry VIII. Originally Hampton Court was a settlement belonging to the Saxon period; its original name was ‘Hammton’ meaning ‘a settlement by the river’. In the early 12th century the land was owned by Reginald de St Valery, a crusader in Jerusalem. He allowed the Knights Hospitallers of St John to rent the land. The Knights built the House of Hampton and the land was primarily used to manage the Knights agricultural estates.
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Windsor Castle by Sarah Bryson
Windsor Castle dates back to the time of William the Conqueror, who started building the Castle in 1070. Work was completed in 1086 and the great castle was built as a means to defend and secure the western path towards London. The castle was built on an earth mound which supported a keep and has an Upper and Lower Ward.
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This week in history 8 – 14 December
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This week in history 17 – 23 November
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This week in history 10 – 16 November
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This Week in History 20 – 26 October
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This Week in History 6 – 12 October
This week in history events for 6th to 12th October.
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Claire Ridgway Talk – Researching Tudor History
Claire Ridgway talks about how to research Tudor history and shares hints, tips and resources.
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#OTD in Tudor history – 6 April
On this day in Tudor history, 6th April, Henry Stafford, Earl of Wiltshire and a favourite of Henry VIII, died; Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth I’s principal secretary and spymaster, died; and Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford and son of Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, died…
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#OTD in Tudor history – 5 March
On this day in Tudor history, 5th March, Henry VII issued letters patent to explorer John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto), a bill of attainder listing 33 counts of treason was passed against Edward VI’s uncle, Thomas Seymour, and a Spanish physician introduced tobacco into Europe…
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May 23 – Henry Grey is installed as a Knight of the Garter
On this day in Tudor history, 23rd May 1547, in the reign of King Edward VI, Henry Grey, 3rd Marquis of Dorset was installed as a Knight of the Garter.
Grey had longed to be a garter knight for years, but even though his father-in-law, Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, nominated him annually, he was not elected. Things changed in Grey’s favour when Edward VI became king.
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