On this day in Tudor history, 21st January, a bill of attainder was passed against Queen Catherine Howard, the Earl of Surrey and friends went on the rampage in London, and Eustace Chapuys, the imperial ambassador, was laid to rest…
[Read More...]YOUR SEARCH UNCOVERED 775 RESULTS
-
#OTD in Tudor History – 21 January
-
#OTD in Tudor history – 15 January
On this day in Tudor history, 15th January, Elizabeth I was crowned queen at Westminster Abbey, the Duchess of Northumberland died, and Elizabeth I’s cousin, Catherine Carey, died…
[Read More...] -
#OTD in Tudor history – 11 January
On this day in Tudor history, 11th January, the first recorded lottery was drawn at St Paul’s, a printer was hanged drawn and quartered, and a Lord of Misrule was buried…
[Read More...] -
#OTD in Tudor history – 5 January
What happened on this day in Tudor history, 5th January, in Tudor times?
Let me share with you some events from 5th January during the reigns of the Tudor kings and queens…
[Read More...] -
October 3 – Sir William Fitzwilliam
On this day in Tudor history, 3rd October 1559, Sir William Fitzwilliam, gentleman of King Edward VI’s privy chamber, died.
Fitzwilliam was a member of Parliament, a favourite of both the Duke of Somerset and Duke of Northumberland, and served Mary I as deputy chancellor in Ireland.
Here are a few facts about Sir William Fitzwilliam…
[Read More...] -
October 1 – Dorothy Stafford, Lady Stafford
On this day in Tudor history, 1st October 1526, in the reign of King Henry VIII, Dorothy Stafford, Lady Stafford, was born.
Dorothy was the daughter of Henry Stafford, 10th Baron Stafford, and his wife, Ursula (née Pole, and she was married to Sir William Stafford, widower of Mary Boleyn. Dorothy served Queen Elizabeth I as a gentlewoman of the privy chamber and was one of her favourite sleeping companions.
[Read More...] -
September 28 – Robert Willoughby, 1st Baron Willoughby de Broke
On this day in Tudor history, 28th September 1502, in the reign of King Henry VII, Robert Willoughby, 1st Baron Willoughby de Broke, died at Callington, Cornwall. He was buried at Callington Church.
Willoughby had been in exile in Brittany with Henry Tudor and fought with him at the Battle of Bosworth. He served Henry VII as Lord Steward and was made a Knight of the Garter in 1489.
[Read More...] -
September 25 – Mary, Queen of Scots is moved to Fotheringhay
On this day in Tudor history, 25th September 1586, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Mary, Queen of Scots, was moved to Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire, and Elizabeth finally backed down and agreed to the appointing of 36 commissioners to act as judges in her trial. Mary would never leave the castle.
[Read More...] -
September 19 – The death of Katherine Willoughby, Duchess of Suffolk
On this day in Tudor history, 19th September 1580, Katherine Bertie (née Willoughby) died after a long illness. She was buried in Spilsby church, Lincolnshire.
Katherine was known for her Protestant faith and her patronage of Protestant scholars and clergymen, and also for her marriage to Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk.
[Read More...] -
September 18 – Henry Brandon, 2nd Duke of Suffolk
On this day in Tudor history, 18th September 1535, in the reign of King Henry VIII, Henry Brandon, 2nd Duke of Suffolk, was born.
Henry would not have a long life, dying at the age of fifteen from sweating sickness.
[Read More...] -
September 16 – Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex
On this day in Tudor history, 16th September 1539, in the reign of King Henry VIII, nobleman, soldier and adventurer Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex, was born at Chartley in Staffordshire.
Devereux was the eldest son of Sir Richard Devereux and Dorothy Hastings, and the father of Elizabeth I’s favourite Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex.
[Read More...] -
September 5 – Judge Sir Robert Broke
On this day in Tudor history, 5th (or 6th) September 1558, in the reign of Queen Mary I, judge, legal writer and Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Robert Broke died at a friend’s house in Patshull, Staffordshire.
Broke was buried in Claverley Church, Shropshire.
Broke’s other offices included Deputy Chief Steward for the Duchy of Lancaster, Serjeant-at-Law and Chief Justice of the Common Pleas.
[Read More...] -
August 17 – John Scrope, 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton
On this day in Tudor history, 17th August 1498, soldier and royal councillor John Scrope, 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton, died.
the Yorkist Scrope was lucky to die a natural death. It is likely that he fought on King Richard III’s side at the Battle of Bosworth against Henry Tudor in 1485, but escaped punishment by Henry, who won the battle and was crowned King Henry VII. Scrope was imprisoned two years later after supporting the pretender Lambert Simnel. However, he was released and went on to prove his loyalty to Henry VII.
[Read More...] -
August 11 – Sir John Kingsmill
On this day in Tudor history, 11th August 1556, politician Sir John Kingsmill, a man who had been close to Thomas Cromwell and Thomas Wriothesley, died.
He served as a sheriff in the reign of Henry VIII and as a commissioner for the dissolution of chantries in 1548 to Edward VI.
Here are some more facts about Sir John Kingsmill:
[Read More...] -
Monday Martyr – Thomas Abell (Abel)
As yesterday was the anniversary of the martyrdom of Catholic Thomas Abell, on 30th July 1540, I thought he could be this week’s #MondayMartyr.
Here are some facts about this Henrician martyr:
– Thomas Abell’s birthdate is unknown but he’d been ordained as a Catholic priest by 1513.
[Read More...]
– He studied at the University of Oxford, attaining a BA in 1514 and an MA in 1518.
– In 1522, Abell became rector at Great Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire… -
July 22 – John Scrope, 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton
On this day in history, 22nd July 1437 (or 1438), soldier and royal councillor John Scrope, 5th Baron Scrope of Bolton, was born.
During the Wars of the Roses, Scrope was seriously injured at the Battle of Towton fighting on Edward IV’s side and in 1469 he sided with the Earl of Warwick against Edward, but was fortunately forgiven, even though he did that twice.
[Read More...] -
Monday Martyr – John Lascelles (Lassells)
This week’s Monday Martyr is John Lascelles (Lassells, Lacels), a courtier who was burnt at the stake for his Protestant faith at Smithfield on 16th July 1546 with priest Nicholas Belenian, tailor John Adams, and famous Protestant martyr Anne Askew.
Here are some facts about this Henrician Protestant martyr
[Read More...] -
Monday Martyr – The mysterious fall of Blessed Adrian Fortescue
This week’s Monday martyr is a courtier whose fall is shrouded in mystery.
Sir Adrian Fortescue was beheaded at Tower Hill on 9th or 10th July 1539.*
-
June 22 – The execution of John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester
On 22nd June 1535, John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, was beheaded on Tower Hill.
Fisher, who had served Henry VIII’s grandmother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, was executed for treason for refusing to accept Henry VIII as the supreme head of the church.
[Read More...] -
June 13 – George Neville, 3rd Baron Bergavenny
On this day in Tudor history, 13th June 1535, or possibly 14th, Tudor courtier and nobleman, George Neville, 3rd Baron Bergavenny, died at his home at Eridge in Sussex.
[Read More...]
He fell from favour after the fall of his father-in-law, the Duke of Buckingham, in 1521, but managed to rise again. -
Monday Martyr – Elizabeth Barton, the Holy Maid of Kent
This week’s Monday Martyr is Elizabeth Barton, who was hanged for treason at Tyburn on 20th April 1534, along with Father Edward Bocking (a monk and Barton’s spiritual adviser), Richard Masters (her parish priest), Richard Risby (warden of the Observant Friary at Canterbury) and Hugh Rich (warden of the Observant Friary at Richmond).
Elizabeth had visions and prophecies, and one particular prophecy got her into trouble with King Henry VIII.
[Read More...] -
An update on the bench with links to Catherine of Aragon
Thank you to John Roberts for this update - click here for John's original article.
Tudor Society followers from four years ago may remember this historic bench and its many references to Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon.
Many notable historians of ancient furniture, including Jonathan Foyle, have determined that the bench displays woodworked artistry from between the 16th-19th centuries, so the question now remains, why were talented craftsmen adding on to a work of art rather than creating one?
The penny dropped early one morning this week with the theory that it's not the BENCH that is the main study here but the HEADBOARD!
-
Hever Castle – still worth a visit? by Tim Ridgway
A few weeks ago, my father and I were able to get away for a morning to visit Hever Castle in Kent. It’s somewhere that you may have been to before, and it’s a castle that is very close to our hearts – we LOVE the way the grounds are kept and how the castle evokes the history of the Boleyn family, the time Anne of Cleves spent there AND, more recently, how the Astor family lived and renovated the whole area.
For a long time, Hever castle was quite static in its displays – not much changed, which was fine if you’d never visited before, but since we had visited so many times, it was rare to see anything new. That’s no longer the case.
[Read More...] -
April 6 – Henry Stafford, Earl of Wiltshire
On this day in Tudor history, 6th April 1523, in the reign of King Henry VIII, nobleman and courtier Henry Stafford, Earl of Wiltshire, died at the age of about 44.
Stafford died without issue so his earldom became extinct until 1529 when Thomas Boleyn, father of Anne Boleyn, was made Earl of Wiltshire.
[Read More...] -
April 2 – Sir Ambrose Cave
On this day in Tudor history, 2nd April 1568, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Sir Ambrose Cave, member of Parliament, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Knight of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem, died at the Savoy. He was buried at Stanford after a funeral at the Savoy Chapel.
[Read More...] -
March 31 – Henry VII makes his will
On this day in Tudor history, 31st March 1509, the dying Henry VII made his last will and testament at Richmond Palace, three weeks before his death.
The will was based on an earlier draft, with some new provisions added, for example, the addition of Sir Richard Empson and Edmund Dudley to the list of executors.
[Read More...] -
March 30 – Sir Ralph Sadler
On this day in Tudor history, 30th March 1587, in the reign of Elizabeth I, Sir Ralph Sadler died. He was in his 80th year.Sadler was a diplomat and administrator who worked as Thomas Cromwell's secretary before being noticed by Henry VIII.
At his death, he was one of the richest men in England.
Here are a few more facts about him…
- Ralph Sadler was born in 1507 and was the eldest son of administrator Henry Sadler of Warwickshire and Hackney. Henry Sadler worked as steward to Sir Edward Belknap until 1521. Belknap was one of Henry VIII’s privy councillors. He then served Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset.
- By 1521, when he was about 14, Ralph Sadler had entered the service of Thomas Cromwell, who ensured that he was taught Latin, Greek, French and Law.
-
March 27 – George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury
On 27th March 1539, George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, was laid to rest in the Shrewsbury Chapel of St Peter’s Church, Sheffield.
Talbot is known for his loyalty to the king during the Pilgrimage of Grace uprisings, which was seen as crucial to the failure of the rebellion.
But let me tell you a bit more about this Tudor earl…
[Read More...] -
March 22 – Edward Seymour is in and Henry Howard is out
On this day in Tudor history, 22nd March 1546, Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford, landed in Calais to relieve the out of favour Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, in his military duties as lieutenant general there.
Hertford had been officially appointed the previous day “as the King’s lieutenant in the parts beyond sea, and commander in chief of the army and armada now about to be sent thither; with authority to invade France at discretion, and to order all admirals, vice-admirals and shipmasters there.” The privy council also wrote to Surrey recalling him to England.
But what had happened? Why was Surrey being replaced with Hertford?
[Read More...] -
March 17 – William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke, Black Will Herbert
On this day in Tudor history, 17th March 1570, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke, soldier, courtier and landowner, died at Hampton Court, aged sixty-three.
Here are some facts about this Tudor earl, who was known as Black Will Herbert and had a queen as a sister-in-law…
[Read More...]
