On this day in Tudor history, 29th July 1588, the English naval fleet attacked the Spanish Armada in a battle known as the Battle of Gravelines.
England defeated Spain and it was down to the new tactics they’d learned from previous encounters with the Armada and from capturing a Spanish ship, as well as weather conditions.
What were these new and successful tactics and what happened at the Battle of Gravelines?
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On this day in Tudor history, 27th July 1593, Roman Catholic priest and martyr, Blessed William Davies, was hanged, drawn and quartered at Beaumaris Castle on the Island of Anglesey.
You may not have heard of William Davies, but he is believed to have been involved in the printing of “Y Drych Christianogawl”, or The Christian Mirror, an important early Welsh Catholic book and the first book to be printed on Welsh soil, while he was hiding in cave!
Find out more about Davies, how he came to be hiding in a cave in North Wales, and why he was executed, in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 23rd July 1543, or 24th according to some sources, Marie de Guise and her baby daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, escaped from Linlithgow Palace, helped by Cardinal David Beaton, and taken to Stirling Castle.
Why? What was going on in Scotland at this time?
Find out all about Mary’s early months as Queen of Scots, and why Beaton helped her and her mother to move to Stirling, in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 19th July 1545, Henry VIII’s flagship, the Mary Rose, sank right in front of his eyes in the Battle of the Solent between the English and French fleets.
But why did the Mary Rose sink?
In today’s talk, I share the various theories on the sinking of the Mary Rose, as well as talking about the salvage operations over time, her raising in 1983, and the work of the Mary Rose Trust.
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On this day in Tudor history, 18th July 1553, while her father-in-law and his forces made their way from Cambridge to Bury St Edmunds to stand against the forces of Mary, and Jane was busy writing to men requesting them to muster forces to support her, Jane was being betrayed by members of her council.
William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, and Henry Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel, called a council meeting and Pembroke was even said to have threatened council members with a sword! They then proclaimed for Mary.
Find out more about what happened on 18th and 19th July 1553 in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 12th July 1553, Mary (future Mary I) moved from Kenninghall to Framlingham and set about rallying support. Sir Thomas Cornwallis was able to intercept her on her journey and pledge his loyalty to her. He wasn’t the only one flocking to her cause.
Meanwhile, back in London, the new queen, Queen Jane (Lady Jane Grey), made a serious mistake by refusing to send her father to go and apprehend Mary.
Why was this a mistake?
Find out what was going on back in 1553 in this talk.
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On this day in history, 11th July 1553, in Ipswich, Suffolk, Sir Thomas Cornwallis, sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk, Lord Thomas Wentworth, and some other prominent Suffolk gentlemen declared for Queen Jane (Lady Jane Grey) and publicly proclaimed her the rightful queen. However, the following day, Cornwallis recanted and proclaimed Mary as queen.
Why? What happened to make this sheriff change his mind so soon?
Find out more about the situation in July 1553 in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, on 8th July 1503, during the reign of King Henry VII, Thomas Boleyn, father of Anne Boleyn, left Collyweston in Northamptonshire to undertake an important job for the king.
He was to be part of a retinue escorting King Henry VII’s eldest daughter, Margaret Tudor, to Scotland, for her marriage to King James IV.
Find out more about the retinue and journey in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 7th July 1568, naturalist, herbalist, ornithologist, reformer and physician, William Turner, died. Turner is known as “the father of English botany and of ornithology”, but why and who exactly was he?
In today’s talk, I give an overview of Turner’s life and career, including his attacks on Bishop Gardiner and his time in exile, plus a bit of trivia about the training of his little dog.
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On this day in Tudor history, Tuesday 6th July 1535, Henry VIII’s former friend and Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas More, was beheaded on Tower Hill as a traitor.
In today’s talk, I share accounts of his execution, including one that gives real insight into More’s personality, with his black humour on the scaffold.
I also give details on the fate of Sir Thomas More’s head and what his daughter, Margaret Roper, did with it.
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On this day in Tudor history, 4th July 1551, Gregory Cromwell, 1st Baron Cromwell, died of sweating sickness at Launde Abbey in Leicestershire. He was laid to rest at the abbey’s chapel on 7th July.
Gregory Cromwell was the son of the more famous Thomas Cromwell, but what do we know about him and what happened to him after his father’s fall in 1540?
Find out about the life and career of Gregory Cromwell in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 1st July 1535, in the reign of King Henry VIII, Sir Thomas More, Henry VIII’s former Lord Chancellor, was tried for high treason by a special commission of oyer and terminer. The commission found him guilty and he was executed on 6th July 1535.
But how did More, a faithful and loyal servant of the king, end up in this mess? Who was on the commission and what exactly happened?
Find out all about the fall of Sir Thomas More in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 24th June 1532, the feast of St John the Baptist, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and favourite of Elizabeth I, was born.
Elizabeth I called Leicester her “eyes” and “sweet Robin” and there was gossip over their relationship, but there was far more to Robert Dudley than his closeness to the queen. Find out all about his life and career in today’s talk:
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On this day in Tudor history, 20th June 1540, Henry VIII’s fourth wife, Queen Anne of Cleves, complained to her advisor about her husband’s interest in one of her maids of honour, a certain Catherine Howard. What was going on and what happened next?
Find out more about the final weeks of Henry VIII’s and Anne of Cleves’ marriage in today’s talk.
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Yes, you read that title right! On this day in Tudor history, 18th June 1558, the will of Welsh mathematician, physician and mint administrator Robert Recorde was proved.
Recorde invented the “=” sign and wrote books on mathematics and also a urological treatise “The Urinal of Physick”.
Let me tell you all about this man and his works, which have such catchy titles!
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On this day in Tudor history, 12th June 1540, a clearly frightened Thomas Cromwell, who was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his arrest on 10th June for treason, wrote to King Henry VIII regarding his “most miserable state”, asking for mercy, and pleading his innocence.
I share Cromwell’s letter in today’s talk. It is an eloquent letter but also a very moving one. His fear is palpable.
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Happy St Barnabas Day!
Yes, 11th June is the Feast of St Barnabas, a feast day that was celebrated by the Tudors by decorating churches with garlands of flowers.
Find out more about St Barnabas and how he was commemorated in medieval and Tudor times in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 9th or 10th June 1563, William Paget, 1st Baron Paget, diplomat and administrator, died, probably at his estate of West Drayton in Middlesex.
By his death, he’d served four Tudor monarchs and even though he’d fallen from favour and been imprisoned, he kept his head and climbed back in favour.
But who was Baron Paget? Well, let me give you a few facts about this Tudor man.
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On this day in Tudor history, 7th June 1536, there were celebrations for England’s new queen, Jane Seymour, third wife of King Henry VIII.
The celebrations consisted of a river pageant on the River Thames in London, from Greenwich Palace to Whitehall (York Place).
Find out all about this river pageant in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 6th June 1549, an army of rebels assembled at Bodmin in Cornwall, and there was a town meeting in which the rebels’ demands were put forward.
What were these rebels rebelling against?
The recent religious changes, particularly the new law concerning the Book of Common Prayer.
Trouble ensued and their grievances became a full-blown rebellion, the Prayer Book Rebellion. You can find out what happened next and how the rebellion ended in today’s talk.
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On the afternoon of this day in Tudor history, Wednesday 4th June 1561, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, London was hit by a tremendous thunderstorm. Fires caused by lightning strikes destroyed one church and damaged St Paul’s Cathedral.
Find out more about the storm, how St Paul’s was damaged, the reactions to the lightning strike, what Queen Elizabeth I did, and what happened next, in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 3rd June 1535, Thomas Cromwell, King Henry VIII’s vicar-general, issued orders regarding the royal supremacy to the bishops of the kingdom.
But what was the royal supremacy and what were the clergy expected to do?
Find out all about the royal supremacy, the orders sent and how bishops reacted, in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 27th May 1541, the frail sixty-seven-year-old Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, was executed at the Tower of London.
The former governess of Princess Mary had an awful end because the usual executioner was away from London, and one account has led to stories of her tormented ghost reliving her final moments at the Tower.
Find out why Margaret Pole was executed and what happened in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 22nd May 1541, following their elections on St George’s Day, 23rd April 1541, Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford; Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey; Sir John Gage, and Sir Anthony Wingfield were all installed as Knights of the Garter.
Who were these men and what was the Order of the Garter?
I introduce these Garter Knights and explain the origins of the Order of the Garter, England’s oldest order of chivalry, in this video:
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On this day in Tudor history, 18th May 1554, in the reign of Queen Mary I, scholar and administrator, William Thomas, was hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn for his alleged involvement in Wyatt’s Rebellion. It was said that he even wanted the queen assassinated.
But William Thomas was far more than a rebel, he was also the author of the first he first Italian dictionary and book of grammar to be published in English.
Find out more about him and his rather bad end in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 11th May 1560, royal physician Dr Thomas Wendy, died at his home, the manor of Haslingfield, in Cambridgeshire.
He attended three Tudor monarchs at their death and had a long and loyal service as a royal physician, but what interests Claire, in particular, is his role in saving Queen Catherine Parr, Henry VIII’s sixth wife, from a plot by Catholic conservatives in 1546.
Find out more Dr Thomas Wendy, his life, career, and the plot in today’s talk.
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On this day in history, in the Stuart period, 9th May 1657, William Bradford died. He is known as the founder of the Plymouth Colony in America and the writer of a chronicle of its early years: ““Of Plimmoth Plantation”.
But how did a Yorkshire man of farming stock become a Puritan and a governor of a colony in North America? What led to him becoming a “pilgrim” and boarding The Mayflower?
Find out in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 3rd May 1568, courtier, member of Parliament, and privy councillor, Sir Edward Rogers, died.
Rogers had a long and successful royal career, serving three of the Tudor monarchs, and he managed to keep his head too.
Find out more about him, and how he even survived being implicated in rebellion and opposing Mary I, in today’s talk.
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On this day in Tudor history, 28th April 1548 (some sources say 6 May), courtier, diplomat, soldier and Keeper of Oatlands Palace, Sir Anthony Browne, died at Byfleet in Surrey. He had been one of Henry VIII’s most important and richest courtiers and was also involved in the falls of two queens: Anne Boleyn and Anne of Cleves.
Find out more about this man and how he was involved in the falls of the two Annes in today’s talk.
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Richard Chancellor is a Tudor explorer famous for his interactions with Russia. His origins and childhood are mostly unknown, and as such, there is a lot of speculation. We believe he was born in 1521 and lived near Bristol. It is claimed that he was raised by Sir Henry Sidney, Lord Deputy of Ireland.
In the 1550s, Chancellor sailed with Roger Bodenham as an apprentice pilot in the voyage of the Bark Aucher to the Levant. This trip was intended to provide English mariners with the experience of longer voyages, something that they were less experienced in than their French and Spanish counterparts. By 1553, English markets were becoming more diverse, and there was increased demand for cloth from the Far East. As such, merchants, courtiers, and noblemen funded an expedition to the East, which consisted of three ships – the Bona Esperanza, Edward Bonaventure, and the Bona Confidentia. Richard Chancellor was appointed as the pilot general of the voyage and as captain of the Edward Bonaventure, the largest ship in the expedition. The voyage departed on 22nd May 1553 but was delayed for several weeks in Harwich due to faulty casking. Eventually, they set sail on 23rd June, and the ships progressed towards the Norwegian coast. The leaders of the expedition agreed to meet at Vardö should they become separated; however, they were all scattered by a vicious storm. Chancellor arrived at the town and waited seven days for the others to come, but no one did. Richard set sail from Vardö and arrived at the Russian port town of St Nicholas towards the end of August 1553.
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