On this day in Tudor history, 21st February 1568, Katherine Seymour (née Grey), Countess of Hertford, was buried at Yoxford. Her remains were later re-interred, by her grandson, in the Seymour family tomb at Salisbury Cathedral.
Katherine was the second daughter of Henry Grey, Duke of Suffolk, and his wife, Frances Brandon, and the granddaughter of Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, and Mary Tudor, Queen of France. She was also the younger sister of Lady Jane Grey, or Queen Jane.
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On this day in Tudor history, 20th February 1552, Anne Herbert, Countess of Pembroke, died at Baynard’s Castle in London.
Anne was the younger sister of Queen Catherine Parr and served Queens Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves and Catherine Howard.
Let me give you a few facts about this Tudor countess…
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On this day in Tudor history, 15 February 1503, Henry Deane, administrator and Archbishop of Canterbury, died at Lambeth Palace at around the age of 63. He was laid to rest at Canterbury Cathedral in a lavish funeral.
Deane was the last monk to become Archbishop of Canterbury.
Let me give you a few facts about this archbishop…
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On this day in Tudor history, 2nd February 1508, in the reign of King Henry VII, physician and Provost of King’s College, Cambridge, John Argentine died at King’s College.
He was about sixty-five years of age at his death. He was laid to rest in the Chantry Chapel at the college.
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On this day in Tudor history, 28th January 1501, in the reign of King Henry VII, politician and administrator John Dynham, 1st Baron Dynham, died at his home at Lambeth. He was buried at the London Greyfriars on 30th January.
Here are a few facts about this Tudor baron…
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On this day in Tudor history, 25th January 1540, St Edmund Campion, Jesuit and martyr, was born in London.
Campion was hanged, drawn and quartered on 1st December 1581 for treasonable conspiracy. He was beatified in 1886 by Pope Leo XIII and canonized in 1970 by Pope Paul VI.
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On this day in Tudor history, 17th January 1587, Bartholomew Newsam (Newsum, Newsham), died. He was buried in the church of St Mary-le-Strand, the parish in which he lived and worked. He was in his fifties at his death.
Bartholomew Newsam, who is thought to have come from the York area, was a famous clockmaker, sundial maker and scientific instrument maker. He worked for Queen Elizabeth I, repairing clocks and perhaps even making them for her.
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On this day in Tudor history, 16th (or possibly the 18th) December 1503, George Grey, 2nd Earl of Kent, died at Ampthill, Bedfordshire.
The earl served in Henry VII’s reign as a soldier, a member of the king’s council, the Constable of Northampton Castle, and as a judge at the trial of Edward, Earl of Warwick in 1499.
His first wife was Anne Woodville, sister of Queen Elizabeth Woodville.
Grey managed to retain royal favour on Henry VII’s accession even though he’d been rewarded by Richard III.
Find out more about George Grey…
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On this day in Tudor history, 23rd November 1499, in the reign of King Henry VII, Perkin Warbeck was hanged at Tyburn.
Warbeck was executed for allegedly plotting to help another claimant, Edward, Earl of Warwick, escape from the Tower of London.
Perkin Warbeck had been imprisoned in 1497 after he had raised a rebellion claiming to be Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, the younger of the Princes in the Tower. He had even been proclaimed King Richard IV, but his rebellion and claim had failed.
Let me tell you about Perkin Warbeck’s background, explain how he ended up trying to claim the throne of England, and tell you what happened.
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On this day in Tudor history, 15th November 1527, in the reign of King Henry VIII, a woman who called herself “the excellent Princess Katherine, Countess of Devon, daughter, sister and aunt of kings” died at Tiverton Castle in Devon.
She was Katherine of York, Countess of Devon, and she was the daughter of King Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville, and the sister of Queen Elizabeth of York. Katherine was just forty-nine when she died. She had taken a vow of chastity after her husband’s death.
Let me give an overview of King Henry VIII’s aunt’s life and explain why she took her vow of chastity…
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On this day in Tudor history, 4th November 1538, in the reign of King Henry VIII, Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu; his brother-in-law, Sir Edward Neville; Henry Courtenay, Marquis of Exeter; Courtenay’s wife, Gertrude Blount, and the couple’s son, Edward Courtenay, were arrested for treason. They were taken to the Tower of London.
Montagu, Neville and Exeter, along with Montagu’s brother, Geoffrey Pole, were accused of plotting with Montagu’s brother, Cardinal Reginald Pole, against King Henry VIII. Montagu’s mother, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, was also arrested for treason.
Henry VIII had sought Cardinal Pole’s opinion on his marriage and the papacy, so why were members of his family accused of treason for communicating with the cardinal?
Find out what Cardinal Pole had done to upset the king, and what happened to his family and friends…
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On this day in Tudor history, 1st October 1500, in the reign of King Henry VII, John Alcock, Bishop of Ely, died at Wisbech Castle.
As well as being a clergyman, John Alcock had been a scholar and he’d served as a royal tutor and administrator.
Alcock had been a tutor to Prince Edward, the son of King Edward IV and the future King Edward V, who, of course, has gone down in history as one of the Princes in the Tower. Alcock also christened another prince.
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I was shocked and saddened by the news, yesterday, of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. It seems strange to be shocked when she was 96 years of age and her health had been declining in recent months, but I’m British and she’s the only monarch I’ve known. Her image is known the world over and when I lived in the UK, I saw her image and heraldry everywhere and on a daily basis. I can’t believe she’s gone and that there’s a new monarch, King Charles III.
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On his day in Tudor history, 15th August 1588, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Robert Wilcox, Edward Campion, Christopher Buxton and Robert Widmerpool were examined while imprisoned in the Marshalsea prison in Southwark, London.
These Catholic men ended up being executed, three of them for being Catholic priests and one for giving aid to priests. All four died with courage. They were beatified in 1929.
Who were these men and how did they come to be executed?
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On this day in Tudor history, 14th August 1513, in the reign of King Henry VIII, William Parr, Marquess of Northampton and brother of Queen Catherine Parr, was born.
William Parr is a fascinating man. He had a wonderful court career, his first wife eloped and left him, his divorce was granted and then rescinded, he was imprisoned in the Tower but then released, his marital happiness was rather shortlived… but he died a natural death!
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On this day in history, 1st August 1555, Sir Edward Kelley, apothecary, alchemist and medium, was born in Worcester.
Kelley was a fascinating man. He worked with Dr John Dee and the men believed that they communicated with angels. Kelley also claimed that he was an alchemist and he wrote a treatise on the Philosopher’s Stone.
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On this day in Tudor history, 22nd July 1576, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, playwright and pamphleteer, Edward Sharpham, was baptised at Colehanger, East Allington, in Devon. Sharpham is thought to have written the plays “The Fleire” and “Cupid’s Whirligig”, and fellow playwright Ben Jonson referred to him as a rogue.
Find out more about this lesser-known Tudor man and his comedy Cupid’s Whirligig…
[Read More...]On this day in Tudor history, 17th May 1521, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, was executed for treason on Tower Hill.
He’d served King Henry VII and King Henry VIII loyally for many years, so what led to this nobleman being condemned for high treason?
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A warm Tudor Society welcome to historian and author Toni Mount and huge congratulations to her on the forthcoming release of her tenth Seb Foxley medieval murder mystery, a series I adore.
Toni is sharing a guest article with us to celebrate the publication of The Colour of Rubies…
In my tenth and latest Seb Foxley medieval murder mystery, The Colour of Rubies, the story requires our hero to go to Westminster Palace in order to discover a dead body – what else! Those familiar with my scribe/artist/sleuth will know that colour means everything to Seb so what better reason could he have for going to the royal palace with his brother, Jude, than to admire the beautiful stained glass in the Chapel of St Stephen?
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It’s a busy date in Tudor history today!
On this day in Tudor history, 14th April 1578, Mary, Queen of Scots’ third husband, James Hepburn, Duke of Orkney and 4th Earl of Bothwell, died at Dragsholm Castle in Denmark. He’d been held at the castle in appalling conditions and it was said that he’d gone insane.
Find out more about the life of this earl who’d risen to be the husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, but who’d died in prison, far away from home…
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On this day in history, 6th April 1621, in the Stuart period, Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford, died at around the age of 81.
Now, Hertford is known for his secret marriage to Lady Katherine Grey, sister of Lady Jane Grey, and their conjugal visits in the Tower of London, but Hertford had a thing for secret marriages, and his son and grandson followed in his footsteps!
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IT’S OUR 90th EDITION! This month’s magazine is themed on the Protestant faith which emerged during the Tudor period. It’s yet another amazing magazine and we know you’ll enjoy it.
[Read More...]On this day in Tudor history, 16th (or possibly the 18th) December 1503, George Grey, 2nd Earl of Kent, died at Ampthill, Bedfordshire.
Grey served as a soldier under Henry VII, was on the king’s council, and served him as Constable of Northampton Castle and as a judge at the trial of Edward, Earl of Warwick in 1499.
He was also married to a sister of Elizabeth Woodville.
Grey also managed to retain royal favour on Henry VII’s accession even though he’d been rewarded by Richard III.
Find out more about George Grey in this talk…
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On this day in Tudor history, 5th December 1560, King Francis II of France, died at the age of just 15. Francis was King Consort of Scotland, as the husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, and his father had also proclaimed him and Mary as King and Queen of England back in 1558!
He was taken ill in mid-November with what appears to have been an ear infection, and it led to him dying on this day in history. His death led to Mary, Queen of Scots, returning to her homeland of Scotland, a country she hadn’t seen for 13 years.
Find out more about Francis II of France, his marriage to Mary, Queen of Scots, his death and what happened next, in this talk…
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On this day in Tudor history, 23rd November 1598, scrivener and sailor Edward Squire was hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn for treason after being accused of plotting with Jesuits in Seville to poison Elizabeth I’s saddle and the Earl of Essex’s chair.
Squire, who ended up in Seville after being captured by Spaniards while on a voyage with Sir Francis Drake, confessed under torture, but claimed his innocence at his trial and execution.
But what exactly happened, and how and why did a Protestant scrivener and sailor end up accused of treason?
Find out all about Edward Squire and the alleged plot to assassinate Queen Elizabeth I and her favourite, Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, in this talk…
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