The Tudor Society
  • 27 August – Two Tudor battles

    On this day in Tudor history, 27th August 1557, St Quentin was stormed by English and Imperial forces. Admiral de Coligny and his French troops, numbering only a thousand, were overcome by around 60,000 soldiers, and St Quentin fell. Henry Dudley, the youngest son of the late John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, was killed by a cannonball during the storming.

    Find out about the siege and battle, and what happened next…

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  • 27 August – Battle of Dussindale

    On this day in Tudor history, 27th August 1549, the Battle of Dussindale took place near Norwich, in East Anglia. It ended Kett’s Rebellion once and for all.

    I explain what happened on that day in 1549 and what happened to the rebels who survived the battle.

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  • 27 August 1549: The Battle of Dussindale and the End of Kett’s Rebellion by Heather R. Darsie

    A portrait of John Dudley from the collection at Knole in Kent.

    July 1549. The almost twelve-year-old Edward VI had been King of England for two-and-a-half years. Landlords had begun enclosing the common lands, which prevented peasants from being able to have a place for their animals to graze. Several landlords had taken to raising sheep, as the English wool trade was growing quite prosperous. This, in concert with a host of other problems such as inflation and unemployment, led to unrest for the lower classes.

    After Edward Seymour, Lord Protector, had issued a proclamation on behalf of Edward VI that made enclosures illegal, several peasants tore down a fence that was raised in the town of Attleborough. On 6 July, the town of Wymondham was observing the illegal feast day for Thomas Beckett. Henry VIII had outlawed any such celebrations or commemorations of Thomas Becket back in 1538. After the festivities, some revellers got together and decided to dismantle some of the enclosures. This was the beginning of the Norfolk uprising and posed a significant threat to the Lord Protector’s government.

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  • 27 August 1549 – The Battle of Dussindale

    On 27th August 1549, the Battle of Dussindale took place, ending Kett’s Rebellion in Norfolk.

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