The Tudor Society
  • October 2 – The birth of King Richard III

    On this day in history, 2nd October 1452, King Richard III, the last Plantagenet king, was born at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire.

    Richard was the youngest surviving child of Richard, 3rd Duke of York, and Cecily Neville.

    Richard claimed the English throne in June 1483, claiming that his brother Edward IV’s sons were illegitimate because Edward had been pre-contracted to another woman, Eleanor Butler, when he married Elizabeth Woodville.

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  • The Lost King – A new film on Richard III

    There’s a new film about Richard III coming!

    The Lost King will be showing in UK cinemas from 7th October 2022.

    Thank you to Jo Taylor-Hitchinson for sharing this information:

    “The film tells the remarkable true story of how one ‘ordinary’ woman overcame every obstacle to track down the final resting place of Richard III.

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  • Blog: A New Theory on the Princes in the Tower and More

    At the end of last year we started something new on the website: a blog. Each month we will look back on exciting discoveries, new books, exhibitions, and lots more. In addition to that, we will mention what you may have missed on the Tudor Society website and look ahead to upcoming events. Today’s blog focuses on the first month of 2022! 

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  • 2 November – The birth of King Edward V and the beginning of the end for Catherine Howard

    On this day in history, 2nd November 1470, the feast of All Souls, King Edward V was born at Westminster Abbey, London. Young Edward was King of England for just 2 months in 1483 before he disappeared.

    The events of his short life, his short reign and how it ended, are linked to the Tudors because Henry Tudor returned from exile to challenge King Richard III, who had, of course, taken the throne from Edward V.

    Find out about Edward V’s life and how he came to be one of the famous Princes in the Tower, in this talk…

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  • Did Elizabeth of York really have an affair with Richard III?

    Thank you to Şebnem for asking “Did Elizabeth of York really have an affair with Richard III?”, something which has been popularised by the “Cousins’ War” series of novels by Philippa Gregory and the TV adaptations of them.

    Is there any truth to this idea? Was Elizabeth of York in love with Richard III? Did Richard and his niece become lovers? And did Richard III poison Anne Neville, his queen?

    I look at what history tells us about Elizabeth of York and her uncle, Richard III.

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  • Was Henry Tudor a Coward at Bosworth? – Julian Humphrys

    Some say that Henry Tudor was a coward for hiding behind his men and that Richard was the braver of the two men at this battle – but is this the right assessment?

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  • 7 November – Richard III and his supporters are attainted

    On this day in Tudor history, 7th November 1485, Henry VII’s first parliament attainted King Richard III and his supporters.

    As well as Richard, who was referred to as Richard, late Duke of Gloucester, and a usurper, the list of those attainted for their treason in fighting against the king at Bosworth included the late John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk, and his son, the Earl of Surrey.

    Find out who else was included and whether Parliament’s actions were unusual, in today’s talk.

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  • 2 November – Edward V, one of the Princes in the Tower

    On this day in history, 2nd November 1470, the feast of All Souls, King Edward V was born at Westminster Abbey, London. Young Edward was King of England for just 2 months in 1483 before he disappeared.

    The events of his short life, his short reign and how it ended, are linked to the Tudors because Henry Tudor returned from exile to challenge King Richard III, who had, of course, taken the throne from Edward V.

    Find out about Edward V’s life and how he came to be one of the famous Princes in the Tower, in today’s talk. I even share who I think was responsible for the deaths of the Princes in the Tower.

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  • 8 June – Elizabeth Woodville

    On this day in Tudor history, 8th June 1492, in the reign of King Henry VII, Elizabeth Woodville, died at Bermondsey Abbey.

    Elizabeth Woodville was the wife of King Edward IV and mother of Elizabeth of York and the Princes in the Tower, King Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, but there’s far more to her than that.

    Enjoy this overview of Elizabeth Woodville’s life.

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  • Live chat transcript – Matthew Lewis – 1483: The year of three kings

    Here’s the transcript of the wonderful live chat session that we had with author Matthew Lewis about his talk on 1483, an interesting year as England had three different kings.

    All full members are welcome to join us at these events, and you can either just watch or join in as you wish.

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  • 22 August – The Battle of Bosworth Field and the beginning of the Tudor dynasty

    Today is the anniversary of the battle which started the Tudor period: the Battle of Bosworth Field. The Tudor dynasty on the throne of England began on this day, when Henry Tudor’s forces beat those of King Richard III, and Richard was killed.

    In today’s talk, I explain what happened on that day in rural Leicestershire, and how Henry Tudor was victorious even though Richard III came into battle with a huge advantage.

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  • Live chat transcript – Matthew Lewis – The Survival of the Princes in the Tower

    A big thank you to Matthew Lewis for being so generous with his time and knowledge, and to all those who attended the live chat and asked such great questions. The chat was fun and informative.

    Here is the transcript of the chat for those who missed it…

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  • Was there really no chaplain available for Richard III before the Battle of Bosworth?

    A portrait of King Richard III

    Thank you to William (Bill) for asking this question. His full question was: “Paul Murray Kendall’s book Richard The Third states that there was no chaplain available for services in the King’s army before the Battle of Bosworth. What does this mean? It seems incredible that Catholic soldiers would not hear Mass before going forth to battle.”

    I forwarded the question to author and historian Nathen Amin, and in the meantime, I did some digging. I knew that Michael Jones said the same in his book Bosworth and that the information came from “The Crowland Chronicle”. I looked it up and found this bit in the chronicle:

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  • Richard III

    A portrait of King Richard III

    As today is the anniversary of the birth of King Richard III, on 2nd October 1452, I thought I’d share an extract from my book Illustrated Kings and Queens of England and links to Tudor Society resources and further reading on Richard III.

    Richard III (1452-1485)
    Rule: 1483-1485
    Marriages: Anne Neville, daughter of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick
    Issue: Edward of Middleham. 2 illegitimate children: John of Gloucester; Katherine Plantagenet.

    Richard III was born on 2 October 1452 at Fotheringhay Castle and was the youngest son of Richard, Duke of York, and Cecily Neville, daughter of the Earl of Westmorland. He became king after deposing his nephew Edward V in June 1483 and was crowned on 6 July 1483 at Westminster Abbey.

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  • The Battle of Bosworth – An informal video

    Long term Tudor Society member, Catherine Brooks, recently went to Bosworth to see the events over the Battle of Bosworth weekend. She took a little video of the battle and then spoke to Tim Nightingale, one of the reenactors of the day. We hope you enjoy this video!

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  • 22 August 1485 – The Battle of Bosworth

    On this day in history, the 22nd August 1485, in rural Leicestershire near Market Bosworth, the armies of King Richard III and Henry Tudor faced each other in a battle that would see the death of the King and the beginning of a new dynasty: the Tudor dynasty.

    When Henry Tudor challenged the King on that August day, Richard III had been King for just over two years. He had gone from being Lord Protector to the young King Edward V, the twelve-year-old son of Richard’s brother Edward IV, to being King after Edward IV’s sons were declared illegitimate. His challenger, Henry Tudor, was the son of Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond, and Lady Margaret Beaufort, a woman descended from John of Gaunt, third son of Edward III. As a Lancastrian, Henry had fled to Brittany in France, after Edward IV successfully regained the throne from Henry VI in 1471. He returned to England after his mother had conspired with Elizabeth Woodville, Edward IV’s widow, to arrange a marriage between Elizabeth’s daughter, Elizabeth of York, and Henry, and to promote Henry as an alternative to Richard III.

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  • Transcript of Princes in the Tower Live Chat

    Thanks to all who attended our live chat on the Princes in the Tower last night and a big thank you to Olga Hughes for running it. It was great fun and I think we could have gone on for hours!

    Here is the transcript of the chat, for those who weren’t able to make it:

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  • 2 October 1452 – Birth of Richard III

    On this day in history, 2nd October 1452, Richard III, the last Plantagenet king, was born at Fotheringhay Castle, Northamptonshire.

    Richard was the youngest surviving child of Richard, 3rd Duke of York, and Cecily Neville. Richard claimed the English throne in June 1483, claiming that his brother Edward IV’s sons were illegitimate because Edward had been pre-contracted to another woman when he married Elizabeth Woodville. Richard III was killed at the Battle of Bosworth on 22nd August 1485, and Henry Tudor claimed the throne as Henry VII.

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  • The Tudors’ Journey to Bosworth: Part 7 – The Battle of Bosworth by Tony Riches

    In this series, I have followed the progress of Henry and Jasper Tudor from Pembroke Castle to their long exile in Brittany and their return with an army to Wales. Their long march, covering as much as twenty-six miles a day, ended when they encountered King Richard III’s army camped at Ambion Hill, close to Sutton Cheyney.

    The Battle of Bosworth is poorly documented, with no first-hand accounts surviving. Anything we read about the battle, therefore, has to be looked at closely to see who wrote it and when. One of the best summaries of the often conflicting accounts is Chris Skidmore’s book, Bosworth – The Birth of The Tudors. Even as Chris was writing the book, news emerged of a new location for the battlefield site, and the bones of Richard III were discovered in a car park as he completed the first draft.

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  • March 2016 Tudor Life Magazine

    Packed with a wide range of articles about Tudor personalities like the Dudleys, Elizabeth of York, Mary I, Isabella of Spain and Henry Howard. There is part one of an insider’s guide to the Tower of London, a detailed article about Greenwich Palace and Wroxhall Abbey, an article about some bizarre Tudor foods and lots more! It’s our best magazine yet!

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  • Watch The Welshman Who Killed Richard III Now!

    You can watch last night’s programme “Y Cymro a Laddodd Richard III” (The Welshman Who Killed Richard III) on the S4C website.

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  • Was Richard III Killed by a Welshman?

    If you have access to Welsh channel S4C then do tune in tomorrow night, Sunday 8th, at 8pm for Y Cymro a Laddodd Richard III (The Welshman Who Killed Richard III). Dr Susan Fern, who spoke to us last month about this very subject, was involved with the filming and it looks like it will be a very interesting programme.

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  • 7 November 1485 – Richard III and supporters attainted

    On 7th November 1485, at King Henry VII’s first Parliament, the late King Richard III and twenty-eight of his supporters were attainted, i.e. declared guilty of treason by bill of attainder.

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  • Good King Richard Play at Kennington, UK

    Information on the Good King Richard play at the White Bear Theatre, Kennington, UK.

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  • Transcript from Susan Fern’s Live Chat

    Here is the transcript of the session for those who weren’t able to make it live to Susan Fern’s chatroom session.

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  • Expert Talk: Susan Fern on Bosworth’s Lost Commander

    Here’s this month’s expert talk, a wonderful description of the times just before the battle of Bosworth, when the houses of Lancaster and York were both trying to win the support of Rhys ap Thomas and Wales.

    Susan Fern, author of “The Man Who Killed Richard III: Rhys ap Thomas” takes us step by step through these turbulent times and helps us to understand who Rhys was, and why he was to change the course of history.

    This is PART ONE of a two part talk recorded exclusively for the Tudor Society. Susan will be joining us live in the chatroom on 14th October, 10pm UK time.

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  • The Princes in the Tower – Philippa Langley aims to crack the case

    Philippa Langley, who, of course, spear-headed the Looking for Richard project, has announced that she is going to investigate the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower by teaming up with cold case experts.

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  • The Road to Bosworth by Sarah Bryson

    The Battle of Bosworth has gone down in record as one of the most pivotal battles in English history. The aftermath of the battle changed the course of England and saw a new monarch and dynasty come to the throne.

    The 1st of August 1485 was to be the day that Henry Tudor would finally leave France after fourteen years of exile in Brittany and France aiming to lay claim to the English throne. He set sail from Harfleur, France accompanied by approximately 400 Englishmen, 800 Scots and approximately 1500 French troops. The exact number of French troops is hard to estimate as different reports record different numbers.

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  • Richard III Cortege – Links for Photos and Videos

    Links for videos and photos of Richard III’s cortege in and around Leicester on 22 March 2015.

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  • Sky News

    Tudor Society members – please wish our member Catherine a huge “Good luck” with her interview tomorrow (Friday) with Sky News at Leicester Cathedral. Sky News are building up to the re-interment of Richard III and wanted to interview a member of our society.

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