Thomas Kranmer was born on 2 July 1489, and for his birthday I am reviewing an excellent novella-length book, Thomas Cranmer in a Nutshell by Beth Von Staats. “In Thomas Cranmer in a Nutshell, Beth von Staats discusses the fascinating life of Thomas Cranmer, from his early education, through his appointment to Archbishop of Canterbury,… Read more Review: Thomas Cranmer in a Nutshell by Beth Von Staats
There was as good reason Henry VII forbid his son Henry from jousting – it was dangerous as hell. The minute Henry VII died and the new King Henry VIII was in charge of his own life, he took up jousting in spite of the risk. Why? Because it was COOL, baby! Rock-star level coolness… Read more OUCH! A Splinter Takes Out King Henri II of France’s Eye in a Jousting Accident
Contrary to popular belief, Henry VIII wasn’t a tyrannical monster who chopped off heads willy-nilly … until 1535. Prior to that year, Henry was reluctant to use the axe when other solutions were possible and the worst thing he had done was separate Katherina of Aragon from their daughter, Mary. Even that wasn’t just being… Read more The Bloodbath Begins: Henry VIII Turns to the Axe
Contrary to popular belief, the Wars of the Roses wasn’t over when the Plantagenet king, Richard III of England, died at the Battle of Bosworth Field and the reign of King Henry VII began. The last pitched engagement of that war was not until two years later, on 16 June 1487, at the Battle of… Read more The REAL Final Battle of the War of the Roses … Almost
Thomas Cromwell was a human being, and like the rest of us he was caught somewhere between an ape and an angel. He was a man, and both the monster and the maven were a myth. He was devoted and ruthless, loyal and backstabbing, loving and heartless. To those whom he felt himself pledged he… Read more Cromwellian Complexity
On 25 May 1553, Lady Jane Grey married Lord Guilford Dudley, the fourth son of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, at the insistence of the dying King Edward VI. Although the whole thing was young king’s idea, poor Northumberland was cast as a criminal mastermind using a union between Lady Jane and his son to… Read more The Unjust Unpopularity of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland
I am in a bit of a quandary. Wither do I dither, you may ask? You see, it is International Women’s Day, many women are on strike for A Day Without Women, and there are too many things I want to blog about on this topic. On the one hand, I could blog about Jane… Read more International Women’s Day and Squirrels
I really, really enjoyed this book – plus I learned a lot of really interesting things about Tudor art and symbology! In 1572, the good looking and talented Nicholas Hillyarde paints the first of many portraits of Elizabeth I, England’s “Virgin Queen”. His ability to capture the likeness of his patrons make him famous and… Read more The Truth of the Line by Melanie Taylor
Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 3rd Marquess of Dorset wasn’t a bad man. He was a rather typical specimen of the ruthlessly self-interested and ambitious Tudor courtiers and not actively evil or anything. To the contrary, he was a zealously devote Protestant, although there is often a fine line between the actions of a… Read more Henry Grey Gets What’s Coming to Him
I must say that adored The Raven’s Widow, both as a historian and as an avid reader. The book is a narrative of the life of Jane Parker Boleyn, widow of George Boleyn and a woman who has been used as a malignant foil for many fictional writers based on unsubstantiated historical rumors and not… Read more The Raven’s Widow