I’m currently reading a fascinating book, written by Matthew Champion, about church graffiti of the medieval period. It is all kinds of interesting, not only for the information about witch marks and symbology, but also for the various cultural/historical asides it contains. For example, he explained the medieval – nay, pre-Christian – roots behind the shape of… Read more From Little Acorns Mighty Oaks Grow
Joan of Valois, Duchess of Berry, formerly a princess and a queen of France and now a founding member of the Order of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, passed away at the Annonciades of Bourges on 4 February 1505. Although she died a nun, she had not been born to wear the veil.… Read more Joan of Valois: Princess, Queen, Duchess, and Saint
King Ferdinand II of Aragon, one of the worst royal father’s in history, passed away on 23 January 1516 and was (oddly enough) lamented by his surviving children. His son-in-law, Henry VIII, whom he had betrayed more often than once, was so worried about distressing the heavily pregnant Katherina of Aragon that he waited until… Read more The Death of King Ferdinand II of Aragon
The 28th of December is the 4th Day of Christmas, and the Feast of the Holy Innocents, or Childermas. It is the commemoration of a terribly sad event. According to an account in the Gospel of Matthew, the Roman puppet-king of Judea, Herod the Great, “ordered the execution of all young male children in the… Read more The Boy Bishop on Childermas
Mary, Queen of Scots, was born on 8 December 1542, the last child and only daughter of Marie de Guise and King James V of Scotland. Mary’s two elder brothers had died as infants, and now the tiny newborn was heir to the throne of Scotland. John Knox recorded the almost certainly mythical tale that… Read more Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary
Queen Catherine of Valois gave birth to the future King Henry VI on 6 December 1421 at Windsor Castle. The queen would have given birth like any other woman of her era, with midwives attending and with her ladies to assist them. Medieval midwives were, in spite of modern calumny about them, very good at… Read more Henry VI, Long Reigned and Lost All
Some historians, many historical novelists, and even Cardinal Thomas Wolsey himself, have blamed his displacement from King Henry VIII’s favor on the machinations of Anne Boleyn. Wolsey called Anne “the midnight crow” and seems to have been entirely convinced that it was her influence and hers alone behind his loss of position. However, his fall… Read more Cardinal Wolsey and the Midnight Crow
William Blake was born on 28 November 1757 in London, the third child of a working class hosier. He would remain an obscure artist and poet while he lived, but would be posthumously recognized as one of the leading artistic figures of the Romantic Age. When he was 11 years old Blake’s parents paid £52.10… Read more In Praise of William Blake
Blanche of Castile, Queen of France and the warrior-regent who held the kingdom for her young son, King Louis IX, passed away on 27 November 1252, and it truly was a loss to the whole nation. Blanche was born on 4 March 1188, the third surviving daughter of King Alfonso VIII of Castile and Eleanor… Read more The White Queen of France, Blanche of Castile
Isabella I of Castile, co-ruler of Aragon and queen of most of the Iberian peninsula, passed away on 26 November 1504, causing a major shake-up of European politics — especially in Britain. Queen Isabella’s death was a terrible blow to her daughter, Katherina of Aragon, the widow of King Henry VII’s eldest son, Prince Arthur… Read more Isabella of Castile’s Death