anniversaries

Medieval tombs weren’t commenced at the time of death….

Mar 20, 2022

anniversaries, art, buildings, religion

Blanche of Lancaster, Canterbury Cathedral, Edward Despenser, Edward of Woodstock, Great Fire of London, Henry IV, John of Gaunt, London, Mary de Bohun, Old St. Paul’s, Richard Beauchamp Earl of Warwick, Richard II, royal tombs, Tewkesbury Abbey

According to this article about the tomb of Edward of Woodstock, the “Black Prince”, at Canterbury: “….The study also re-dates the effigy to a decade after Edward’s death, suggesting that although Richard II faithfully followed his father’s instructions, it did not happen immediately….” Perhaps it should be remembered that Richard II was only ten…
You never know what could be lying around in your shed….!

Mar 17, 2022

anniversaries, archaeology

armour, Australia, chainmail, hauberk, horary quadrant, Ireland, Richard II, sheds

Amazingly, a 12th-century Norman chainmail hauberk has been found in an Irish shed. Apart from rust, it’s in perfect condition! Unbelievable. Not only do I find little more than useless pieces of clay pipe in my garden, but everything in my shed is guarded by an army of large, vicious warrior spiders in league with…
The death of Richard III’s consort….

Mar 16, 2022

anniversaries, battles, law, sources

“Tudor” propaganda, Anne Neville, Barrie Williams, Battle of Bosworth, Countess of Oxford, eclipse, Edward IV, Edward of Lancaster, Edward of Middleham, Elizabeth of York, George Duke of Clarence, Hastings Execution, Henry VI, Portuguese marriage plans, Richard III, royal deaths

Today in 1485 Anne Neville died, leaving the king a childless widower. Well, without legitimate children, for Richard had at least two illegitimate children, born before his marriage. The only trueborn child, Edward of Middleham had died almost exactly a year before, on 9 April 1484. Richard had to marry again after Anne—kings need…
The Sisters Neville – Isobel, Duchess of Clarence and Queen Anne Neville, Daughters to the Kingmaker.

Mar 14, 2022

anniversaries, art, battles, buildings, law, religion, sources

alcohol, Amboise Cathedral, Anne Beauchamp, Anne Neville, Annette Carson, Barnet, Baynard’s Castle, Beauchamp Pageant, Beaulieu Abbey, bigamy, Calais, Clarence Vault, Crowland Chronicle, dispensations, Edgecote, Edward IV, Edward of Lancaster, Edward of Middleham, Edward V, executions, Farleigh Hungerford, George Duke of Clarence, George Neville, Henry VI, Hicks, Honfleur, illegitimacy, Isabel Neville, John Ashdown-Hill, John Lord Wenlock, John Neville Marquis of Montagu, King’s Lynn, l’Erber, Lincolnshire rebellion, Louis XI, loyalty, Luton Guild Book, Margaret of Anjou, Paul Murray Kendall, Richard Earl Rivers, Richard III, Richard of Warwick, Rous Roll, Royal College of Arms, royal marriages, Sir John Woodville, Sir Robert Welles, Southampton, St. Martin le Grand, St. Stephen’s Westminster, Tewkesbury, Tewkesbury Abbey, Tony Pollard, Tower of London, Warwick Castle

Reblogged from A Medieval Potpourri sparkypus.com Warwick Castle birthplace of both the Neville sisters. Photo with thanks to Scotty Rae @Flkr. Richard Neville and Anne Beauchamp, Earl and Countess of Warwick had in their long marriage just two daughters. If there were any initial disappointment about that there was always Plan B, that illustrious marriages could…
The joys of rubbish in medieval London….

Mar 12, 2022

anniversaries, buildings, culture, religion

Calendar of Close Rolls, London, Richard II, rubbish, seagulls, Tower of London, Westminster, Winchester

Oh dear, just as we start imagining the romantic, colourful side of life in medieval London, we’re obliged to consider the other side of that particular coin. My trawlings through the Close Rolls and Richard II brought me to the following entry for 12 March 1393: “….To the bailiffs of Westminster of the abbot of…
Rob Bell explains …

Mar 10, 2022

anniversaries, buildings, television reviews, travel

Beverley, Cornwall, fraud, George Hudson, Hull, Hull Paragon, Leeds, line closures, Lord Mayor of York, railway stations, railways, Rob Bell, Selby, Sunderland, York, York station

“Walking Britain’s Lost Railways” is back, for a fourth series, starting in Yorkshire. As well as walking the former York to Hull route, Bell explains why the East Coast Main Line, as it now is, passes through York and not Leeds, although the latter is now more than four times larger. This situation, in which…
Another mystery solved?

Mar 9, 2022

anniversaries, buildings, films

Cardinal Mazarin, Charles II, espionage, Eustache, Eustache Dauger, France, Harry Thompson, History Extra, Josephine Josepha Wilkinson, Louis XIII, Louis XIV, Man in the Iron Mask, mysteries, Pignerol, prisoners, Saint-Mars, Versailles, Voltaire

So, has the case of “The Man in the Iron Mask” been solved at last? The 1998 film suggested that, in accordance with Voltaire’s theory (via Dumas), he was Louis XIV‘s unknown elder twin, imprisoned since birth – in the same way that James II had a twin, Alexander, who died after a few hours.…
John of Gaunt by Kathryn Warner

Mar 6, 2022

anniversaries, genealogy, law, sources

biographies, Blanche of Lancaster, Caherine de Roet, character, Constanza of Castile, Edmund of Langley, Edward the Black Prince, generosity, greed, John of Gaunt, Kathryn Warner, Lancastrians, Lionel of Antwerp, Thomas of woodstock, translation, wills

This is a very valuable new biography of John of Gaunt. As usual with this author, the incredibly complex network of family relationships is successfully navigated. There is a fair amount of ‘correction of the record’. For example, Duchess Blanche did not die of plague in 1369, but of unknown causes in 1368. Duchess Constanza…
THE SECRET TUNNEL OF TINTERN ABBEY

Mar 5, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, religion

Cistercians, de Clares, Elizabeth Wydeville, Katherine Plantagenet, Lords of Chepstow, Mary Wydeville, royal burials, secret tunnels, St. James Garlickhythe, Tintern Abbey, Wales, William Herbert Earl of Huntingdon, William Herbert Earl of Pembroke

Legends about tunnels leading to and fro churches and abbeys are rife throughout the British Isles. However, there are very few such tunnels actually proven to exist. Most of them are, in fact, remains of cellars and store rooms. However, a recent discovery at Tintern Abbey in Wales had indeed discovered what definitely is a…
Sir Thomas Pilkington

Mar 2, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, heraldry, religion

Alexander de Pilkington, arms, attainder, Bishops of Durham, Bosworth, Bury, Bury castle, Edward IV, Henry VII, Lancashire towns, Lord Mayors of London, Oldham, pardons, Pilkington glass, pub signs, Richard III, Scotland, siege of Berwick, Sir Thomas Pilkington, Stand Old Hall, Stanleys, Stoke Field, The man and Scythe, Thomas Stanley

Sir Thomas Pilkington, of Pilkington, Bury and various other places, led his tenants and retainers to Bosworth to fight for Richard III. Whether they got there in time is not 100% clear but Sir Thomas was attainted and lost his Lancashire lands. You’ll never guess which family received them. Yes, those caring, sharing Stanleys, in…