battles
pilltown
-
My devotion to watching TV documentaries often turns up odd bits and pieces. This time the culprit is “Curse of the Vampire” from Mythical Beasts, series 1, episode 3, shown on Sky History 2. As you might expect, the theme was the strong medieval belief that the dead could return to torment the living as…
-
I have to say that Greasley isn’t a castle that comes easily to mind, even though a former occupant fought for Richard III at Bosworth. It’s in Nottinghamshire, dates to the 14th century, and was larger and more opulent than Haddon Hall, which I do know, of course. A certain Nicholas de Cantilupe built…
-
In 2011/2012 a hoard of medieval artefacts was discovered down a well at the remains of castle of Caherduggan, near Doneraile, Co Cork. It included a complete peytrel/peytral/poitrel for a horse, which names derive from pectoral. Peytrels were worn around the horse’s chest, and although I’d never heard the name before, I recognised what it…
-
We all know the story of John of Gaunt and Katherine Swynford/de Roët. It was a wonderful, passionate love affair that ended with Gaunt, a prince of the realm, making the relatively lowly Katherine his third duchess. Yes, a great romance, and it was fact, not fiction. However, historically speaking, both of them had…
-
Recently I went on a little jaunt to visit some fine Welsh Castles. One of those happened to be Carew in Pembrokshire, an impressive limestone fortress overlooking Carew inlet, which is part of the Milford Haven Waterway. Built by the Norman Gerald of Windsor, the site stands on the lands of his wife, the…
-
In 1456 the aggressive King of Scots, James II, sent an armed expedition against the Isle of Man. As is well-known, Man was at this time a private lordship owned by the then Stanleys, who was known as ‘King of Man.’ Retaliation was swift and led by Stanley’s son, Thomas – yes, he of Bosworth…
-
The “awkward mediaeval cities” (3) : St. Alban’s
battlefields, blue plaque, Boudicca, Colchester, destruction, Edmund Duke of Somerset, Eleanor Crosses, Elizabeth I, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Humphrey of Gloucester, Jean II, John Ball, London, Luton, martyrs, museums, Northampton, Oxford, Poitiers, Roman Britain, Roman theatre, Second Battle of St. Albans, Skipton Building Society, St. Alban, St. Albans, St. Albans Cathedral, Thameslink, Verulam Park, Verulamium Roman Museum, Victoria Street, Wars of the Roses, Watford JunctionUnlike Northampton and Oxford, St. Alban’s (City) is on the Thameslink network and also has a branch line to Watford Junction. Accommodation can be expensive but the less historic Luton is surprisingly convenient as a base, being about fourteen minutes away on the same line and costing about five pounds for a day return. Turning right…
-
Sir William Stanley – Turncoat or Loyalist..
“Perkin”, “Princes”, Aspenden Church, badges, Battle of Bosworth, burial, Cheshire, Constable of England, crown, executions, Flint Castle, Francis Viscount Lovell, hawthorn bush, Helen Maurer, Henry VII, high treason, James Gairdner, Joan Lady Lovell, Lady Margaret Beaufort, Lord Chamberlain, Michael Bennett, Michael K Jones, Richard III, Sir William Stanley, Skipton, Syon, Thomas Lord Stanley, W.E. Hampton, William Catesby, William Stanley juniorUPDATED POST FROM A MEDIEVAL POTPOURRI @sparkypus.com Sir William Stanley crowning Henry Tudor with the fallen King Richard’s crown in the aftermath of the Battle of Bosworth. Unknown artist.. It is well documented how, through the treasonable and treacherous actions of Sir William Stanley at Bosworth, Richard III lost his crown and his life. He…
