battles
pilltown
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One of our members visited Winchester in September, with his family. Here is a selection of photos, relating to Alfred, the C12 Civil War, the Cathedral and the site of Jane Austen’s death: Not a Hicksosaurus in sight …
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KEY TO THE CASTLE: LUMLEY CASTLE AND ITS OWNERS
Bamburgh Castle, Edward IV, Epiphany Rising, executions, George Lumley, Henry IV, Henry V, Henry VII, hotels, John Earl of Somerset, John Lumley, Lumley Castle, Margaret “Tudor”, Pilgrimage of Grace, Richard III, Scottish campaign 1482, siege of Berwick, sieges, Sir Ralph Lumley, Thomas Lumley, Wars of the RosesRecently it hit the news that the key to Lumley Castle’s ancient banqueting hall had been returned after it was stolen during an event 40 years ago. Lumley Castle is currently a hotel (so another one to add to the list of interesting castles you can stay in!) and the family who lived there had…
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Here is Mercedes Rochelle’s excellent post about Tostig Godwinson, brother of Harold II. He was Earl of Northumbria for ten years before the rebellion in that region in late 1065. He then tried to overthrow Harold from the south in May and from the north in September, with Norwegian support, ending in his defeat and…
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The Rise of the Clans
A History of Scotland, Alexander III, assassination, BBC1 Scotland, BBC4, Clan Hepburn, Clan Lennox Stuart, Clan MacDonald, Clan Stewart, clans, Douglas clan, Dukes of Albany, Dukes of Norfolk, Earls of Arundel, Edward II, England, executions, exile, Fitzalan, Fitzalans, Fotheringhay, Henry Lord Darnley, House of Stewart, Howards, James Earl of Bothwell, James Earl of Morton, James I, James Stewart Earl of Moray, Joan “Beaufort”, John Balliol, John Knox, Kirk o’Fields, Lancastrians, Lords of the Isles, Margaret of Norway, Mary Stuart, Neil Oliver, Perth, Red Comyn, Richard III, Robert I, Robert II, Robert III, Scottish Reformation, Walter Earl of AthollNeil Oliver‘s latest history series has been shown through December on Monday evenings (BBC1 Scotland) and twenty-four hours later on BBC4. The first part, of three, showed how the power vacuum caused by the sudden deaths of Alexander III and his granddaughter was resolved through the clan system and John Balliol’s abdication so that alliances…
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The Battle of Wakefield took place on 30th December, 1460. It ended when Richard, Duke of York, lost his life. As did his second son, Edmund, Earl of Rutland. The victors were the Lancastrians, in the name of their feeble-minded king, Henry VI. York’s claim to the throne finally came to fruition in the forms…
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It was fortunate for Henry V that someone on the Orleanist side of politics decided to murder the Duke of Burgundy. This persuaded the new duke, Philippe the “Good” to take Henry’s side, a development which led to the Treaty of Troyes and Henry’s marriage to fair Catherine of France. Henry had by this time…
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Agnes Lancecrona and Robert de Vere
Agnes Lancecrona, Anne of Bohemia, annulment, Chester, crown jewels, Czechoslovakia, Earls of Oxford, Edmund of Langley, Ireland, John of Gaunt, Ladies of the Bedchamber, Marquess of Dublin, marriages, Philippa de Coucy, Radcot Bridge, rebellion, Richard II, Robert de Vere Duke of Ireland, Thomas of woodstockRobert de Vere (1362-1392) Earl of Oxford, found great favour with Richard II and was elevated first to the title of Marquess of Dublin and then in October 1386 to the dukedom of Ireland. This was the very first dukedom awarded outside the immediate royal family, and was, in effect, a “fingers up” to Richard’s…
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It is important to remember that medieval governments could not issue paper money. Ultimately, everything had to be paid for in hard cash, although it was commonplace for creditors to be made to wait, in some cases for a very long time. The English royal government was not outstandingly rich. Its sources of income were…
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Henry IV had the image of a warrior. It was just as well as no sooner was he established on the throne than he was fighting in Wales, Scotland, Ireland and France, as well as beating off his internal enemies. So it will not surprise you that the country was soon bankrupt, and that Henry…
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The above illustration is of the British Crown Jewels as we know them now, but there were predecessors, long gone now, thanks to the efforts of Oliver Cromwell, who had no truck with such baubles. We are inclined to forget that there was a Welsh crown too, until it was seized by Edward I in…
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