buildings
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Edward II’s nieces: The Clare Sisters
Anne Neville, Bannockburn, burials, Caerphilly Castle, Clare Castle, Clare Priory, Edward I, Edward II, Edward IV, Eleanor de Clare, Elizabeth de Clare, Elizabeth of Rhuddlan, George Duke of Clarence, Gilbert de Clare, Gilbert Earl of Gloucester, Hugh Despencer the Younger, Ireland, Isobel Neville, Joan of Acre, Kathryn Warner, Lady Eleanor Talbot, Margaret de Clare, Richard III, Suffolk, unofficial executions, Wales… and so to the dark green volume in Kathryn Warner‘s series about Edward II, his family, his associates and his era. This one details the lives of three sisters with seven husbands between them and a lot of interesting descendants, including Richard III (and siblings), his wife and his sisters-in-law. The eldest, Eleanor de…
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Here is another fine old house for sale, although way out of my price bracket. I’ve learned of it courtesy of Country Life magazine. Hunton Court, formerly Court Lodge, is tucked away near Maidstone in Kent and you can read about it here. There is a link to the estate agent’s details of the property,…
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As I was wandering the deep valleys of darkest Wiltshire, I suddenly thought I was having a hallucination. Across the green rises, I spotted, not the usual line of ponies and horses…but three humpy Bactrian camels ambling along a trail! Not the kind of beasties one normally expects in the Wiltshire countryside. Apparently I was…
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While searching for an explanation of why some women in the 14th century were termed “Dame” I found that it meant they were a knight’s wife/widow. Apparently Dame preceded Lady, which came about in the 17th Century—or so it seems. I can’t quite believe that. Anyway, I also learned that it wasn’t unknown for women…
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Thanks to a TV documentary involving student stained-glass glaziers this viewer was taken to Canterbury Cathedral to see its astonishingly beautiful windows, some of which we learned have now been dated as early as the mid-1100s, maybe even the 1130s.. Léonie Seliger, the head of stained glass conservation at the cathedral, and part of the…
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So now we examine the case of the artist Raphael (d’Urbino), who lived from 1483-1520. He was officially betrothed, in 1514, to Maria Bibbiena, the niece of a Cardinal (left, painted in 1516), which implies the need for some propriety in the relationship. Canon law would definitely apply and the chance of secretly marrying her…
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I have been trying to understand the downfall of Eleanor Cobham. Not because I plan to write about her (life is too short) but purely because I like to understand events clearly. Eleanor was, of course, the wife of Duke Humphrey of Gloucester, Henry VI‘s youngest and last surviving uncle. I have no doubt at…
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As you may know, Richard III’s Book of Hours is housed in the Library of Lambeth Palace, the residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury, which is located just across the Thames from the Houses of Parliament. It was put on display for a limited period in the spring and I managed to find time to…
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“….Henry VII, doubtless after having taken good stock of the amenities of Ewelme Manor, during his self-proposed visit to Edmund de la Pole before the latter’s banishment, decided that it would be well-fitted for a country retreat, later on to be converted into a Royal Palace. In fact, it may have become to the King…
