genealogy
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Yes, yes, before you point it out, I know part of the following is my own fault for not reading the samples on Amazon. I’ve just purchased two books concerning the above battles in the Hundred Years War, one book is 239 pages long, the other 245. If I’d inspected the Amazon details fully…
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More praise for Philippa Langley’s discoveries concerning the Princes in the Tower….
“Princes”, Battle of Bosworth, Berkeley Castle, Coldridge, Dominic Smee, Edward II, Edward III, Elizabeth of York, Fieschi Letter, Henry IV, Henry VII, illegitimacy, John Ashdown-Hill, Kathryn Warner, Leicester dig, mtDNA evidence, Philippa Langley, Pontefract Castle, Richard II, Richard III, scoliosis, Sir William Stanley, stained glass, The Lost King, Titulus Regius, Titulus Regius 1486, usurpationPraise and admiration abound for Philippa Langley’s new discoveries and the book that tells all about the work she and her colleagues have been doing to trace what really happened to the boys in the Tower, the sons of Edward IV. Well, they were princes until 1483, then they were illegitimate boys, and then…
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There’s no doubt he did. Just see this link. The Edward IV Roll shows Edward mounted on a horse which is barded with a heraldic display. As you will see, Edward gives just as much prominence to the arms of Castile and Leon as he does to those of England and France. This is, very…
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Not the least of the interesting facts that emerge from Philippa Langley’s new book is that in August/September 1499, Margaret of Burgundy wrote a formal apology to Henry VII in an attempt to save ‘Perkin Warbeck’s’ life. At roughly the same time her son-in-law wrote to Henry VII offering friendship in an attempt to save…
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The church at Colyton is a handsome building which has a ‘lantern’ tower vaguely reminiscent of that at Fotheringhay. It is packed with interesting monuments, including those of the local Pole family (not, apparently, related to the more famous Poles.) The most intriguing monument, though, lies to the left of the high altar. It…
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It had never struck me before that the Dukes of Gloucester of the past haven’t been exactly fortunate. They might even be said to have been cursed. Well, that’s according to this article. The first creation was Thomas of Woodstock, youngest son of Edward III. He wasn’t a very pleasant man who pushed his nephew…
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Here they are again, John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and Katherine de Roët/Swynford, the mistress who became his third duchess and thereby caused a storm throughout society nd history. A storm that still reverberates today, because it’s from John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster that the House of Lancaster descends, and from both of…
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Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat, was the last man to be beheaded in Great Britain, in April 1747 following his arrest at the battle of Culloden. Lovat, who was about eighty, had backed both the Orange-Hanoverian and Jacobite causes alternately over the years. Of course, until 1973, anyone convicted of high treason could opt to…
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Being king in the medieval period was definitely not an easy ride of luxury, comfort, feasting, wine, women and song. Well, it was but it also had its drawbacks. Not only did one have to contend with foreign enemies (and enemies within your own ranks) but there were those pesky creatures called pretenders. Some of…