genealogy
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When an article is entitled War of the Roses: A Brief Timeline, subtitled ‘Emily Hewat gives a crash course on the history behind Yorkshire and Lancaster’s epic rivalry and the origin of the Roses Tournament itself’ one rather expects the correct times! But no. What you find is:- “….Our story starts in 1454 with the…
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MAD, MURDEROUS MABEL
“Poisoned Chalice”, Arnulf, Arundel Castle, books, Bridgnorth Castle, Bure Castle, Earl of Shrewsbury, Ela of Salisbury, Eleanor of Castile, Giroie family, Haburga, Hugh Bunel, Mabel de Belleme, marriages, Matilda of Blois, mediaeval women, murder, Norman invasion, Normandy, Orderic Vitalis, Robert de Belleme, Roger de Montgomery, ships, William I, William Talvas de Belleme, William Talvas IVMany people still hold to the idea that all medieval women were quiet, timid, and downtrodden, unable to defend themselves and at the mercy of others. Clearly they have never heard of Mabel de Belleme! Mabel was a Norman noblewoman, born sometime in the 1030’s to William Talvas de Belleme and his first wife, Haburga.…
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The Daughters of Edward I
Amesbury Abbey, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, Burgos, Clare Priory, deposition, Edward I, Edward II, Edward IV, Eleanor Crosses, Eleanor of Castile, Elizabeth Countess of Hereford, Elizabeth of Rhuddlan, Hardingstone, Israel, Joan of Acre, John Ashdown-Hill, Kathryn Warner, Lady Eleanor Talbot, Laura Culme-Seymour, Lucy Walter, Maria Smythe, Mary I, North Wales, Northampton, nuns, Royal Marriage Secrets, royal marriages, SpainKathryn Warner‘s latest tome has arrived and soon raised memories of Ashdown-Hill’s Eleanor, as two of the daughters in question – Joan of Acre (twice) and Elizabeth of Rhuddlan – are among the ancestors of Lady Eleanor Talbot, Lucy Walter, “Mrs. Fitzherbert” (Maria Smythe) and Laura Culme-Seymour, as shown in Royal Marriage Secrets and replicated here.…
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Here is a Daily Telegraph review of Charles, Earl Spencer‘s book about the sinking of the White Ship in 1120. It includes a lot of hypotheses based upon the survival of William the Atheling, the tenager who was Henry I‘s only surviving legitimate son but was the most prominent casualty of this maritime incident, arguably…
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Sorry, Frederick Forsyth and John Stonehouse, but Henry VII did it first
“Perkin”, Anne Wroe, Austin Friars, Australia, Burgundy, Edward of Warwick, executions, faked death, false identities, Frederick Forsyth, Henry VII, John Stonehouse, Margaret of Burgundy, Miami, Richard of Shrewsbury, The Day of the Jackal, torture, Tournoi, Tower of London, Walsall, Westminster AbbeyI expect you all know the basic premise of Forsyth’s The Day of the Jackal (published in 1971). A mysterious and ruthless assassin obtains a birth certificate and passport in the name of someone who died as a child, before setting out to kill de Gaulle. In 1974, John Stonehouse followed this method by “borrowing”…
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Richard III WASN’T buried under a car park….!
“facts”, accidents, age of universe, car parks, diamond, hard materials, inbreeding, John Ashdown-Hill, Leicester dig, Leicester Greyfriars, Leicester University, mtDNA, Neanderthals, Philippa Langley, planets, Richard III, Richard III burial, senses, speed of light, split infinitives, Star Trek, states of matter, to boldly go, Tutankhamun, waterA list of ten facts that were taught at school but are no longer true has been published at this site. It’s a very interesting list with some things that I really didn’t know about, but at number 8 is the following:- “[Untrue fact} NO-ONE KNOWS WHERE RICHARD III’S BODY IS. “Correction: He was buried…
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This was shown on BBC2 during August and the subject has been covered several times in recent years, not least with our old friend Dr. Starkey. However, I am pleased I watched it for two reasons. The first is that The Boleyns: A scandalous family discussed the situation from the perspective of Thomas Boleyn seeking…
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Ralph Neville, second Earl of Westmorland.
AJ Pollard, Cockermouth Castle, Elizabeth Holland, Elizabeth Percy, Holands, Joan “Beaufort”, Margaret Cobham, Percies, property disputes, Raby Castle, Ralph 2nd Earl of Westmorland, Ralph Earl of Westmorland, Richard III, Richard of Salisbury, Rising of the North, Sir John Neville, Sir Thomas Neville, Towton, Wars of the RosesRalph Neville (about 1406 to 1484) was the son of Sir John Neville and Elizabeth Holland. Sir John was the eldest son of Ralph Neville, Earl of Westmorland by his first wife, Margaret Stafford, while Elizabeth was one of the late 14th Century’s answer to the Mitford Sisters, the Holland sisters who married anyone who…
