law

Isabel Mylbery – a possible daughter of King Edward IV

Oct 29, 2022

battles, genealogy, heraldry, law

Audley Family History Site, Blore Heath, Cornish rebellion, Deptford Bridge, Edward IV, executions, Garter King of arms, illegitimacy, Isabel Mylbery, Isabel of Castile, Isabel of York, John Lord Audley, John Touchet, Lord High Treasurer, offices of state, pardons, Richard III

Isabel Mylbery is quite obscure. The earliest evidence we have is from about 1510. Garter King-at-Arms recorded that she was ‘educata ut fert[ur] pre Regem E[dwardum] iiij’ which means, roughly, that she was brought up by Edward IV. She also bore lions and white roses in her coat of arms. None of this is remotely…
Exchanged treasures at celebrations of Richard II’s second marriage….

Oct 27, 2022

anniversaries, buildings, law, religion, sources

Anne of Bohemia, bears, Calais, Charles VI, Edward III, Forest of Ardres, France, Holy Trinity, nef, non-consummation, peace treaties, rainfall, Richard II, royal marriages, St. George, St. Michael, tents, tigers

In October 1396 King Richard II of England married for the second time. His first marriage had been a love match. He and Anne of Bohemia had adored each other and he’d been devastated by her sudden death, possibly of the plague. He was still only 28, a childless widower, and like his namesake the…
Good name, bad name, which monarch gets what….

Oct 25, 2022

anniversaries, law, religion

“wives”, Exmouth Journal, Henry VI, Henry VIII, James VII/II, John, Mary I, Mary II, monarchs, reputations, Richard III, Stephen, William III

Here is a shortish article about monarchs with a bad name. No prizes for predicting that it will include Richard III. However, it also deals with others. Stephen’s reign, for instance, was “an unmitigated disaster”, and Henry VI was also a disaster. Enough said about John. Henry VIII is remembered only for his six…
Edward IV’s “weird” death is listed…but his pointy shoes are even weirder…!

Oct 21, 2022

anniversaries, art, law

cartoons, Edward IV, executions, George Duke of Clarence, Malmsey, Poulaine shoes, royal deaths

An interesting article which includes George of Clarence and that butt of Malmsley. It also includes a (modernish) illustration of Edward IV that I hadn’t seen. I know I’ve written about pointy shoes before, but boy, those are SOME examples he’s wearing!
L’Erber – London Home to Warwick the Kingmaker and George Duke of Clarence

Oct 17, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, law, religion, sources, travel

Anne Neville, Barnet, Checkers Yard, Coldharbour, Crowland Chronicle, Dowgate Hill, Earl of Oxford, Edward IV, executions, George Duke of Clarence, Great Fire of London, Henry Lord Montagu, Henry VIII, high treason, Isobel Neville, John Strype, Kingsford, l’Erber, London, Margaret of Salisbury, Nevilles, past maps, Ralph Earl of Westmorland, Reformation, Reginald Cardinal Pole, Richard III, Richard III Society, Richard of Salisbury, Richard of Warwick, River Thames, sanctuary, Sir Francis Drake, St. Martin’s, Stow’s Survey, Thames Street, Tower of London, Visscher Panorama of London, Wars of the Roses, Warwick Lane, William Latimer

My latest A Medieval Potpourri @sparkypus.com post London before the Great Fire and much as Richard Neville ‘The Kingmaker’ and his family would have known it… L’Erber stood slightly to the north west of Coldharbour which is the large house seen here in middle of the picture and facing the Thames. No depiction of L’Erber…
The end of much of historic Westminster Palace…..

Oct 16, 2022

anniversaries, art, buildings, law, religion

1834 fire, architecture, Charles Barry, Old Palace Yard, Palace of Westminster, Pugin, Richard III, tally sticks

The above illustration marks the terrible scene on 16 October 1834 when fire consumed the Palace of Westminster, which had been there, gradually expanding in various styles, since the 11th century. Then, in one night, it was destroyed. The cause, it’s believed, was the careless disposal of tally sticks in a furnace; the result was…
The house owned by Sir Thomas Wyatt, the man accused of being Anne Boleyn’s lover….

Oct 11, 2022

anniversaries, buildings, law, religion

adultery, Anne Boleyn, Country Life, Court Lodge, Dissolution of the Monasteries, Hasted, Henry VIII, High Sheriffs, Hunton Court, Kent, poets, property sales, Sir Thomas Wyatt, Tower of London

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,…
A medieval woman who competed in a mounted duel and won….!

Oct 7, 2022

buildings, culture, law

ABC News, Agnes Hotot, chivalry, female jousting, John V Duke of Brittany, Kenilworth Castle, Order of the Ermine, Order of the Garter, titles

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…
Useful Charts goes to Portugal

Oct 5, 2022

anniversaries, genealogy, law, religion

Catherine of Braganza, Charles II, Henry of Portugal, Joanna, John of Gaunt, Manoel II, Miguel I, Napoleonic wars, Phillip II, Phillippa of Lancaster, Portugal, Richard III, Useful Charts

John of Gaunt‘s daughter married one of their kings, Richard III tried to marry the sister of another (whilst Charles II did) and a cardinal succeeded to their throne as the last legitimate domestic heir but wasn’t allowed to resign holy orders and died a year or so later, to be succeeded by the Spanish…
The art of marrying in secret

Oct 4, 2022

art, buildings, law, religion

Adele, Andre Previn, artists, Beatrice, Cardinal Bibbieni, clues, convent of Sant’ Appolonia, Dan Snow, Ed Sheeran, Edward IV, Emma Bunton, John Lennon, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, La Fornarini, Louis XIV, Margareta Luti, Maria Bibbieni, mediaeval canon law, nuns, Raphael, secret marriage

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…