The New Murrey and Blue blog

religion

Hard time to be a woman?

Dec 3, 2022

culture, law, religion

Anne of Bohemia, business, Castle Phillippe, demolition, dowries, Earls of March, femme sole, Joan “Beaufort”, Joanna Fitzalan, John of Gaunt, jointure, marriage, Mr. Knightly, nuns, Ralph Earl of Westmorland, Richard Earl of Arundel, Richard II, service, Sheen, Sir John Mohun, Thomas Earl of Kent, widows, William Lord Bergavenny

Of late I have read quite a few posts on Facebook bemoaning the tough lot women had in the Middle Ages. Well yes, their lives could be very hard. But so could those of medieval men. It’s important not to generalise too much. There were certainly men who valued their wives very highly. We need…
Five interesting archaeological discoveries….

Dec 1, 2022

archaeology, battles, buildings, genealogy, religion, Science

Ancient Egypt, Bosworth, child sacrifice, Georgia, John Ashdown-Hill, Leicester dig, Leicester Greyfriars, Leicester University, maps, mtDNA, mummified remains, Peru, Philippa Langley, Queen Nerfertari, radio carbon dating, Rameses II, Richard III, Saint Belec Slab, Tblisi, winemaking, wounds

According to this article there have been five interesting archaeological discoveries in the past decade. First among them, of course, is the finding of Richard III’s remains:- “….When King Richard III was killed at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, he was buried in the church of the Grey Friars. In 2012, The Richard III Society…
Were the English, Welsh, Irish and Scots once all Celts…?

Nov 29, 2022

anniversaries, culture, genealogy, religion

“Tudor” propaganda, “Tudors”, American War of Independence, Anglo-Saxons, Ben Nevis, Brittany, Carrauntoohil, Celts, Merriam-Webster, mountains, Normans, Patrick Sims-Williams, Pilgrim Fathers, Roman Britain, Scafell Pike, Simon Jenkins, Snowdon, Times Literary Supplement

I haven’t read Sir Simon Jenkins’ book The Celts: A Sceptical History, and to be honest I don’t think I’m likely to. Like Jenkins, I too am half-Welsh and half-English, but I don’t fancy being descended from “sociable sailors”. What’s the old saying about sailors having a girl in every port? I should imagine…
The Death and Burial of Constance of York

Nov 28, 2022

anniversaries, buildings, genealogy, law, religion, sources

Anne Beauchamp the Younger, burial, Constance of York, delayed burial, Despensers, Henry I, intestacy, Reading Abbey, Richard Beauchamp, Tewkesbury Chronicle, The Yorkist Age

(Reblogged from The Yorkist Age.) According to the Tewkesbury Chronicle Constance died in 1417 ( recte November 1416) but was not buried until 1420. This is hard to explain, and may simply be an error. However, given that Constance left no will behind her, there is a good possibility that her death was sudden and unexpected. She…
Did Geoffrey of Monmouth tell us the truth….?

Nov 26, 2022

religion, sources

Geoffrey of Monmouth, Historia Regum Angliae, historical accuracy, Wales

Well, of course Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. But if, by any wild chance, his Historia Regum Britanniae is a flight of immense fancy, well that’s alright by me because it’s a wonderful work. 😊 To read more, go to this link.
Lady Mary Howard married the bastard son of Henry VIII….

Nov 25, 2022

anniversaries, archaeology, buildings, genealogy, religion, sources

“Tudors”, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, Admiral Thomas Seymour, Anne Boleyn, Arthur “Tudor”, Bess Holland, Countess of Nottingham, Devonshire Manuscript, Duchess of Richmond, Duchess of Somerset, Edward VI, Eric Ives, Exhumation, Henry Fitzroy, Howards, illegitimate children, John Foxe, Kenninghall, Lady Mary Howard, Lissa Bryan, Mary I, non-consummation, Reigate Castle, royal marriages, St. Michael’s Church Framlingham, Thomas Earl of Surrey, Victorians

I found the article below at this site where the numerous posts are Tudor-oriented (Henry VIII), but very interesting and informative. The article is given in full to tempt you into visiting the site to read all the others:- “….On November 25th or 26th, 1533, Henry FitzRoy married Lady Mary Howard. “….Mary Howard…
Pembroke didn’t pop the Weasel when it should have….!

Nov 23, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, law, religion

“Perkin”, “Princes”, “Tudor” propaganda, Arthur, attainders, Battle of Bosworth, Brittany, Cadwallader, Catherine de Valois, Edmund “Tudor”, Edward IV, Edward of Warwick, Elizabeth of York, French mercenaries, Henry V, Henry VII, Jasper “Tudor”, Lady Margaret Beaufort, parsimony, Pembroke Castle, pike wall, Richard Duke of York, Richard III, statues, Titulus Regius, Wales

Well, the first part of a riveting, absolutely factual series about Henry VII was warning enough. I confess to having had to read the first sentence twice, because first time around I thought Edmund Tudor was fighting against the Duke of York’s men and Edmund’s own wife, Margaret Beaufort, who was Henry’s underage mother. Shame on…
The art that made us

Nov 8, 2022

anniversaries, art, battles, buildings, culture, humour, religion, Science, television reviews

Aphra Benn, Armada, Arts and Crafts, Barbara Hepworth, Battle of Hastings, Bayeux Tapestry, BBC2, Beowulf, Black Death, Bloomsbury Group, British Empire, Burns, Charles I, Colonel Blimp, Cool Britannia, Damien Hirst, David Hockney, David Threlfall, Death and the Gallant, Elizabeth Gaskell, Elizabeth I, embroidery, English Civil War, Festival of Britain, First World War, Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, Geoffrey Chaucer, Great Fire of London, Hanif Kureishi, Harry Potter, Hogarth, Industrial Revolution, Jane Austen, Jarrow march, John Foxe, John Milton, Jonathan Swift, Joshua Reynolds, Julian of Norwich, kitchen sink drama, Llancarfon, Margery Kempe, Mary Stuart, murals, Norman conquest, Oliver Cromwell, Phillip Larkin, Piers Plowman, poetry, pre-Raphaelites, Reformation, Restoration, Richard II, Roman Britain, Rubens, satire, Second World War, Sir Christopher Wren, Sir William Orpen, St. Cadoc’s church, St. Paul’s, stained glass, Stuarts, The art that made us, The Fighting Temeraire, The unknown soldier, Tracey Emin, Trainspotting, Turner, urbanisation, van Dyck, Walter Sickert, Welsh Bible, William Cobbett, William Morgan, William Shakespeare, Wilton Diptych, York Minster

This is another fascinating BBC2 series, illustrating English and British history through the evolution of our art. The eight one-hour episodes, narrated by David Threlfall (Men of the World), feature:The Roman and pre-Roman periods, Beowulf, the Norman conquest and the Bayeux Tapestry; The Black Death, Wilton Diptych, Piers Plowman, Chaucer, Julian of Norwich,…
John Montagu, 3rd Earl of Salisbury (c 1350-1400)

Nov 7, 2022

anniversaries, battles, genealogy, religion

Anne Neville, Barons Montagu, Christine de Pizan, Cirencester, Conwy, Counter-Appellants, Edward I, Epiphany Rising, Henry IV, Henry V, Ireland, Isabel Neville, Joan “Beaufort”, Joan of Acre, John Earl of Salisbury, Lollards, Lord Mayors of London, Lord Morley, Mary de Bohun, Maud Francis, Monthermer Barony, Nevilles, Orleans, Parliament, poetry, Prussia, Ravenspur, Richard II, Richard of Salisbury, Richard of Warwick, summary executions, Thomas Earl of Salisbury, Thomas of woodstock, Wakefield, William Earl of Salisbury

John Montagu (or Montacute) was the son of Sir John Montagu, 1st Baron Montagu (d 1390) and Margaret de Monthermer. It follows that he descended from Joan of Acre, and through her, from King Edward I. He was also the nephew (and, as it proved, the heir) of William Montagu, 2nd Earl of Salisbury. There…
STAINDROP CHURCH, A NEVILLE MAUSOLEUM

Nov 5, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, heraldry, religion, sources

Battle of Neville’s Cross, Biblioteque National, Branchepeth Church, Cecily Duchess of York, Charles Alfred Stothard, Charles Ross, churches, Durham, Durham Cathedral, Edward IV, Euphemia de Clavering, graffiti, Joan “Beaufort”, Joanna Laynesmith, Lincoln Cathedral, livery collars, Margaret Stafford, Marjorie Neville, Nevilles, Raby Castle, Ralph Baron Neville, Ralph Earl of Westmorland, Richard III, Richard of Salisbury, Richard of Warwick, Staindrop Church, tombs, W.E. Hampton

REBLOGGED FROM A Medieval Potpourri @ sparkypus.com Ralph Neville Earl of Westmorland and his two wives. Staindrop Church, Durham. Ralph Neville by his wife Joan Beaufort, was the father of Cicely Neville, mother of two kings – Edward IV and Richard III. This drawing was made by Charles A Stothard c.1811 and shows them minus the graffiti.…